Nothing is impossible, it is a sentence that is often heard in places that have a sense of motivation. Motivation is often a crucial value in our daily lives. Because, its presence can revive our enthusiasm to rise from adversity or misfortune.
Talking about disadvantage, we are used to seeing it (and experiencing it) in the practice of everyday life. There were those who failed to pass the military academy test, so the most severe of course was failing to rise in class. Either the class at school or class in the realm of work or profession. This can also happen in the field of football. Not a few teams have tried to play well and continue to create opportunities, but failed to win. There are also those who have a series of quality players, but failed to win. A situation that is certainly very undesirable, but in fact often happens.Not only at club level, even at the national team level this kind of thing can happen. The most recent is the 2019 African Cup final. The confederation tournament which was held in the same year as the American Cup (Copa America / Conmebol) and the Gold Cup (Gold Cup / Concacaf), has completed its top party by bringing Senegal vs Algeria.
Victory and defeat clearly must occur in this fight. Similarly, the existence of luck and misfortune that overshadow the two national teams. Until as we know, that luck turned out to be in favor of the Algerian national team, while the Senegal national team had to be willing to be runners-up. Unlike the Copa America final which was won by a team that was able to perform more effectively and was lucky enough. Especially if juxtaposed with the Women’s World Cup final, there it is closer to necessity than luck. However, in the African Cup final which this year was held in the country of Mohammed Salah, it actually gave birth to the champion based on luck. Indeed there is an effort, that is certain. But with a little effort, Algeria was able to beat Senegal with a capital goal quickly in the first minute. Increasingly fortunate, when the goal was born with “help” Salif Sane (Senegal defender) who intends to close the shooting room of Baghdad Bounedjah. The ball that was released by the Al Sadd striker turned out to be difficult to predict the direction of the fall, so that the Senegalese goalkeeper did not move.
Indeed, for some people can think that why Alfred Gomis did not move to pursue the direction of the fall of the ball. However, for people who have experienced the experience of playing football, of course, can understand what was experienced by the Senegalese goalkeeper. Please note, when someone plays soccer, what is more reliable in action on the field is instinct (the result of training). Namely, there are already habits that are trained and recorded in the head of how a person responds to situations in the field. Especially if it is a goalkeeper, then a goalkeeper must always be ready to respond as quickly as possible to the movement of the ball.
This situation is clearly different from the players in other positions. Especially when compared to midfielders who are very demanding intelligence in seeing the game situation in a complex manner. While a goalkeeper is more required to be able to respond quickly rather than thinking first. In addition, Gomis has also been in an improper positioning. He looks a little ahead because (maybe) he suspects the ball can be “picked up” away from the bar. However, it turns out the ball is still soaring and falling swooping just a few centimeters in front of the crossbar.
Then, is this Sane’s fault? Of course not. Because, closing the shooting room is an important task of a defender. So, Sane (actually) has done his job well. However, misfortune “overshadowed” himself, so that the bounce ball from the action actually went into his net. A score of 1-0 was created for Algeria’s superiority, and Sadio Mane et al tried hard to equalize.
Various efforts and opportunities produced by the Senegal squad. However, the effort is often deadlocked. The Algerian goalkeeper’s excellent performance and also the cancellation of the penalty claim, made Senegal unable to defeat his misfortune in the final. Conversely, Riyad Mahrez and his friends were able to embrace the champions with great luck. Although, it also could not be separated from efforts to maintain their superiority throughout the match. This victory also shows us that a success does not only talk about big business (constantly), but also needs luck.
Without luck, business is only a motivational savings to remain confident that there is still another chance tomorrow. While with luck, today can enjoy success, then tomorrow must be able to maintain it. That is, success does not only speak today, but also tomorrow. Because, not necessarily luck is back. It could be tomorrow is the time for other people to enjoy their luck. This also applies to the Senegal national team. Although they failed to win this year, there is hope that in the following years they will be even better. As for the Algerian squad, they must return to Earth to be able to maintain their foundation so that their greatness does not fade quickly.
ASL