Brazil's Finest Foot Forward
The Estádio Metropolitano, renowned home ground of Atlético Madrid, bustled with an electric atmosphere worthy of the Olympic Games. Its 68,456-capacity arena was packed to the brim, spectators filling every seat in the vast venue. Among the fans cheering for their country, a large number of journalists and scouts from overseas teams had also gathered. Manchester City’s chief scout James Brown was one of them. "Hah~ If only Mark Schneider hadn’t turned down that offer, we wouldn’t be this desperate right now." The current Manchester City starting striker, Mark Schneider, was under heavy transfer rumors with Real Madrid, making it essential for him to analyze every possibility more intensely than anyone else ahead of next season. "If only we could get Gabriel Mendes, that would be perfect." Gabriel Mendes, currently the top scorer in Ligue 1 at just twenty years old, was not exactly a target Manchester City would chase. "Wouldn’t it be wonderful if one of the young Korean players here turned out to be the one who could revive Manchester City?" James Brown scanned the South Korean list on the field, his eyes sparkling with hope that the future star who would lead the club to glory might be among the seventeen-year-old talents watching. And that hope became reality just ten minutes into the match. "That incredible player is only seventeen?" * * * "Wow, so he’s twenty?" He had been watching Gabriel Mendes, whom assistant coach Joo Eun-gyeom had mentioned before the start of the game. The Brazilian forward had a full beard covering half his face. "Does he look at least forty? Did he lie about his age?" As if sensing Tae-woo’s gaze, Gabriel Mendes looked over and smirked, as if mocking the fact. "Moleque." Thud! "Brat? The three meals of that kid..." Since the team included Brazilian players when Manchester City was in the league, he knew a bit about their curses. "I know a little Brazilian language." He stared straight at Gabriel Mendes and replied. "Cala a boca." The player who heard the words was thrilled but his teammates quickly stopped him and sent him back to his formation. "Hey, Tae-woo, what did you say to make his face turn that red?" Yoo Hee-sung and Park Seo-joon, who were standing nearby, listened with genuine curiosity at Tae-woo’s question. "No, he called me ‘brat’ in Brazilian. So I told him to shut up." "You really are Tae-woo’s friend, Lee Tae-yang. If you started the fight first, you couldn’t have backed out. But is that guy really twenty? Heh heh heh." Park Seo-joon and Yoo Hee-sung looked surprised that Tae-woo could understand and speak Brazilian. "Tae-woo, you know Brazilian too?" "I can speak a little of the curse words that are commonly used in Brazil." "Then you know curses from other countries too?" "German or British at least." "How do you know that, Tae-woo?" Actually, he didn’t know. It just felt like he naturally picked up curses from other languages. "Eh, that’s basic." "Haha, as expected, Tae-woo really is Lee Tae-yang’s friend." … He had just heard some very rude words… but as the captain, there was nothing he could say. "Grosei ru." If he couldn’t speak Korean, he would use Brazilian. Park Seo-joon’s senior probably didn’t know the language either. "Yeah, what does that mean?" "Just… well done, basically." "Um, okay? Like Tae-woo said, let’s play well in this match. You owe me military exemption, kids." The South Korean world-class forward and captain of the national team, Park Seo-joon, spoke first with a joke, and the tense young players finally relaxed and laughed together. "Don't worry, senior. I’ll cover for you all." "Sob, Hyung, I’ll trust only you guys." Yoo Hee-sung approached and added one more line. "Don't worry. The fastest way for me to transfer to Manchester United is by winning the Olympic gold." Hee-sung, I’m sorry, but even if you fail to qualify for the group stage, you’ll still transfer to Man Utd. "Hahaha, the seventeen-year-olds are something else. But if they play well, I believe in you, kids." After the banter ended, everyone returned to their formations. "As a goalkeeper, this is my first match to make the world aware of me. It should be fun." Whiiiish! With the referee’s whistle, the South Korean national team took the field and the game began with a South Korean kick-off. Following Cheon Mu-seok’s tactical instructions, we advanced our formation and exchanged passes around the half-line. Once the desired formation was set, Park Seo-joon passed to Kang Dong-hyun beside him and sprinted forward. "Return." Thud. Thud. Was it early in the match? Or were they over-cautious of me? A gap opened on the right side near Yoo Hee-sung. "Spot’s open, Hee-sung." Showing the presence of a world-class player, Park Seo-joon evaded the Brazilian defenders with a stunning pass and the ball headed toward Yoo Hee-sung. Watching from the goalkeeper position, I felt a surge of excitement. Yoo Hee-sung was the protagonist of this novel. The one who always shone brightest in the toughest games. This match would be no different. Of course, even as such a shining presence, he had failed to qualify for the group stage in the preliminaries… "This time I’m here. Yoo Hee-sung, you score. I’ll stand still here and block the goal." * * * As expected from senior Park Seo-joon. The moment I found the space, he passed the ball. "Focus." The ball came to me, but at the same moment, Brazilian defenders rushed toward me. In an instant, countless options flashed through my mind. "Should I turn with the first touch and run? Or pass it back?" Time seemed to slow. Only one second remained until the ball dropped at my feet, yet in that brief moment I could think of countless possibilities. The Brazilian defender’s movement, the goalkeeper’s position, and the positions of my teammates. I tried to analyze everything at once. And I could see the face of Jung Tae-woo behind me. "Yeah, if I just score one goal, Tae-woo will block it easily." Taking a deep breath, I made my decision. The moment the ball touched my foot, the opposing defender lunged toward me. Instinctively, I received the ball and lightly pushed it with my right foot. My upper body leaned left, but the ball moved right. The simple trick made the defender lean left, and I quickly slipped into the empty space on the right. Had I been over-trusting the defender, or had I been ignored? With one man bypassed, no one was left to mark me. In such situations, nothing was more effective than a one-touch strike. I broke through the opponent’s formation at high speed and got closer to the goal. Looking around, Lee Tae-yang was marking a different player on the right, and according to the coach’s tactics, senior Park Seo-joon was sprinting in from the left. "According to the tactics, I should pass to senior Park Seo-joon here and drive into the center... " But at that moment, a clear path appeared in my vision. A path to create a goal. "Yeah, just hit it." Without hesitation, I planted my foot and struck the ball with the outside of my instep. Boom!!! The ball flew with a natural curve. The Brazilian goalkeeper threw himself desperately. But blocking a ball that curved into the far corner of the left side in an instant would be difficult. "He’s not Tae-woo, that goalkeeper." The Brazilian goalkeeper also jumped high, but his glove only brushed the ball slightly, and the trajectory remained unchanged. Thwack! With the sound of the ball slamming into the Brazilian net, the stadium erupted. "Waahhh!" I sprinted toward the camera without thinking, jumping to celebrate as the crowd’s roar rang out. Clasping my arms together and gathering my strength, "Man!" Landing, I stretched both hands downward and shouted, "Yoo!" * * * Brazil versus South Korea. Anyone could see who was ahead just by looking at the names. Korean football fans were already predicting a South Korean defeat. ["We will now begin the match with South Korea kicking off."] ["Ah, right from the start they’re exchanging passes in the center and pushing the line forward."] ["Oh, Captain Park Seo-joon passed to Kang Dong-hyun and took off. Ah, quick return. But three Brazilian players are closing in on him."] ["Whoa, as expected from Park Seo-joon! Proving once again why he’s world-class. How did he see the position of Yoo Hee-sung from there? And the pass was exactly to him!"] N and... Park Seo-joon never disappoints. N How did he see the player on the opposite side and pass from there? But the ground pass was so accurate. N Please, do that sometimes. Really. N No way, it’ll be stolen in ten seconds. N Yoo Hee-sung ten seconds to be scolded. ["Yoo Hee-sung received the ball with a clean first touch. But just in front is Carvalho Santos. This player is also a starter for Ajax, so he’s quite skilled. We’ll watch what Yoo Hee-sung does—"] N ???????????? N ???????? N He went crazy? ["Yoo Hee-sung used his upper body feint to trick Carvalho Santos and sprinted forward! There are no more players left to mark Yoo Hee-sung!"] N Whoa, that’s so fast. N Is this seventeen years old??? [Yoo Hee-sung charged toward the penalty box at lightning speed! Lee Tae-yang, Yoon Jae-hoon dragging defenders, and Captain Park Seo-joon charging into the open space... the perfect tactics of head coach Cheon Mu-seok!] N Keep going, keep going, keep going, keep going??? [Pass... Wait, what?! Yoo Hee-sung shot! The ball curved and flew toward the goal! The Brazilian goalkeeper threw himself desperately...] [GOOOAAAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A magnificent goal! Unbelievable! Seventeen-year-old Yoo Hee-sung scored the golden first goal in just ten minutes of the first half against Brazil! This is the appeal of football, the emotion of sports! South Korea 1-0 Brazil!] N Why is the Brazilian player in Korea? N Mom, I want to be Yoo Hee-sung. N Sorry for cursing. N Then Lee Tae-yang and Jung Tae-woo are also exciting, right? N From the beginning, Tae-yang’s movement was great just now. [Yoo Hee-sung ran toward the camera with arms wide open. The hero of the Olympic first goal is Yoo Hee-sung. What kind of celebration will he do?] "Man." "Yoo!" [Uh, yes. He shouted ‘Man Utd’ with great energy.] [Yoo Hee-sung’s love for Manchester United is well known. When he won the MVP award at the high school tournament, he mentioned Man Utd and revealed he was a fan. In his debut goal, he again proved it.] N Hahahaha crazy guy. N Watching the airport interview video, Tae-yang seemed normal too. Is this the spice of seventeen? N Little chili is spicy. N Man Utd~~~~~~~ N Man Utd!!!!!!!!!!! N Run, the Man Utd gallery has your coordinates.
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