Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Trained Beast
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Once Paul Hernandez had shown that side of himself—his socks yanked off—he didn't approach me for a while, aside from our usual greetings on the way to and from training.
"Even the iron-man captain feels embarrassed, huh."
Still, whenever the benchwarmers who got pushed out of the starting lineup tried to pick a fight with me, he'd show up and drag them away.
Just like that, with the captain essentially having my back, no one dared to mess with me.
From the start, the guys who hated me all shared the same gripe: that I'd cozied up to the manager to shove his buddies into the starting XI.
Of course, they couldn't exactly admit that I'd earned my spot fair and square.
By their logic, though, I had the manager himself in my corner on top of the captain. What more explanation did anyone need?
I'd only played in one match since joining the team, but already I was the second-most influential player after the captain.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Time flew by, and Round 25 of the league arrived.
Our opponents were Burgos CF.
I'd read an article about them once—how they'd just gotten promoted to the Segunda División after twenty years and had managed to hold on there for a few seasons now. That was about the extent of what I knew.
Truth be told, aside from a handful of big clubs, there weren't many teams in La Liga 2 that posed a real threat.
And sure enough, we won handily.
Final score: 4-0.
Sure, putting away four goals was noteworthy, but that wasn't why Espanyol fans were going wild.
Shockingly, this was Espanyol's first clean sheet of the season, more than halfway through.
There's an old saying: "Attack wins matches, defense wins championships."
And it's true—no matter how many you score, if you're leaking them just as fast, it's all for nothing.
Even top goal-difference teams sometimes bounce around the "promotion playoff" zone because of it.
More than that, a shaky defense makes fans nervous just watching.
You never know when or how they'll get breached.
There's even that tragic legend about the fan who went to bed thinking a two-goal lead meant victory, only to wake up to a 5-2 thrashing.
And that team? Yeah, that was us—Espanyol.
Our already shaky backline had its ace center-back charging forward like a wild bull, making a shutout feel like a pipe dream.
💬 Comments — Fan123 Four goals had my eyes feasting, but the real relief is that our backline's finally stabilized!! — SkepticGuy Hey, aren't you getting too hyped over one clean sheet? Shitty defense has been our chronic illness. — OptimistPerico Too big a change to call it a fluke from just one game, no? — BullTamer? More than anything, our wild bull's finally learned some restraint!! ⭐ Player Stats — [Paul Hernandez] Rating: 8.2 Tackles: 5/6
> Interceptions: 2
> Clearances: 1
> Header Clears: 5
> Recoveries: 2
> Fouls: 0
— WTFMoment Wait, the bull who always costs himself rating points with mistakes got an 8.2? — NoFouls?? This is insane... Zero fouls? ZERO! — CardMagnetFan A guy we're lucky doesn't get cards, and he has zero fouls? — MysterySolver FUCK! Who the hell's got a grip on this bull?! — SiEonTheory Wasn't it after Si-eon joined...? — RealityCheck C'mon, Si-eon had a good game last time, but don't go full delusion mode. — LaughingPerico Right? A newbie grabbing the captain's reins? That bull, no less. Despite the 4-0 thrashing, Espanyol fans' attention poured onto the defenders, not the goalscorers.
After getting dribbled past by me, Paul seemed to finally grasp that there were opponents he couldn't beat.
Up until then, he'd treated every risky play as a 50/50 shot, success or failure. But after training with me, he realized some were straight-up 0%.
It could've crushed his spirit if it went too far, but for a guy with sky-high confidence in his physicality and immense pride, it was just the right dose of humility.
That said, you can't erase a player's core instincts.
No need to, either.
With proper control, that fire and passion turn straight into skill.
If you can control it well.
Dolan needed steady confidence boosts, while Paul needed occasional humblings.
Funny how their extreme personalities made the fix surprisingly simple.
A few other players came to me for advice too, but I didn't see the point in pouring my heart into guys I'd eventually leave behind.
I helped out where I could, but managing Dolan and Paul was enough heavy lifting.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ From the coaching staff to the players to our points tally—everything about Espanyol was a dumpster fire. But one thing made me oddly proud.
Somehow, we'd beaten Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey Round of 16 and advanced to the quarterfinals.
Honestly, it made zero sense, so I'd straight-up asked the manager on day one.
"No way... How the hell did this squad beat Sociedad?"
Martin Leo let out a wry chuckle before answering.
"Their striker got sent off for a reckless tackle right after kickoff. We scraped through on penalties."
Basically, their attack's key guy got red-carded like a chump.
And even with ten men, we couldn't score in ninety minutes—went to pens just to squeak by. Nearly wore the disgrace of losing 11-v-10.
Whatever. We were the ones in the quarters. Who cares how?
Anyway, the Copa del Rey quarterfinals were right around the corner.
Fun fact: No lower-division team had ever won the Copa del Rey.
England's FA Cup had a few Cinderella stories, but not here.
While we're stuck in the Segunda, why not make some history?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I checked the Copa del Rey lineup and headed straight to the manager's office.
"Good timing. I'm benching you for rotation, not because you're not a starter. You're solidly Espanyol's starting material now."
He rattled it off like he'd read my mind.
"Nah, I see it differently."
"Hm?"
"Are we out of the Champions League or Europa? Does it make sense to ditch one of two comps—league or Copa del Rey?"
"Fair point, but we need to focus on the league more than ever. You know that."
...
I did.
Failing promotion again this season, and Martin Leo might lose his job.
"Did the level drop just because we're in the Segunda?"
...
"If a club truly belongs in La Liga 1, does ditching Copa del Rey make sense? Which La Liga side does that?"
"We're supposed to be a promotion lock, yet we sacrifice Copa? And the quarters—untouchable even for top-flight teams—is what we bail on? Wrong place to show doubt."
"True... But if we flop promotion because of it?"
"Weren't we supposed to be locks anyway? That's what sold me on signing here... And everyone thinks the same."
...
"Who else you wanna slot in?"
"Huh?"
"The starting XI. Let's build it together."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Me starting in the Copa del Rey quarters... Can we win this, Si-eon?"
"Yeah, just play your game."
"But... it's Madrid..."
"We'll face them every week once we're promoted. And we haven't lost since I got here."
"Whoa... True. You aiming for an unbeaten streak?! You could pull it off..."
She knew I'd only played two games, right...?
I humored Dolan's empty chatter and thought about our opponent.
This match? Even I wasn't sure.
Copa del Rey Quarterfinals.
Espanyol vs. Atlético Madrid.
A La Liga giant sat with jaws wide, waiting for us to step up.