Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Bolton, You See (1)
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Thank you!
Black-Haired Tactical Genius
Episode 49: Bolton, You See (1)
The dim yellow stand light was the only illumination in the rundown office.
Creak. Ma Jeong-woo sat in the groaning executive chair, tapping away at the keyboard.
[May 3, 2021, 9:34 PM]
[Author: Mad Dog]
[Hello, it's Mad Dog. It's been a while since I've dropped by like this. Not here to upload a new tactic or anything... just checking in. (Proof of life.)
Ah, recently I happened to catch a game by chance, and they were using my tactic. Personally, I was thrilled. Seeing it work well in a real match made me proud too. (Won't say it was Bolton vs. Blackpool.) (Omitted)
What I want to say is this: Tactics have no one true answer. It's good to apply mine, but you have to look closely at the various situations. Whether your players can actually execute it as is. Environmental factors too. Short grass or long? (Omitted)
Anyway... tactics unleash their full potential only when the situational and player conditions align. Plus, most of the tactics I upload are calibrated for Premier League standards. (Omitted...)
Above all, the most crucial element in tactics is, of course, players who can execute instructions perfectly. (Omitted...)
Blackpool, on the other hand, just plugged it in blindly. They overloaded their players with too many instructions too. In the end, the second half was a total mess, right? (Lost 7-1, ahem.) (Omitted...)
In that regard, not Blackpool, but that Asian guy showed some real tactical flexibility.
Got a bit long-winded.
Anyway, today was a fun day. See you soon with a new tactic.]
Tap!
He hit enter.
Comments flooded in almost immediately after Mad Dog's post went up.
- : Mad's alive!
- : Whoa, it's really Mad! You were alive!
- [Left-Hand Nuclear Punch] : Where've you been!
- : You said Premier League standards, but it works even in semi-pro. I'm the guy who went on a 10-game win streak with your tactic. Hehe.
- : Wow... when's the next tactic upload?
Some comments were skeptical.
- : Be honest. Which club are you working at now?
: Dude, Mad's been Manager at a big club for ages.
- : My buddy knows Mad... apparently a famous Serie A manager?
: What? Mad's active in the EPL right now!
Ma Jeong-woo chuckled softly at the rumor-mill comments and muttered,
"This bunch. I was managing Hellnan in League One too."
A few had seen the Bolton vs. Blackpool game and chimed in.
- <LifeIs90Minutes> : Right! I saw it too! Looked good early, but the Blackpool manager overcomplicated your tactic in the second half and blew it!
: I thought the opposing manager felt more like Mad?
: Oh, come to think of it, Mad's M, Jeong-woo's Ma...?
"Oh, this guy."
The corner of his mouth twitched upward.
"Yeah, Mad's me."
But the next comment made Ma Jeong-woo furrow his brow.
- : Surely Mad wouldn't teach his players some insane low-tier bed football crap.
: Yeah, true. Fair.
Ma Jeong-woo grumbled with a aggrieved look.
"Why didn't this guy argue back and just agree so easily?"
Anyway...
"So my tactics are actually getting used quite a bit, huh?"
He'd analyzed some videos before and spotted a few that resembled his uploads.
Back then, he'd just thought, "Huh, similar," and moved on.
But seeing the broken mirror up close filled him with unexpected pride.
One guy in particular came to mind.
"That... message spammer."
The one who'd called him Bubachi.
Ma Jeong-woo narrowed his eyes.
"No way...?"
But his furrowed brow relaxed after just a few seconds.
"Nah, probably not."
Jolicic Bubachi.
No way a guy playing at the world's top stage would spam messages.
Minutes passed.
His heart had felt oddly restless for a bit now.
"Man."
Just one game left in the season, but wins and losses meant nothing anymore.
With 47 points secured, even if Shrewsbury Town won their last two, they'd only tie Bolton.
Bolton had the goal difference edge.
Plus, the teams sandwiched between Bolton and Shrewsbury were still flailing in the relegation battle.
In conclusion, it was all over.
Swoosh.
Ma Jeong-woo picked up the crumpled cigarette pack from the desk.
He pulled out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.
Then flicked the flint on the 250-won lighter he'd brought from Korea.
"Fuuu-!"
Gray smoke leaked from his parted lips soon after.
Watching it drift and vanish in the air, Ma Jeong-woo leaned back fully into the executive chair.
"Really... is it all over?"
At first, he'd thought confirming survival would make him dance for joy.
But now that it was here, it wasn't quite that exhilarating.
Instead, a bittersweet feeling kept welling up, making the bridge of his nose tingle.
How much time passed?
Tick, tock.
The wall clock's hands now pointed to 10 PM.
He glanced out the window at the neighboring buildings—no lights on anywhere.
Everyone had gone home.
Some staff occasionally pulled voluntary overtime.
"Well, it's a festival."
They were probably grinning wide and clinking glasses right now.
After all, they'd safely ended the survival battle this season.
Richard Geers had said it.
Before he arrived, the staff had already lost all will to fight.
Some were job-hunting, fearing layoffs if relegated.
Anyway, Park Hee-won had joined the party early too.
Ma Jeong-woo got an invite but turned it down.
Somehow, he wanted to be alone tonight.
He stood up soon after.
He'd been lost in thought for quite a while.
Shuffling toward the door, he reached for the handle but stopped short.
He glanced back.
Soft moonlight seeped through the window blinds, lighting the office.
The roughly 8-pyeong space held a frayed executive chair, a worn wooden desk.
A half-collapsed sofa and table.
And a one-person tent—that was it.
"There used to be stacks of documents piled up there."
When he first stepped in, files towered on the desk.
Backlogged work.
Even now, it made his nosebleed just thinking about it.
"Grandpa got an earful from me back then."
His gaze fell to the sofa at the head position.
It was so worn the seat was deeply sunken.
Richard Geers and the facilities manager offered a new one, but he'd refused.
Wasn't planning to stay long anyway, and he hated wasting money on non-essentials.
"Man."
Ma Jeong-woo let out another empty chuckle.
With everything ending, even that threadbare sofa looked endearing.
"Koreans really do get attached—it's true."
Until now, he'd thought he was the emotionless type his whole life.
Of course, life in Korea and England were worlds apart.
In Korea, he'd been more than passive—practically neglected.
Never even struck up a conversation.
But in England, it was the opposite.
He took the initiative more than anyone, talked a lot with people.
Little things piled up into memories along the way.
Naturally, he learned about them as individuals.
Anyway...
'Just wrap up the sale, and that's it.'
Only leaving remained.
Creak-!
Ma Jeong-woo grabbed the door handle.
One last mental pep talk: Stick to the original plan...
Bang-!
Fireworks exploded from both sides.
Snap!
Someone flipped the hallway light, and the area brightened instantly.
Blinded momentarily, Ma Jeong-woo squinted, then froze in shock.
"Thanks for all your hard work for the club, Ownerniiiim~!"
"Next season, let's challenge for the Championship like you said!"
"We can do it! Oosha oosha!"
"Then we can!"
"Uwaaaaaah!"
Clap clap clap clap-!
Daniel Sha, the marketing team leader who blushed in front of women.
Donald Victor, the office team leader who always played contrarian under the guise of agreement.
Stalwart facilities team leader Thompson.
Executive Director Richard Geers, now the spiritual pillar.
Park Hee-won, whom he'd figured was drunk somewhere.
And the ever-stoic strategic planning team leader Charlotte Emma, holding a cake in both hands with a small smile.
Above all, everyone in Ma Jeong-woo's view wore bright, warm smiles.
It felt genuine.
* * *
May 10.
League Round 46.
Even in the final match, Bolton claimed victory.
Finishing 16th—well clear of relegation.
Away game, but the Wanderers in attendance chanted as one.
Ma! Ma! Ma! Ma!
Ooh~ Victory! Victory! Victory!
Ma brings us glory in victoryyyy!
He even had his own dedicated chant now.
Normally, Ma Jeong-woo would've belted it out enthusiastically.
But now, after the whistle, lined up with the players, he simply clapped calmly toward the crowd.
His heart had felt strangely uneasy for days.
* * *
Ma Jeong-woo rode shotgun for the first time in a while as Park Hee-won visited his place.
Hee-won took the wheel.
Rustle, rustle.
Morning sun blazed English-style, but by afternoon, thick raindrops fell from the sky.
Ma Jeong-woo reached out and tuned the radio.
[ Bolton Wanderers have confirmed survival at 16th place! Fabrice! Did you predict Bolton would stay up? ]
Aaron Bench's Horwich Radio featured a special guest.
Central midfielder Fabrice Muamba, who'd once led Bolton alongside Lee Chang-yong.
Muamba's voice over the radio sounded excited.
[Honestly... I still can't believe it. Just four months ago, Bolton was dead last out of 24 teams. ]
[But now, they've finished 16th. ]
[Yes, exactly. That's what's so shocking. To be even more honest... I didn't really trust the current owner-manager either. When he announced he'd take the managerial role... I thought it was over. ]
[Over? ]
[Yes. Ten-odd games left or not... I was convinced relegation was sealed. ]
But Muamba realized round by round how wrong he'd been.
[I was the fool. Ma is a director with innate genius. He was sincere, full of passion. ]
He went further.
Saying his son really liked Ma.
And that Ma had promised his son.
[Ma looked my son straight in the eye and vowed to take the team to the Championship. ]
"Me?"
He'd said it on the radio before, but directly to the kid...?
Ma Jeong-woo narrowed his eyes and muttered,
"Shyrus Muamba..."
Come to think of it, yeah.
Right in front of the kids in the office.
And the kid who'd asked about the Championship was Shyrus Muamba.
Ma Jeong-woo gave a wry smile.
"No wonder he looked familiar."
He leaned back into the seat.
His gaze drifted out the window.
Hee-won glanced at the moody, adolescent-like Ma Jeong-woo these past few days and spoke up.
"Heading back to Korea, right?"
Per the original plan, quietly handle the sale and return home.
Normally, Ma Jeong-woo would've answered without hesitation.
But no quick reply came.
Of course, he still planned to sell.
He'd steeled himself inwardly multiple times.
'Damn it, you think I'll stay?'
These past few days.
Oddly, the kids, staff, team leaders kept flickering in his mind.
They acted like they didn't want him to go.
Sudden celebration party.
Gifts and such.
Tugging at his heartstrings.
Once, taking a leak in the bathroom, he overheard office team leader Donald Victor talking to someone.
'Ma, that guy. He's pretty solid.'
'Is that so?'
'Yeah. Seems cultured in a subtle way, looks after the team too. You know my birthday was a while back?'
'No way! Really?'
'Didn't know, huh. Anyway, the only one who remembered and did something was Ma. He's a bit rude sometimes, but kinda cute in a way. Ahem.'
Yeah.
He had remembered.
No big meaning.
Just as owner, trying to build an image of caring for staff by looking up their birthdays.
Lately, there'd been plenty of talk about him.
More overheard by chance than direct.
'You know? The atmosphere changed completely since our owner arrived.'
'How so?'
'Brighter. Like... if we'd been in foggy nights for months, suddenly it's daylight. Fresh breeze too.'
Ma Jeong-woo shook his head sharply.
'Bullshit, you think I'll fall for it?'
He tried shaking off the complicated emotions.
'Sell, and it's done. Smooth sailing life.'
Having psyched himself up, Ma Jeong-woo regained calm.
His mind cleared.
'For now, better to wait for bites than push. Some showed interest during the season.'
Then.
The radio topic shifted.
Aaron Bench spoke in an exaggerated tone.
[ Folks, get this? About 20 minutes ago, a Russian billionaire acquired Sunderland, who just won promotion to the Championship this season. Purchase price: a whopping 100 million pounds (about 160 billion KRW). Previous owner Stuart Jr. bought the League One Sunderland back in 2018 for around 30 million pounds (48 billion KRW). ]
Hee-won glanced worriedly at Ma Jeong-woo, then widened his eyes.
Shockingly, Ma Jeong-woo's left ear was clearly tilted right toward the radio speaker.
Ma Jeong-woo's mouth gaped wider.
[Previous owner Stuart Jr. said in an interview: Now just a black cat (Sunderland supporter) cheering from afar. Before that, to celebrate promotion, he's chartering a ship for a luxury party with beautiful ladies... a childhood dream, apparently. ]
Now his eyelids trembled faintly.
His earlier worries vanished clean.
Instead, with a stunned face and half-open mouth, Ma Jeong-woo blurted,
"Hee-won-ah?"
Have a great day~
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