Chapter 476 - 82 — England Vs Italy - Ten Minutes I

Demien woke before his alarm on Tuesday, October 17th, lying still in the dark hotel room for several seconds.

Southgate’s words from the night before came back immediately.

You start tomorrow.

He wasn’t wondering if it was real.

He was already thinking about Italy — about Barella and Cristante and Di Lorenzo, about ninety minutes standing between England and Germany next summer.

He pressed two fingers into the bruised spot on his ankle first.

Mildly tender, still.

He rotated it slowly, weight shifting through the joint.

Normal.

He flexed both calves next, feeling the accumulated weight of a season that had barely paused for him, then sat up and got moving before his body had time to talk him out of it.

Breakfast ran like any other matchday, trays and cutlery and low conversation rather than tension.

Walker and Stones sat with their heads close together over a tablet. "Di Lorenzo won’t stay wide all game," Walker said. "Watch — every time Berardi comes inside, he’s already thinking about the overlap."

Rice ate one-handed, scrolling through clips with the other.

Bellingham sat beside Kane. "If Cristante follows me, where do you go?" he asked.

"Nowhere," Kane said. "I stay exactly where I am and let him decide if he wants to leave his center-backs."

Phillips ate normally, no visible weight on him, and dropped into the seat beside Demien for a few minutes.

He didn’t say anything about the team sheet.

"Barella’s going to press you differently than Australia’s midfield did," Phillips said. "Sometimes he’ll look like he’s left the lane wide open — that’s Cristante sitting behind him, waiting for you to take the bait."

"We worked on exactly that Sunday," Demien said.

"Working on it in an empty session is the easy version," Phillips said. "Wait till there’s eighty thousand people screaming every time you touch it."

The final tactical meeting ran with Italy’s expected shape already on the screen, Southgate standing beside the confirmed sheet.

ENGLAND

Pickford.

Walker — Stones — Maguire — Trippier.

Rice — Demien.

Foden — Bellingham — Rashford.

Kane.

ITALY

Donnarumma.

Di Lorenzo — Scalvini — Acerbi — Udogie.

Frattesi — Cristante — Barella.

Berardi — Scamacca — El Shaarawy.

Demien’s eyes moved down Italy’s matchday list once the starting eleven had settled on the screen, past the substitutes’ names.

They stopped on Adriano Ventresca.

Not starting.

Part of the squad.

His mouth pulled into a small, involuntary smile before he caught himself and looked back to the board.

Southgate kept moving. "Rice, you protect the center every time Demien goes beyond their first pressure. Demien, release the ball before Cristante closes the second lane — don’t hold it a beat longer than you have to. Jude, you attack beyond Cristante the moment Barella or Frattesi step to Demien. Phil, keep Udogie occupied before you come inside. Marcus, you’re in behind Di Lorenzo whenever their captain overlaps. Harry, give Demien and Jude a direct outlet if their press gets too aggressive. Kyle, Kieran — you can’t both push forward at once, Italy will break the space behind you in a heartbeat."

Nobody wrote anything down.

They already had it.

The bus reached Wembley as the October sky went from grey to floodlit, the arch lit up ahead of them, supporters packed six deep behind the barriers.

Flags hung over shoulders, red, white and green mixed in thick pockets among the England shirts.

Police and stewards worked the last stretch of road, phones raised toward the tinted windows, a wall of Italian traveling support already audible somewhere beyond the stadium’s curve.

Demien had scored twice here five days ago.

Wembley wasn’t new anymore.

What was new sat lower in his chest — this was qualification, this was Italy, this was the first time the senior sides had met here since the final two years back.

He sat by the window with his headphones resting around his neck rather than over his ears, listening to the crowd noise build instead of blocking it out.

When the bus turned into the secured entrance, he exhaled once, long, and rubbed both palms flat over his thighs.

The arrival corridor moved fast, accreditation staff waving badges through, FA personnel pointing players toward the dressing rooms, cameras fixed behind a roped media line.

Nobody stopped.

"Demien — did the Australia brace force Southgate’s hand tonight?" a reporter called out.

He heard it.

He kept walking.

His shirt already hung with the starters inside the dressing room, boots lined beneath the bench, GPS vest and shorts and socks laid out in order, tactical printouts pinned near the door, the qualifier’s branding stamped across every piece of match paperwork on the table.

He sat beside Rice, lacing his boots.

"Right side when I go?" Rice asked, not looking up from his own laces.

"I cover," Demien said.

Neither of them needed to say more than that.

「EURO QUALIFIER MATCH MISSION ACTIVATED」 「England vs Italy」 「Wembley Stadium」 「Complete 6 Pressure-Release Actions」 「Record 4 Defensive Recoveries」 「Create 3 Clear Chances」 「Record 2 Direct Goal Contributions」 「Reward: +100 MP」 「Bonus Objective: Secure EURO 2024 Qualification」 「Bonus Reward: +10 SP」

The reward number was bigger than anything he’d seen for a friendly.

He looked at it a second longer than usual before the warm-up call pulled him off the bench and closed it.

England worked through dynamic movement, passing patterns, finishing drills and short bursts of acceleration on the near half of the pitch.

Italy stayed active on the opposite side.

Donnarumma caught a string of high balls, gloves smacking each time.

Scamacca worked crosses into the box, finishing off both feet.

Di Lorenzo and Udogie rehearsed overlapping deliveries in tandem, one running while the other checked his run.

Barella and Frattesi strung together rapid one-touch combinations near the center circle.

During a water break, Demien glanced across toward Italy’s bench area.

Adriano was there among the rest of the squad, already in his warm-up kit.

Their eyes met.

Adriano gave him a small grin and lifted two fingers in greeting.

Demien answered with a single nod and a brief smile before turning back to England’s drill.

Back in the dressing room, players peeled off damp warm-up tops, took final drinks, retightened boots one more time, and gathered loosely around Southgate.

"We are not protecting the draw from the first minute," Southgate said. "Respect what they can do on the counter — they’re fast and they’re organized. Win the second ball in the center of the pitch. Make their midfield turn back toward their own goal. That’s it. Go."

No speeches beyond it.

The tunnel filled with both sides, Donnarumma at the front of Italy’s line, Di Lorenzo talking quietly with Barella behind him, Scamacca rolling his shoulders loose, Cristante checking twice where Bellingham and Demien stood in England’s line.

Demien glanced once toward Italy’s bench entrance and caught sight of Adriano before facing forward.

The teams walked out beneath the lights.

The anthems played, both crowds a wall of sound, the captains shook hands, the coin spun.

Kickoff at 7:45.

Demien felt the anthem in his chest more than he expected — chin lifted slightly, breath slowing, fingers flexing once at his sides before the whistle.

Italy took early control of the ball, and inside the first few minutes England felt exactly what they’d prepared for.

Barella pressed Demien aggressively every time England tried to build through him.

Frattesi sat tighter to Rice than Australia’s midfielders ever had.

Cristante stayed several yards deeper, patient, waiting for the forced vertical pass.

In the third minute, Stones found Demien.

Barella closed fast.

Demien opened his body before the ball arrived and played it first time back to Stones rather than trying to turn through the press.

「TRAIT ACTIVATED」 「Press Resistant」 「TECHNIQUE ACTIVATED」 「First-Touch Set — RARE」

He moved outside Barella and took Walker’s next pass facing forward, found Bellingham between Italy’s first and second lines — but Cristante closed Jude before he could turn, forcing England back to reset.

「MATCH MISSION PROGRESS」 「Pressure-Release Actions: 1/6」

"England have changed their midfield since the Australia friendly," the commentator said, "Demien Walter starting alongside Declan Rice after his Wembley brace. But the real question tonight isn’t whether he can score again — it’s whether England can play through this narrow Italian midfield at all."

In the sixth minute, Italy created their first real transition.

Foden lost the ball cutting inside from the right.

Barella collected it instantly and found Berardi.

Berardi ran at Trippier.

Frattesi broke beyond Rice through the center.

Demien started toward Berardi, saw Frattesi’s run developing, and changed direction.

Berardi tried the inside pass.

Demien stepped across it and cut it out before it reached Frattesi.

「TRAIT ACTIVATED」 「Ball Winner」 「STATS ACTIVE」 「Interceptions: 94 | Reactions: 99」 「MATCH MISSION PROGRESS」 「Defensive Recoveries: 1/4」

He released Rashford quickly.

Rashford attacked Di Lorenzo, but Italy’s captain recovered and forced him wide, and Acerbi cleared the resulting cross before it reached anyone dangerous.

By the ninth minute, Italy had shifted the pressure to their right.

Berardi drifted inside.

Di Lorenzo overlapped outside him.

Trippier followed Berardi’s first movement, leaving Rashford to decide whether to track Di Lorenzo instead.

Demien shifted across but couldn’t fully abandon Frattesi.

Di Lorenzo received in space and sent a low early cross.

Stones beat Scamacca to the near-post ball and cleared it.

Demien pointed at Rashford as the danger cleared. "He can’t get that free again — someone has to step when Berardi comes inside," he said.

"Got it," Rashford said.