Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: The Team of Turin - Part 3
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"Go forward!"
"Defend!"
My goal was the turning point that set the match ablaze.
It was only natural.
For the opposing team, who had dominated the game for over twenty minutes, conceding an unexpected goal and falling behind on the scoreboard was a disaster. They were panicking.
We, in turn, defended more aggressively to stop their onslaught, but we didn't back down, having confirmed that our press was effective.
And, above all else.
We were emotionally charged.
The players on the field, myself included, were all under seventeen. The tightly stretched string of tension snapped, and the heat on the field roared into a blaze.
It's hard to describe.
Instead of thinking twice or three times as we'd been taught, our plays became more impulsive.
The match grew far messier than before, and I had to focus harder to stay level-headed and keep my judgment from clouding.
Especially the other side had grown even more emotional.
Having been scored on by someone like me must have been a blow to their pride.
After the goal, I was returning to our side, waiting for the match to restart, when I saw them huddled together, talking about something. Among them, Jérôme was visibly furious. He was probably suggesting they torment me to break my spirit, just like before.
I wasn't being paranoid for thinking that. In fact, after the match resumed, the pressure on me became even more intense.
Just like now.
"He's got backup! Be careful!"
See? The moment I get the ball, a shout goes up telling them to be careful.
Whoosh-!
The instant I receive the ball, I quickly pass it and move. The player who had charged roughly into the spot where I was standing looks back at me with regret before returning to his position.
If I hadn't moved, we would have collided.
"..."
To be honest, it's terrifying to think everyone is targeting me like this. But I can't show it. That's what they want. If I get dragged into their game, the match will only get harder.
I learned from Ji-woo that sometimes, pretending you're fine can be a big help. And that I have quite a knack for acting.
Am I not the one who spun a ridiculous lie about being a soccer genius and hasn't been caught yet?
Instead of showing fear, I moved around even more actively, increasing my number of touches. When our team had the ball, the opponents pressed hard, and we had to maintain possession against that pressure. I had to be the one to do it.
My teammates also actively helped me.
Whoosh-!
The moment I received the ball in the center, opponents rushed in from all sides.
I hesitated for a moment, wondering which way to break through.
"Break through!"
"I've got him!"
My teammates joined in, using their bodies to block the opponents. It was as if they were saying, "I'll handle this, you go!" Was my nose stinging because I was being too sentimental? I'm not alone anymore. I have people on my side.
Tat-tat-tat-!
I dribbled through the gap my teammates created and broke out. As I left the cramped space, a wide-open field came into view.
Soccer is an 11 vs 11 battle. If more than two players are on me, someone else must be open. In this case, it was the right side.
Booooom-!
I sent a long switch pass to that space and ran forward.
It was near the end of the first half, so my breathing was heavy, but I ran with excitement.
I had never enjoyed a match as much as I did today.
*
"Fighting, fighting! Let's hang in there just a bit more! We can do it!"
Luca Coach shouted to the boys taking the field for the second half. Then, he returned to the bench and sat next to Director Toni, immediately starting to get worked up.
"What should we do? Should we call him right now?"
"...Call who?"
"Vincenzo, the head coach. Tell him we've got Fiorentina's future here, so he should come and get him quickly!"
"The match isn't over yet."
"So what! Does the result matter more? Lee Ji-an faced the Juventus kids and wasn't scared at all; he dominated them! He overcame it! He completely overcame it!"
"...For an Italian man, you're way too impatient."
Even as he scolded Luca Coach's antics, Director Toni couldn't hide the smile on his face.
He had been more nervous than ever before today's match.
Of course, Juventus was always a nerve-wracking opponent, but today was different.
Something far more important than three points or topping the group was at stake.
"But I'm just another helpless Italian man."
Truthfully, when he was picking the roster for this Juventus away match.
Director Toni had agonized over it more than a dozen times.
Over whether to bring Lee Ji-an or not.
He knew the boy had a strong will, of course. He had shown great enthusiasm during training, and Luca Coach had told him that Ji-an had said he really wanted to do well in this match.
But still, he couldn't shake the thought that bringing Ji-an on this trip and putting him in the match was just greed.
It hadn't even been a year since Ji-an had left Juventus after failing to adapt.
That had become a kind of trauma, and Ji-an hadn't been able to recover easily even after changing teams.
Was it really the right thing to do, to send a child, only sixteen years old, out to face a match as a "great opportunity" to overcome his trauma?
Was it the right choice to place the boy, who had hidden away under the burden of pressure, in front of that pressure again? Director Toni couldn't easily come to a conclusion.
So, he was grateful.
To Ji-an, who had played so well in the first half that he wondered what he would have done if he hadn't put him in.
It wasn't just that he had perfectly led the game's flow, made the best judgment at every moment, and even scored a goal.
As for simple skill, it was a given from the start that the Juventus kids were no match for Ji-an.
What Director Toni was grateful for was the change in Ji-an's face over time.
At the start of the match, and through the early to mid-first half.
Ji-an's face, which had looked quite tense, became vivid after the goal, as if a layer had been peeled away. It was like a black-and-white photo turning into a color one.
Yes, his face had become full of life.
It was no longer the face of a child who was used to watching his surroundings because he was burdened by pressure, who had hidden away because he couldn't adapt to a new environment.
It was simply the face of a boy his age, enjoying soccer normally.
"He's handsome..."
"Pardon?"
"Huh? Ah. He was already handsome, but with his expression brightened up, he's even more handsome."
"Well, looks-wise... He'll cause a frenzy when he makes it to the first team."
Director Toni chuckled.
"Ah, but it seems he has a girlfriend."
"...A girlfriend?"
"Yes. From what I heard, it sounds like a friend he knew from Korea. Apparently, he bought her meals and gifts with his weekly wage."
"See, being handsome is the best after all."
To think he has a girlfriend with that personality.
As Italians, they couldn't understand it, so Director Toni and Luca Coach burst out laughing.
*
"Find out."
"Pardon?"
"Find out who that kid is."
"That kid... Who are you referring to?"
In a corner of the stands.
A man in a suit frowned.
The man glared at his subordinate who couldn't seem to understand his words, then pointed kindly to the field with his finger.
"Number 20. I'm telling you to find out what kind of kid he is."
"Ah... Number 20 on the other side."
At the man's words, the subordinate, who had confirmed the face of Fiorentina's number 20, scratched his head.
It was understandable that he didn't know, as he was a new director who had only recently been assigned to the team and had just arrived in Italy.
The subordinate spoke as if it were a difficult situation.
"That... He used to be on our team."
"...What did you say?"
"He's the kid whose contract was terminated at the beginning of this year. After that, he went to Fiorentina..."
"Why?"
"Um... As far as I know, it's because he couldn't adapt to the team life."
"Couldn't adapt to the team life?"
The man gave him a terrifying look, and the subordinate nodded.
The man demanded a detailed explanation, and the subordinate continued to explain as best he could.
After hearing the explanation, the man let out a sigh.
"Hmm..."
My god.
The man knew very well that Juventus was in a complete mess.
In fact, that was why he, a German football man, had come here.
For a team that supposedly represents Serie A, its first-team squad barely has any youth academy products.
They assembled a squad by buying expensive players from somewhere, like suckers, and ended up handing the league title to Inter, which cost half as much.
This season's start has also been lackluster.
He had come as the surgeon to operate on this messy Juventus.
So, he expected it to be a mess, but he never thought they'd be this clueless.
No, how could they not recognize such talent and just let him go so easily?
He couldn't adapt? Then they should have done whatever it took to help him adapt.
They should have stuck to him 24/7 and taken care of him, and if there was anything making him uncomfortable, they should have cleared it all away.
Look at that.
The match is being completely neutralized by that one Fiorentina number 20.
It's only natural.
His talent is exceptional. It's a talent that has already surpassed the U17 level.
And they didn't recognize that talent?
Then what is Fiorentina? What did they see when they took him right away?
It means the so-called youth coaches of the top club in Serie A have no idea what they're doing.
Well, maybe they just took him to fill a quota.
"Haah..."
The man frowned and let out a sigh.
He never thought it would be a simple problem, but he felt that a major overhaul would be needed to reform this outdated club.
"You said it was at the beginning of this year."
The man muttered to himself.
That they had missed that kid at the beginning of this year.
Hmm.
If only he had come a year earlier, the team's future might have been different.
Well, it can't be helped now.
He'll have to clean house, starting with the coaches who were there at the time.
*
The match was quite grueling.
My legs wouldn't move well from the middle of the second half. I had never played a full match before. Was the conditioning training not enough? Well, looking at the other kids who had been training consistently, they were also struggling, so it was an arrogant thought.
But I could run until the end.
When I thought about where this energy was coming from, it was thanks to the expressions on the opposing team's players.
The look of a match not going their way, the look of being angry but unable to do anything about it.
Thinking that it was because of me gave me strength.
Of course, I don't know if that's really because of me or not.
But that wasn't important. The important thing was that thinking so gave me strength.
Thanks to that, even though the bench asked me several times during the match if I could keep running, I could answer that I could.
I just wanted to run until the end today.
I didn't want to leave a single shred of regret here.
I wanted to go home after wiping everything from my memory.
Still, it was tiring, so I endured the end of the second half by thinking of Ji-woo.
That message... I should have deleted it.
Why does she always have her phone in her hand?
Anyway, she said she'd kill everyone, but if she's the one who dies, it would be embarrassing.
I gave it my all until the end, so I could face Ji-woo confidently when I got back.
Maybe that's why.
The whistle signaling the end of the match sounded especially powerful today.
Peeep, peeeep, peeeep-!
As the match ended, the opposing team's players leaned on their knees, bowing, while we raised our hands and shouted in triumph.
We won.
Against the team of Turin, no less, Juventus!
"Both teams, greet each other!"
"Good game..."
"Good game!"
After the match, we lined up at the halfway line and exchanged greetings with the opponents.
I shook hands with the kids who had given me bad memories.
I felt no particular emotion.
There was no need to have unnecessary feelings for kids who were worse at soccer than me.
...Of course, I'm joking.
"..."
After finishing the greetings and heading back, I saw that bald coach looking at me with a complex expression. But I avoided his gaze and walked past him to head for Luca Coach and Director Toni.
"Ji-an!!"
"Well done! You were the best!"
I ran towards the two men who were opening their arms for me and hugged them like a child.
···
Boooom-
A bus carrying twenty boys and a few adults is heading back to Florence.
The boys, who had poured everything into the match, are all fast asleep.
"..."
Director Toni is tapping away on his phone.
He was composing a message to be sent to someone urgently.
The recipient was Vincenzo Italiano.
The head coach of Fiorentina's first team.