The chants still echoed throughout the Stadium as the atmosphere remained electric. The morale of the home side, Luton Town, was soaring—like a rainbow after the storm. Surrounded by their passionate supporters, every touch of the ball by a Luton player drew thunderous cheers from the stands.
In this atmosphere, Luton's players were full of energy and fighting spirit. They showed no signs of fatigue as they continued to press high and apply pressure on Manchester City. Head coach Ethan had initially planned for a ten-minute high-intensity press at the start of the second half, giving his players time to ease off afterward. But with the players so fired up, he allowed them to keep pushing forward, challenging City's backline and probing for openings inside the penalty area.
Manchester City looked increasingly unsettled as Luton maintained their relentless tempo. In the 54th minute, N'Golo Kanté intercepted a forward pass from Stephen Ireland in midfield. With his usual calm composure, he brought the ball under control and played it out wide to the right.
Kevin Keane surged down the wing, took a touch, and whipped in a precise cross into the box!
"Jamie Vardy!!!" shouted commentator Letkinson. "Oh my word—hat trick!!!"
The stadium erupted. Fans leapt into the air, roaring in celebration. In the penalty area, Vardy had timed his run to perfection, leaping above the defenders to power home a header that bounced into the net. It was a display of pure determination and instinct.
Manchester City's Vincent Kompany, though a future cornerstone of their defense, was still a developing young centre-back. He struggled to keep up with Vardy's clever movement. A few deceptive feints from the Luton striker left Kompany flat-footed, and he paid the price for his inexperience. Vardy, still youthful himself but full of explosive energy and sharp instincts, made the difference in that moment.
Sometimes, attacking players possess an innate sense of timing and flair that even inexperience can't hide.
BOOM!
Wossi Stadium was in full eruption once again!
"Good job!!" Ethan shouted as he jumped up, his suit jacket flung aside in the heat of the moment. His white shirt tucked into black trousers, sleeves rolled up, Ethan looked every bit the passionate tactician. His clenched fists and fierce expression told the story—he was living every second of this match.
Luton players ran to embrace Vardy, preparing to celebrate what they thought was his third goal.
But then, the sharp sound of the referee's whistle pierced through the celebration.
The referee sprinted toward the edge of the box, signaling emphatically with a sliding motion along his arm.
Offside?
All eyes turned to the linesman, who had his flag raised high.
Offside!
Vardy's goal was ruled out!
"Aaaaaaah, the goal's been disallowed!" Letkinson said in disbelief. "From our initial angle, it was incredibly tight. You'd need a frame-by-frame breakdown to be sure—but for now, Vardy's hat trick is denied... Wait—something's happening on the touchline!"
The TV cameras quickly cut to the Luton dugout. Ethan was furious.
"This is offside?! Bloody hell!" he roared, his voice echoing even over the crowd noise.
His assistant, John, rushed to calm him down, while other staff members tried to restrain him. Mel even covered his mouth to prevent him from saying anything further that might earn him a card.
The fourth official rushed over to intervene.
"Mr. Ethan! Control yourself, or I'll call the referee over!" he warned sternly.
Still fuming, Ethan looked like he was about to explode again, but John managed to pull him back just in time.
"I'm so sorry," John said quickly. "We promise we won't say anything more."
Lin Sen, another assistant, clasped his hands and apologized sincerely to the fourth official.
Eventually, the situation calmed.
"Coach Ethan needs to manage his emotions," commented He Hongfa from China. "His side still leads by three goals. Even with the disallowed goal, they're in a commanding position. As long as they stay organized defensively, Manchester City don't seem likely to mount a dramatic comeback at this rate."
But Ethan wasn't hearing any of it.
"Look! LOOK! How is that offside?!" he snapped, pointing at the big screen, which was replaying the disallowed goal.
The replay showed Kevin Keane's cross at the moment of delivery. Vardy appeared to be in line with Kompany, City's last defender.
"This is millimeter-level offside," Letkinson noted. "Even the slow-motion replay doesn't make it obvious. It's a brutal call. That really tested the linesman's vision."
The fans in the stands were furious. They booed loudly, and Jamie Vardy stood with arms spread wide, looking bewildered at the assistant referee.
"What???" he shouted, disbelief etched across his face.
But before things could escalate, his teammates quickly pulled him away. The referee had already blown the goal offside. Protesting further could easily earn Vardy a yellow card—and that just wasn't worth it right now.
After all, they were still in the lead.
On the touchline, Mark Hughes let out a heavy sigh of relief. If that goal had stood, the scoreline would've been 4–0—a complete humiliation. His future at Manchester City was already hanging by a thread, and another blow like that could seal his fate.
The pressure was immense. Despite massive spending in the transfer window, Manchester City were still struggling. Just last season, they had crashed out of the FA Cup in embarrassing fashion to a team from the second division. Hughes knew all too well that failure wasn't an option anymore—especially not with the new owners from Abu Dhabi watching closely.
There was only one path left: attack. Even if City couldn't win, Hughes knew he had to at least go down swinging. A respectable defeat might buy him a little more time. But a disaster? The board wouldn't hesitate.
Back on the bench, City's substitutes sat in silence. Some stared blankly at the pitch. Others were lost in thought, perhaps about their own uncertain futures.
Among them was 20-year-old forward Ched Evans. He sat slouched, eyes glazed, clearly deep in thought. With the Abu Dhabi group now owning the club, it was obvious that more big-name signings would come in the summer. For fringe players like Evans, the writing was on the wall.
A major squad overhaul was inevitable, and players like him would likely be the first to go.
Most of the bench knew the same fate awaited them. That's why they seemed so detached from the game—like monks simply ringing the bell, waiting for the end.
"Ched!!! Ched!!!"
Evans snapped out of his daze at the sound of Mark Hughes barking his name.
"Yes, boss!" he said, jumping up.
Hughes was trying hard to keep his composure, but there was no mistaking the urgency in his voice.
"Get ready. You're going on!"
Evans' eyes lit up. He threw on his training top and dashed to the sideline to warm up.
"Evans is preparing to come on! Mark Hughes is going for another attacking change!" exclaimed commentator Alan Letterkinson, spotting the movement on the sideline.
On the opposite bench, Luton Town manager Ethan noticed it too. He calmly returned to his seat, eyebrows slightly raised.
Another striker?
Mark Hughes was going all in now.
Ethan didn't react immediately—he wanted to see who Evans would replace before adjusting his tactics.
Evans finished his warm-up quickly.
"Evans is coming on... and he's replacing... Micah Richards!" Letterkinson reported, his voice rising in excitement. "No wait—it's Nedum Onuoha! A central defender! Mark Hughes is going all out. He's subbing on a striker for a center-back. Manchester City now have five forwards on the pitch!"
Ethan allowed himself a faint smile. Desperation was written all over Hughes' move. It was a gamble—throwing everything forward in hopes of a miracle.
But now, Manchester City's defense was wide open—a field of green just waiting for Luton to exploit.
"Adam!!!"
Everyone on the Luton bench turned at once, instantly alert.
Adam White, their FA Cup hero, bolted up from the bench as soon as he heard his name.
"Ethan is responding immediately with a tactical change of his own!" Letterkinson continued. "He's bringing on Adam White—the man who knocked Chelsea out in the last round!"
The stadium erupted in cheers. Adam, a product of the Luton Youth Academy, was still a fan favorite. The supporters knew what he was capable of.
And so did Ethan.
City's backline was crumbling, and now it was time to strike back.