Chapter 10
Chapter 10
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: Adam Dolan
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As the match kicked off, Espanyol's promising youngster Adam Dolan found himself plunged into an even greater state of confusion than usual.
"Just listen to me? What the hell kind of confidence is that?"
The newbie who'd only just joined training for the first time today—Sean, was it?
Right before the game started, Si-eon had told him that if he just followed his instructions, the match would feel a whole lot easier. Just do whatever he said.
It stung his pride that a fresh-faced rookie was talking to him like that—something he might brush off from a veteran, sure—but the kid had zeroed in on his biggest headache lately, so he couldn't help but be intrigued.
The team coaches just kept repeating the same old advice: pass the ball a tempo quicker. But this guy? He knew exactly why Adam's passes had slowed down and even offered a solution.
For solving his immediate problem, Si-eon—who he'd met today—knew more than the coaches who'd been watching him for ages.
Even if the fix flopped, the kid at least understood the root cause.
How the hell had he figured out Adam's issue?
This season, he'd only played in three matches.
And even those were just late sub-ins as the starters managed their stamina in already-won games.
Which only made it more baffling.
Nothing's harder than looking like the odd man out in a game that's already in the bag.
His problem? Slowing down his pass timing while hunting for the perfect route.
Being subbed in only for comfortable leads masked that flaw, making it look like a strength: smart tempo control and picking the ideal pass every time.
Turning a weakness into a supposed asset?
That might sound like some genius manager molding a player to fit his system, but it was far from ideal.
For someone who should be growing, getting pitched into meaningless minutes and exploiting his own flaws? Disaster.
The coach saw him as a steady tempo-setter with safe passing skills and slotted him in accordingly. But Adam knew it was a weakness that needed fixing.
What was he supposed to do?
Call out the coach's usage when he knew the flaw but let it slide? Laughable. But changing it up when the coach was at least giving him minutes? Awkward too.
Into this mess drops this guy, rattling off Adam's weakness in one breath and tossing out a weird fix.
Whoever pitched that solution—no matter how crazy it sounded to others—Adam wanted to grab onto it.
He needed a mentor he could blindly trust to lead him toward real growth.
Hell, he wished this kid he'd bow to right now would turn out to be that guy.
"Whoa!! That guy's insane!!"
"Wasn't he signed as a fullback?"
"No way he was serious about what he said earlier?"
The teammates' cheers snapped him out of his reverie, pulling him back to reality.
"Huh?.."
Ten minutes into the match.
The very guy who'd sent him woolgathering had just ripped a screamer from midfield, surrounded by ecstatic teammates.
...
"Zoning out during the game..."
Even crazier? He'd spent those full ten minutes lost in thought.
"Hey, nice one! See? Way easier when you do what I say, right?"
"Uh...? What're you..."
As he shook it off and headed back to position, Si-eon slung an arm around his shoulder.
"Told you. Doing what I say makes it a breeze. Just pass to me—how simple is that?"
...
Si-eon sauntered back to his spot like it was nothing.
Brrr...
Recalling what had just happened sent chills down his spine.
Usually, even a single pass triggered a barrage of thoughts that tripped him up. But not this time.
It was completely different. Totally.
No need to think meant no room for distractions.
He hadn't even realized he was playing soccer.
Whenever the ball came his way, he just passed toward Si-eon's voice. Done.
"Wait... then...?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The game resumed, and Si-eon was still owning the pitch like it was his living room.
"That guy's on another level by himself!!"
"Whoa... He's the chairman's pick, right? Not some deadweight parachute?"
The coaches clustered around Martin Leo were talking about one player and one only.
"He's definitely a standout. But that's not all..."
The others were dazzled by the long-range rocket, but Martin Leo's focus was elsewhere.
Change is needed... Might have to make some bold calls.
Martin Leo scanned each player, mulling over his lineup for the next league match.
"But... Dolan's on fire today too, huh? He'd play well then slack off and lose it dumbly."
"Yeah... Maybe the new guy's lighting a fire under him?"
The Espanyol coaches could sense Adam Dolan's shift.
But the one feeling it most? Adam Dolan himself.
This is fun!
No worrying where to thread it during buildup.
Just ping it straight to Si-eon.
Under pressure? No sweat.
Si-eon covers and takes it.
Even if Si-eon's marked? Doesn't matter.
Send it his way—he handles the rest.
The first ten minutes, the brainless passing felt so alien that random thoughts filled the void left by his usual overthinking.
Once he refocused, he spotted something even wilder.
Passing to Si-eon was still priority one.
But after the pass, his brain caught up: That was the best option.
Just blindly following the kid's lead, and his slightly delayed—but near-perfect—judgment confirmed it every time.
Ah... You've been seeing the paths I strain to find ages ago.
Because Si-eon was just that good?
Not wrong, but not quite right.
Si-eon's off-the-ball movement was top-tier—god stats, even.
Realizing that erased any hesitation about passing to him.
Now, he poured all his mental energy into reading the game.
"Whoa..."
"He saw that? Back turned—no line of sight?"
It felt like overlooking the entire pitch.
No more scrambling just to keep the ball.
He had breathing room to see it all.
And no worries.
Someone was there who saw what he saw—and even led him to those sights.
A back-turned volley spin.
Everyone else would call it a panicked clearance.
But if one player predicted the landing spot faster than anyone? Game-changer.
A pass only the giver and receiver would know.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ He's doing better than expected.
As an aerial ball dropped toward their half, Adam Dolan had glanced back over his shoulder—just for a split second—to check the space behind the opponent's defense.
Indescribable instinct.
Reading minds? Impossible. Reading players? Apparently doable.
They say perfect duos read intentions from a glance alone.
The dropping ball bounces off his back.
No one's close yet, so he lets it bounce again instead of claiming it outright.
A chaotic aerial scrap in the opponent's box.
Win it here, and it's a straight goal threat—no holding back.
"Go!"
All three Espanyol forwards read it the same: steal = goal.
And it was Adam Dolan to boot.
Steady today? Whatever.
The midfielder marking Dolan got no help—all three attackers stuck to his potential pass targets.
Passing lanes sealed, control tricky.
Mess up, and it's a goal chance. Clear it? They regain possession. Win-win.
That's why vets hold starters: shared instincts from experience.
If only that judgment held...
Pwaang!
Dolan, waiting out the bounce with his back turned, suddenly twisted and volleyed forward.
"Phew..."
The starters exhaled in relief from the momentary pressure, then tracked the ball.
"Huh..?"
Si-eon had claimed it in the starting XI's half.
The instant he glimpsed Dolan checking forward back-turned, Si-eon bolted instinctively toward the opponent's box. He kept his stride, touched the oddly curving drop, nudged it ahead, and surged on.
Now, where this ball needed to go.
Glancing goalward, he spotted the keeper scrambling back without a look behind.
Hoo-eup.
Pwaaang!
From just past midfield in the right half-space, the chipped ball rocketed straight-line shortest path—like it knew one destination only.
"Whoa..."
The rushing-back forward halted abruptly.
Si-eon was already turning and coming back the other way.