Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Not Yet - 2
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"Uh... Ah, over there."
It took quite a while to find our seats.
It was partly because the stadium was so old and not very user-friendly, but also because our seats were quite far forward.
Our seats were right at the front, closest to the field.
"Wow, great seats. They're super close."
I sat down next to Ji-woo in our seats.
Wow, they're really close. How close? Close enough to see the faces of the players warming up on the field in detail.
It really is small for an old stadium.
"Wow, my heart's pounding. Why am I so nervous?"
Still, it seems to have its own kind of charm.
A charm that only a small stadium can have.
It's hard to explain, but it feels like everything is more vivid in such close quarters.
Even the cheers from the fans on the opposite side feel like they're right in front of you.
The seats even vibrate from the roar of the cheers.
Ahi ahi ahi-! Magica Viola-!! È triste il mio cuore lontano Da te-! Magica Viola alè-!!
A purple wave dyes the entire stands.
Every time the wave swells, it lets out a powerful roar. Even if I can't understand the words exactly, I can tell it's our team's cheer.
"Magica" means something like "magical," and "Viola" is our team's nickname.
"Wow... This is insane. Isn't it?"
"Yeah."
"Now I feel like I'm really in Italy..."
Ji-woo said, looking around the stands with his mouth slightly agape, and I nodded in agreement.
I think I know what he means by feeling like he's in Italy.
People usually say Italians are emotional and quick to get excited, a hot-blooded people. But the people here in Florence seemed more calm and gentle than that.
But after coming here, I realized that Florentines are still Italians.
They must save all their explosiveness for when they're in here, so they have to be calm on the outside.
It almost looks like they're not here to watch soccer, but to relieve stress.
"But, what about our Ji-an? Will he be okay?"
"Huh? What about him?"
"Can he play in a place like this? With all these people? I'd be relieved if our Ji-an doesn't just start bawling his eyes out."
"Who's going to be bawling?"
I laughed at Ji-woo's comment, as if it were ridiculous.
But honestly, he hit the nail on the head.
How could I play soccer in a place like this?
Plus, the stadium is so small that if you were standing near the touchline, you could probably hear what the fans were saying. If I made even one mistake, I'd probably hear every curse word in the book.
And beyond that, how nervous would you be playing soccer in front of so many people?
If I were in that position... My whole body would freeze up, and my mind would go completely blank.
"..."
Now that I think about it, the coach said something.
He told me to go watch a game and think about what it would be like if I were playing there.
Hmm. Well...
I have a feeling it would take a long time to get used to. No, would I even be able to get used to it?
At least I found out today what the atmosphere in the stadium is like, so maybe that's a good thing.
If I hadn't known, I might have been in big trouble later on.
Well... Playing here for me is still years away, anyway.
I was lost in thought for a moment when Ji-woo asked from beside me.
"Hey, do you know all those players? Are you on familiar terms with them?"
"Over there?"
I shifted my gaze to where Ji-woo was pointing and saw players in purple uniforms warming up.
They were our team's first-team players.
Hmm... I don't really know them. I've never watched a first-team game. I might recognize a few names if I saw them, but I can't tell who's who just by looking at their faces.
Jeez.
Still, they're my team and my seniors, so I should show some interest.
How can I not know a single one...
"...Huh?"
"What?"
"I know someone!"
"Who?"
I thought I didn't know any of them, but I saw a familiar face and couldn't help but exclaim.
I saw the face of Gino, who I'd trained with.
"That's Gino. He's a year older than me. We trained together until recently."
"If he's a year older, that makes him seventeen? Wow, he must be really good."
"He is."
Wow, I knew Gino was good, but...
Wasn't it only about a month ago that he moved up to the U19 team?
And in just that one month, he's already made it to the first team. That's amazing.
I heard that our team's roster isn't that big, so sometimes they fill out the squad for cup games with youth players.
Still, it's pretty amazing. And impressive.
Wow... Gino really is on another level...
"So, if you're a soccer genius, does that make him a soccer genius-genius?"
"...Huh?"
"Right? He's only a year older than you, and he's already playing there. Doesn't that mean he's more of a genius than you?"
Ji-woo said that and then covered his mouth, snickering.
Is he trying to tease me?
But it's all true, so I don't really feel anything about it.
Just...
"Who knows. Who knows where I'll be in a year."
I puffed out my lips and acted cocky.
Even if I think that on the inside, I hate to lose on the outside.
"Ooh. Where's that confidence coming from? So you're saying you can play there within a year?"
"Well, is there any reason I can't?"
"Wow, you really change when it comes to soccer. What are you going to do if you can't?"
"We'll just have to wait and see."
Ji-woo laughed and said he'd be waiting.
...Jeez. What did I just say?
This mouth of mine is the problem. My mouth.
Make the first team in a year? Me? That's just talk. Ji-an...
"Wow, it's starting."
I sighed to myself and started watching the game.
*
"They're not scoring..."
"They should have scored from that corner kick earlier."
"The first half is almost over. Shouldn't we be winning by now?"
"Well, yeah, but... We'll have to see."
The game was more intense than I'd expected.
The first half was almost over, and it was still 0-0.
Palermo, today's opponent, is a Serie B team, but they didn't look like an easy opponent.
They were putting up a stubborn defense against us, refusing to concede a goal.
I don't know if it's okay for a Fiorentina player to say this, but to me, the other team looked more impressive.
To be able to hold out so well in an away stadium.
If it were me, I would have been so intimidated I wouldn't have been able to do anything.
"Ah, it's over."
"It's over."
"What was the problem? You said they were a second-division team. Weren't we supposed to win easily?"
"Being a second-division team doesn't mean they can't play well."
"So explain it. What's the problem, according to our soccer genius?"
"The problem? Hmm..."
I fell into thought at Ji-woo's question.
The problem with the first half... Well...
If I had to guess, there were things like poor finishing and inaccurate crosses.
But more fundamentally, the problem seemed to be that our attack patterns were too monotonous.
Our team had over 60% possession throughout the first half and was constantly attacking.
However, most of those attacks were crosses following a side breakthrough.
Actually, I shouldn't say "most," it was more like nine out of ten were crosses.
Since the attack was so simple, it was easy for the opponent to defend against it.
Well, if it were sharp, even if it was simple, it might be a different story... but it wasn't. That was the problem.
It looked like we needed more creative plays.
"Hmm, I see. To be honest, I don't really get it even after hearing it."
Ji-woo scratched his head at my explanation.
Well, it's easy to say.
Anyone can sit in the stands and talk big. The hard part is actually doing it on the field.
The coach, with his shaved head and scary look, or the first-team seniors... They must know what I know. And there are probably things they know that I don't.
What if I were on the field instead of in the stands?
I probably couldn't even do half of that.
I'd just be flustered and my inadequacies would be completely exposed.
If Ji-woo saw that... Ugh.
"Ah, it's frustrating. If our Ji-an went in, he could turn it all around. Right?"
"Huh? Uh..."
...If the day ever comes when I make it to the first team, I hope that day is as far in the future as possible.
Hmm... No.
But then that would make the lie I just told a reality.
Sigh.
This is why you have to live honestly.
*
Waaaaaaaah-!!
Around the 15th minute of the second half, the stadium shook violently.
"Wow, they scored!"
Finally, our goal went in.
The stubbornly attempted cross finally met the head of one of our players, and the header tore through the net.
Lorenzo-!! Lorenzo-!! Lorenzo-!!
The moment the goal went in, roars erupted from all over, and soon they merged into one name, being chanted over and over.
They were calling the name of the player who scored.
It gave me goosebumps for some reason, and when I looked over, Ji-woo was rubbing his arms too.
"Wow... That's chilling..."
It definitely... seems thrilling.
Even just watching from the sidelines, my heart swells. What if that was my name?
I think I'd feel incredibly thrilled in that moment.
I suddenly got curious and asked Ji-woo.
"Hey, what if..."
"Yeah?"
"What do you think it would be like if people called out my name like that?"
"Your name?"
At my question, Ji-woo seemed to imagine it for a moment, then crossed his arms and put on a smug expression.
"Well, it would feel great, of course."
"...Really?"
"Isn't that obvious? I'm the one who raised you. I'd feel so proud. Actually, people should be calling my name, not yours."
"..."
"What's with that look? Am I wrong?"
"No... You're right..."
Yeah... It's not completely wrong...
Well, anyway.
Imagining it, it really did seem like it would feel great.
If everyone called my name in front of Ji-woo... He'd be proud, right?
Would Ji-woo feel that way too?
I glanced at Ji-woo and then pointed at his arm.
"Goosebumps."
"Huh?"
"You've got crazy goosebumps."
The hairs on Ji-woo's white arm were standing on end.
But Ji-woo covered his arm with his hand and glared at me.
"Pervert."
"...Huh?"
"What are you looking at? You pervert."
"Wh-what are you talking about?"
"Were you peeking at me like this the whole time?"
"D-don't say weird things."
What nonsense is he talking about? This guy.
Ji-woo kept glaring at me with a strange smile, so I quickly turned my head away.
Ah, it's hot.
...
Watching the game with Ji-woo was more fun than I expected.
Maybe because I skipped training to go, the game itself wasn't that exciting, but it still felt fun.
It was a bit frustrating in the first half, but we ended up winning with two goals in the second half anyway.
Hanging out with Ji-woo before the game, at the stadium, and after the game over a meal was also fun.
It felt a bit like old times.
All in all, it felt like I'd spent the day meaningfully.
Maybe because I rested well all day, I felt full of energy during training today, which is a Wednesday. The ball seemed to fly better, and the training felt like it was going well.
I realized that resting well is important too. I never knew the importance of resting because I'd just been taking it easy all this time.
It's like you don't know the value of air until you're underwater.
Anyway.
After finishing training like that, I went to find the coach.
I was there to get my homework checked.
"Ah, right. So, how was it? Did you watch properly?"
"Yes. I watched properly."
"What did you think? Well, they did win, but... Still, I saw a lot of problems."
"Uh... Was that so?"
"The fans' opinion isn't very good either. They said the play was frustrating. They were asking when Fiorentina became a team that just mindlessly whips in crosses."
"Ah..."
"Speak freely. What did you think of the game?"
At the coach's words, I cautiously shared my feelings.
I was originally planning to just say it was a good game and that I learned a lot. I thought being too honest might seem arrogant.
But since the coach said that first, I could speak more freely and honestly.
"...I definitely thought they were a bit lacking in that area. Of course, it's different watching from the sidelines versus playing on the field."
"So that's how you felt."
The coach nodded after hearing what I had to say.
"To be honest, Coach Vincenzo has been worried about a lot of things lately. You saw it too, right? How he's losing all his hair."
"..."
I held back a laugh because it felt like I shouldn't, and the coach gave me a look that said "Not bad," and continued.
"He knows that's not how it should be, but he says he has no other way. He said with the players he has, that's all he can do."
"Ah..."
"I understand him completely, too. After all, the players are the ones who play the game. You have to adjust the tactics to fit the players."
"Yes."
Maybe because coaches understand each other, the coach furrowed his brow.
"He said there isn't a player who can bring creativity to the attack. You need a player with some unpredictability to diversify the patterns, but there isn't such a player on the first team right now..."
"I see..."
"You felt that part clearly too, right?"
I nodded at the coach's question.
Then the coach nodded back at me and asked.
"So, how about you go and give it a try?"
"...Huh?"
...What did you say?
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