The rain was pouring down at the stadium today. The rain was pouring down, it was the kind of weather favoured by strong players who stick to simple football. For players possessing of speed or technical skills, the day really was as grim as for everyone else. Lineup: Stepan - Cervi, van Benthem - Scuderi, Wimberwepper, Soto Aguilar, Feuchtmann, Donaubauer - Corti, Shcholnik, Lobzhanidze.

Starters: Dob - Webb, Panigrahi - K�nzler, Xin Lee, Mohammad Harun, Muthyala, Dong Chu - Egan, Parvathaneni, Xin Seng.

The teams stopped and stared at each other - it was like they were looking in a mirror, since they both lined up in a 2-5-3 formation. Empor's opponents know to be wary of Max Feuchtmann's speed, but it made little difference as he blew past the defense 2 minutes into the match. Only the keeper could stop him - and he did with a perfectly timed dive! Sebastian Donaubauer was doing a great job on the wing, sending in a brilliant pass to his teammates in the middle, but Gabriel Corti seemed unable to profit from this excellent service. The home crowd breathed a collective sigh of relief when Bernie Egan was unable to give the visitors the go-ahead goal after his attack from the left in minute 9. With 16 minutes played, Andrea Cervi came in from the right with the intention of giving Empor the lead, but his rocket of a shot could only rattle the crossbar. Oh, it's a stupendous shot on goal! A Caravaggio! A Michelangelo! A Venus on the Half Shell! 18 minutes into the match and Rafiel Lobzhanidze has created art for the ages for Empor, putting them ahead 1 - 0. Oh, I'm weeping. I can't stop my eyes. Cyril K�nzler could have tied the game after 23 minutes, if his free kick had gone just a few inches to the left. Bilal Mohammad Harun tied the game at 1 - 1 after 37 minutes, when he converted an incredible pass from the right. 1 - 1 was the halftime score. Grilled did a good job holding on to the ball, with 53 percent of possession. We'll be back after these interminable commercial messages.

Grilled's Bernie Egan gave the visitors a 1 - 2 lead after 55 minutes with a superb strike from the right. With the clock showing 60 minutes, the fourth official held up the substitution board. Bernie Egan looked to see that it was his number in red, so he made his way over to the sideline and swapped out for Islom Davlatov, though he would have liked to continue. As the 60 minute mark approached, the Grilled manager decided it was time for a substitution. Chu Xin Lee reluctantly made way for Chan Ze Han. 66 minutes into the match, the referee signaled for a Empor substitution. Inocencio Tuvi�ez came on for Idan Shcholnik. With Idan Shcholnik no longer on the field, Sten van Benthem was the new set pieces taker. As Empor's captain went off, he handed the armband to Sten van Benthem. 69 minutes into the game, Empor wanted to bring some new energy to their game. Sebastian Donaubauer gave Helmer Steffensen a quick hug as he left the field. After 73 minutes of play, Bernhard Gottfried Wimberwepper evened things up for Empor with an impressive goal coming up the middle. 2 - 2. The 76 minute mark saw the home team take a 3 - 2 lead after a breaking through on the left. The scorer for Empor was Rafiel Lobzhanidze. 79 minutes into the game, Empor's Andrea Cervi tried to nail the coffin shut, but his shot from the left glanced off the top of the bar to fall behind the net. The referee decided to let play continue for an additional 1 beyond the regular 90 minutes. With 89 minutes gone, Empor's organization began to suffer due to a lack of experience. The match ends 3 - 2. Looks like Nate Silver was right again - his prediction that Grilled would have 53 percent possession in this half was spot on!

The most outstanding Empor player was without a doubt Gabriel Corti. Good thing Helmer Steffensen isn't a horse, because he'd surely be sent to the glue factory after that performance. Most important Grilled player was Moey Xin Seng. You can tell it was nickel beer night yesterday at the local bar because Gilbert Webb seemed to stumble all over the pitch.