Meanwhile, on the pitch, Rio called for a calm head during a break in play and walked up to the center circle where Mateo was standing, bending over with his hands on his knees.
Mateo was still rattled after he made such a bad decision and allowed a Harrogate midfielder to flatten him with a crunching tackle. They were now in a tight situation with the ball in their own half and Harrogate pressing like mad dogs, putting significant pressure on the Leeds backline.
He expected to receive a grilling from Rio for losing possession, however, it was the opposite.
"Mateo, why didn't you play the first-time pass?"
'Huh?' Mateo, who was busy looking at the mud stains on his shorts, suddenly raised his gaze and looked at Rio oddly.
"A-Ah sorry. Everything happened so fast. The guy was massive, Rio. I froze." Mateo replied, also a little perplexed that he was the one being comforted rather than roasted.
