Training Camp Ace (1)
Training Camp Ace (1)
002
I snuck the door open and went in; the players were chatting, so it didn't seem like I was late.
"What the hell. Who is this asshole standing in front of the door?"
As soon as I felt relieved, the door opened again, and a bear-like middle-aged man walked in.
It was Coach-nim.
"Good morning, Coach-nim!"
"Good morning!!"
I quickly turned around and bowed my head.
"Hm? Who's this?"
At Coach-nim's question as he stared blankly at me, the seniors all tilted their heads in unison.
What the...? Is this some kind of hilarious hidden camera prank?
"An idol showed up. Who are you?"
"Good morning! I'm Hong Min-jun, a new member joining the team. Please take care of me!!"
No matter how I thought about it, it felt like a hilarious prank, so I decided to just greet them loudly first.
It's gotten a lot better, but they say there are still soccer teams that pull that old-school hazing crap, so in times like this, just greeting them loudly is the safest bet.
"Right, right, so you're our youngest... Wait, who did you say you were?"
"Pardon? I'm Hong Min-jun."
"Hong Min-jun? You?"
Would it be Kim Min-jun then?
He's an old guy alright, making unfunny jokes, but he's the Coach, so what can I do? I have to play along.
"Haha. That's right, Hong Min-jun. You saw me before when you came to scout me."
"Right. I did. ...But did Hong Min-jun look like this??"
At first, I thought he was joking, but the atmosphere felt off.
As I stood there sweating bullets under his gaze as he scrutinized my face with a puzzled expression, Coach-nim spoke with a subtle look.
"That's really strange. I don't think Hong Min-jun's mug looked like this mug."
"What's the matter, Coach-nim?"
The door opened again, and a middle-aged man walked in.
"Oh, Coach Kim. You came at the right time. You know Hong Min-jun, right? You know, the guy with good footwork."
"I do. Isn't he the kid you scouted this time?"
"He says he's that kid."
"......??"
"......??"
The two of them had question marks floating over their heads.
"Wait. But what did Hong Min-jun look like?"
"Well... I don't really remember."
"Hmm... well, I guess it's him. Alright! New members, come to the front!"
...What is this.
What's going on.
What the hell is this!!
Is this a new type of bullying? Is that what it is??
I was dumbfounded by the Coach and Coach Kim's absurd behavior, but I couldn't say anything.
I joined the new members who were shuffling out, greeted the seniors appropriately, and sang a song for the simple initiation ceremony.
"Wow~ So you're Hong Min-jun? Did you really come here after being an idol?"
"No, sir."
"You weren't a trainee or something?"
"...No, I wasn't."
"Wow... you sing fucking well."
"Thank you...."
Are they making fun of me?
I'm good at singing, but my face is average. Idol, my ass.
"Alright~ everyone, a round of applause for our new member!"
After the ritualistic applause ended, Coach-nim looked around at the players and opened his mouth.
"Starting today, our Soccer Club's Training Camp begins. I told you, didn't I? What is the Pre-season to a pro?"
"It is the best preparation period to get ready for the season!"
"Right. Even though we aren't pros, we should prepare for the Pre-season thoroughly like people aspiring to be pros. You didn't slack off during vacation just because it's break, did you?"
"No, sir!!"
A booming voice.
Ah, shit, what is this, the army?
"We'll build up our stamina and coordinate our Tactical Movement before the season starts during this 3-week Training Camp. 4th years! Keep in mind that with the seniors graduated, you are the core now. As you know, I don't show mercy to anyone who can't keep up with training, even if you're in your graduating year!"
A booming response erupted once again.
Wow, everyone is so full of motivation.
"And our youngest members. Unfortunately, because our recent performance hasn't been good, this Training Camp will be held at the school. Don't be too disappointed. If you're disappointed now, you won't be able to handle the training because it's tough."
I looked up at Coach-nim blankly and thought.
I have a feeling he's going to make us do insane stamina training.
"Alright~ now, change into your uniforms and come out to the field! Dismissed!"
"Dismissed!!"
Fuck... is this the army?
Coach-nim and Coach Kim left, and the seniors stood up in a swarm and led us to the locker room.
Ugh, the smell of sweat. The locker room is absolutely soaked in the smell of sweat.
As soon as I opened my assigned locker, I saw a mirror.
But a man I've never seen before...?
For a moment, I had a staring contest with the man looking at me blankly.
'...Huh?'
Is this, by any chance, me?
This handsome guy is... me?
What the hell is this...
"Hey, newbie! Why are you so slow, you asshole! Aren't you going to change quickly!?"
"Yes, yes! I'm going!!"
Ah, fuck, what is this.
While stretching, I thought about it carefully and remembered a weird dream.
Could it be that status window... it appeared!
'It was real.'
A status window, of all things.
With this, becoming a pro... no, even the Ballon d'Or that every soccer player wants isn't just a dream.
"Gather around! The first day is just a light practice game."
I was giggling while looking at the status window, and a practice game was set up.
Ha... well, this is it. Has the time come to show off my skills already?
To take a starting spot from my freshman year, I have to show overwhelming skill.
"Alright, I'll call out the teams. First, the youngest ones! We have 6 youngest members this year, let's see... what are everyone's positions again?"
"I'm a winger!!"
I raised my hand faster than anyone else and answered.
A man is all about confidence!
"Good, our visual-king Min-jun is the left winger! Next, you?"
Oh, seriously.
What's with "visual-king," seriously.
He's such an old guy.
I tried to smile at Coach-nim, who was laughing heartily by himself, while the new members answered one by one.
"I'm a center-back!"
"I'm a midfielder!"
That's how the 6 new members were placed in their main positions, and the remaining spots were filled by seniors who looked like 2nd years to complete the starting lineup.
"I'll coach the team with our youngest members myself. Head Coach! You take care of that side."
"Understood, Coach-nim."
At Coach-nim's words, the man who seemed to be the Head Coach led the 3rd and 4th-year seniors and moved to the other side.
"Alright. We're going with a 4-3-3 formation. Familiar, right? It's a popular formation in middle and high school leagues these days, so you should all be familiar with it. If anyone doesn't know it, raise your hand."
Of course, no one did.
It was a formation used more often than the traditional 4-4-2 these days, so it was familiar, and raising my hand to say I didn't know it would be too awkward.
"You'll need to get used to it quickly. Our team's default is also 4-3-3. Or, you know, show me overwhelming skill and make me change the formation."
Coach-nim grinned and scanned us with a sharp gaze that didn't quite match his usual demeanor.
"Alright, then, let's go over the detailed tactics."
I need to listen to this carefully.
Because even with the same 4-3-3, it changes drastically depending on how you operate it.
I'm not confident in tactical movement... but let's try to understand it as much as possible.
"Just run well."
"...Pardon?"
"I said run hard."
"Um... Coach-nim. How should the center move? Should we move vertically, or horizontally..."
"I said figure it out and do it well."
"......."
The 2nd years looked calm, so it seemed like they already knew.
I made eye contact with the 1st years, my peers. Like kids who made it this far through soccer, they all had expressions that showed they caught on.
Sigh.
Looks like it's a test.
It was clearly a test to just set up a rough formation and make us run on our own to figure out the players' movements, strengths, and weaknesses.
Yeah. This is actually better.
I'm not a player with great tactical movement to begin with.
A role closer to a free role suits me better anyway.
I'll show my skills this time.
...I struggled a bit in the high school league, but I can make up for that slump with my status window.
We gathered in a circle, shouted "Fighting!", stood in our respective positions, and then one of the coaches took on the role of referee and blew the whistle.
And at the same time as the start, the 3rd-4th year senior team, who had been smiling strangely, pushed in with a surprise attack.
The opposing team was also the same 4-3-3 as us.
The 3 forwards rushed in like lightning with the whistle, and the opposing midfielder who received the ball immediately launched a long pass.
'There's no way that would work. Of course... it did!?'
Our center-backs were one freshman and one 2nd-year senior.
Perhaps because the player playing defensive midfielder was also a freshman, we were completely blown open by the opponent's play, which was a surprise attack but not threatening at all.
"What the fuck! Center-backs, what are you doing! One of you mark, and the other should be backing up!!"
The shout from the goalkeeper senior, the only 3rd year, was already a bit too late.
Because the two center-backs who jumped high simultaneously toward the floating ball had both fallen over side-by-side.
"That's one goal~"
'Are you kidding me... is this team chemistry for real.'
No matter how much it's our first time playing together, aren't we supposed to be elite soccer players?
For center-backs, moving based on the calls of a veteran or the goalkeeper is basic, and even if there's no call, one person rushing in while the other backs up is the absolute foundation of the basics, so what kind of amateur play is this?
My insides are boiling.
I'm an elite soccer player in my own right too.
Although I didn't become a European league player or a K-Leaguer, I made it to the college league after overcoming countless competitions from elementary school through middle and high school.
Naturally, I have talent, and above all... I have a strong competitive spirit.
'Fuck. I didn't think we'd beat the 3rd-4th year starting team with freshmen and 2nd-year backups anyway, but I can't lose like an idiot like this.'
The game resumes.
Because we conceded a goal, our forward taps the ball to me with the whistle.
The feeling of the ball I touched for the first time today wasn't bad.
The familiar sensation felt through my soccer cleats.
'My condition is good.'
However, I'm not Pele or Maradona, so I can't just stupidly dribble in as soon as I receive the ball at the center line. I lightly pass the ball back.
Like that, the ball goes back and forth between defenders, midfielders, and defenders again.
Even though we conceded a goal, the game has just started, so it's time for everyone to touch the ball and build up their feel for it. I should maximize our team's touches.
We calmly built up from the defensive line to the midfield, passing the ball, and if a good angle didn't appear, we passed it back to the defense for a while.
Coach-nim, who was watching, shouted angrily.
"What are you doing! Are you just going to pass the ball around after conceding a goal and end it? Be aggressive, be aggressive!!"
'Alright, fuck it. Let's just charge in.'
No matter how angry I am, it's not like I don't have game experience, and I'm not a single-celled organism that would just charge in blindly... but the opposing team is cocky after scoring from the start.
Especially considering the defensive line seems to be letting their guard down because they're facing freshmen, the fact that this is a test match where I need to appeal my strengths, and the fact that a team playing together for the first time has no chance against the existing starters in a battle of team chemistry... it's time for a game-changer based on individual skill—what's known as the performance of a 'Crack'.
And that is exactly the role I need to take on.
Middle school days. And until early high school, I always played the role of a 'Crack'.
Even though I've been in a slump for a while, with my individual skill, which was evaluated as being good enough for the pros...!
"Pass!"
I had to drop down a bit to shake off the opposing winger who was annoyingly marking me, but I was able to receive the ball safely.
As I received the ball and naturally turned my body, the vast field filled my vision.
It's around the center line, I guess.
It's not a counter-attack opportunity, so the opponent's formation is well-set.
A solo dribble breakthrough here is probably impossible... but still, now that they're letting their guard down, I'm confident I can get past one or two people. First, let's go in.
Tap, tap, as I slowly drove the ball forward, the opposing winger who was marking me approached as if he had been waiting.
A short standoff with a little distance.
'He's definitely a college league player, so he won't be easily fooled... but I have the status window...'
Huh? Wait a minute.
I... what stats did I pick?