Chapter 91
Chapter 91
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: Unknowingly -2
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Was it back in elementary school?
I remember reading a story like that in a science book.
The story went that if you put a frog in boiling water, it would be startled and leap right out, but if you put a frog in tepid water and slowly heat it, the frog wouldn't notice the change until the water boiled and would die.
As a kid, I just thought it was cruel and felt sorry for the frog.
Well, I still feel the same way about that, honestly.
Anyway, the important part is that it's not easy to notice changes that happen gradually.
That's why there are times when it happens.
Times when you don't notice the changes around you, and then suddenly you realize them in a flash.
You might feel the cool air one morning when you open your window and realize that the hot summer has already passed.
You might reach out to grab something for a friend whose hand can't reach it, and realize that you've grown taller than them.
And just like now, when you stand face-to-face with an opponent you met a few months ago...
You realize that you've been growing all along.
Even if that change happened so unknowingly, so gradually, that you never even felt it.
Tak-tak-!
I scrape the ball with the sole of my foot, bringing it to my body to evade the opponent's tackle.
Then, as the opponent doesn't stop and drives his body into me,
Swish-
I roll the ball along and spin my body a half-turn to flow past him.
Dodging the opponent's challenge like that, I get past one man and send a pass into the wide-open left side.
Whoosh-!
I shake off an opponent in midfield and launch a forward pass to the wing.
This entire sequence, even to me, feels astonishingly fluid, as natural as a flowing stream.
However, the opponent who was charging at me was none other than Pellegrini.
The very player who had gotten on my nerves in our last match.
Back then, dealing with this player wasn't this easy. It wasn't just that it wasn't easy; I had the ball taken from me several times and couldn't stop his dribbling, giving up space.
I wasn't just making pathetic excuses about my age to feel better about myself.
I had struggled against Pellegrini, and because of that, our team had a tough time in the midfield battle.
But not today.
The game was flowing on our terms, we were winning the midfield battles, and I was finding it easy to face Pellegrini.
I don't think it's just me who feels this way.
The score on the big screen is the proof.
79:32
FIO 2 : 0 ROM
One goal in the first half, one in the second.
Both goals were ours.
And one of them was mine.
Throughout the game, I could feel it.
Even without me noticing, time was flowing on, and so many things had changed.
Thinking about it, I really am... I really don't listen to the people around me. Maybe I'm just incredibly suspicious.
So many people had told me I'd grown a lot.
The manager, the coaches... and of course, my seniors too.
Even the neighbors I'd bump into on the street would tell me I was becoming more of a man day by day (...), reminding me that I was changing.
But compared to all that, right now, feeling that dealing with Pellegrini isn't difficult...
I could clearly feel that I had grown a lot.
As expected, there must be a reason for those sayings.
Seeing is believing, after all.
That... what was that saying again?
Something about a hundred hearings...?
...Sorry, but I'm a jock, I even get shortened classes.
I should still study a bit, though.
Jiu once said something like that.
She said she really hates guys who are like delinquents with nothing in their heads.
...Hmm.
Why did Jiu suddenly pop into my head here?
Probably because she's the one who told me I'd grown the most.
"Hey-"
Thwack-!
I receive the pass from the left with the outside of my left foot, raising my head to secure a view of the field ahead.
The area around the box is bustling with defenders.
At the same time, I feel a defender charging at my back, so I plant my foot on the ball to stop and focus my senses on gauging the distance.
The moment the approaching defender gets within two steps...
Tuk-!
I tap the ball to the left to evade the defender's approach, then plant my foot on the ball again and turn my body.
"Huff, huff-!"
Then I see Pellegrini, breathing heavily.
For some reason, it feels like his ragged breathing isn't just from physical fatigue.
It's like...
Irritation in his inhales, and frustration in his exhales.
I knew this because I was the one breathing like that in our last match.
I was frustrated and angry myself, and I couldn't help but puff my chest out.
So, does that mean he's feeling the same emotions I did back then?
If not, then I'm sorry.
Swish-
I roll the ball with the sole of my foot, observing only the opponent's gaze. In truth, my position and the situation don't really allow for such a leisurely possession of the ball.
Anyway, since we're near the box, keeping the ball for too long and killing the tempo isn't good play.
However, the same play can become good or bad depending on the situation.
There are about 10 minutes left, we have a two-goal lead, and my teammates and I are all exhausted.
So, there was no need to force an attack and speed things up here.
In fact, my judgment was that we needed to kill the tempo, and I wanted to play a little more one-on-one with Pellegrini.
Tak-tak-
Even I think the way I'm rolling the ball is unsightly to watch, but Pellegrini is only cautiously approaching.
Keeping his stance low and maintaining a certain distance, he doesn't recklessly charge in.
He's a player with a lot to learn from.
Of course, I'm in a position where I have to learn from anyone, but it's even more so with Pellegrini.
The fact that he actively participates in defense even though he plays an attacking role, like me.
The fact that he plays rationally, even when his emotions aren't calm.
I feel that he has things that I don't.
People sometimes tell me I'm excessively humble.
But rather, how can I not be humble when I see things to learn in every single match?
Tak-ta-tak-!
Did he think the positioning of the defenders behind him was finally set?
Pellegrini, who had been holding back, charges at me.
In the previous match, when I tried to get past him like this, he took the ball from me with his long legs.
Back then, it was right after I had moved up from the U17 team, so I wasn't used to long legs.
I struggled against players who were bigger and stronger than me.
But since then, I've faced countless long-legged and physically strong players, accumulating experience.
Thanks to that, I know now.
How to protect the ball from those long legs, and how to fight a strong body with a weak one.
This is the power of time, and the power of experience.
Tak-tak-
I feint to the right, and when the opponent, reacting, loses his balance just slightly, I tap the ball to the left.
Tuk-!
The opponent stretches his leg out long, but I predict his reach and push the ball further out.
As a result, he can't reach it, and I tap the ball forward again with my left foot.
Tak-tak-!
Then I spring forward half a beat faster and take possession of the ball.
In truth, there was no special trick.
The way to fight an opponent stronger than you is, to begin with, not to even think about a physical fight. And the way to evade an opponent's long leg is to push the ball out that much further.
To think I didn't know such a simple thing back then... I really was young.
Tak-ta-tak-!
Of course, I'm still young.
Because the thought crossed my mind as I got past Pellegrini.
See? I was right, it was because of my age that I lost back then...
Whooshhh-!
FWOOSH-!
SMACK-!!
The shot I fired into the gap that opened between the defenders shakes the net.
Anyway, I've definitely grown a lot.
***
"Congratulations! A perfect 3-0 victory!"
"Thank you."
Today, once again, I'm in the position of having to stand in front of the cameras, drenched in sweat.
I'm not the type to obsess over my appearance (compared to my seniors who spend tens of minutes fixing their hair before a match), but still, I'd like to wash up and look a bit more presentable for interviews.
These people will stick a camera and microphone in your face as long as you can move your mouth, regardless of your condition.
"In the first half of the season, you drew 1-1, right? I remember the mood then, it was one of great satisfaction with earning a point at Roma's home."
"Yes, well..."
"But today, you showed a performance that dominated your opponents from start to finish. Even though Roma strengthened their defense in the winter transfer window and Fiorentina had losses in their attacking line."
The journalist looks at me as if seeking my agreement, but I just stay still, not wanting to nod.
Losses in their attacking line.
Lee Romero joined our team in the winter.
If Romero saw this interview, he wouldn't be too pleased, so I keep my head still.
...In fact, that very Romero was already watching from the other side.
When I remained silent, the journalist continued.
"What do you think has changed? The team's internal atmosphere, tactical changes, or perhaps we could even point to your own growth?"
...Hmm.
If you ask the question and then answer it yourself, I don't know what I'm supposed to say.
I rack my brain as if I'm in the middle of a game to come up with a suitable answer.
"Our team is full of spite."
"Spite?"
"When we played Roma last time, it wasn't easy. So this time, everyone wanted to win."
"Hmm..."
"Everyone was full of spite, so they held onto that memory."
"Ah, haha! Is that so?"
...That was a bit of an odd answer, wasn't it?
The journalist burst out with an exaggerated laugh and then started reading the question sheet in his hand.
You should have at least given me one.
I would have given a more predictable answer then.
Regardless, the journalist quickly scanned the sheet and handed me the next question.
"This might be a question outside the game, but lately, as all the Serie A teams have been knocked out of the Champions League round of 16, there are many fans who are placing their hopes on Fiorentina."
"..."
"Fiorentina's goal is clearly to qualify for the Champions League next season, right?"
I give a small nod, and the journalist continues.
He's really going on and on.
"People are curious. Your performance has been so spectacular, they're wondering what it would be like if you faced other European teams in the Champions League."
As I listen to the question, I observe the officials crossing their arms behind the camera.
Judging by the expressions of the officials, this journalist, who's talking unnecessarily at length, will probably be cut off soon.
...I definitely get sensitive as soon as I'm in front of a camera.
"Since the season is now entering the latter half of the second half, I'd like to ask about your resolve for next season. If you were to go to the Champions League, are you confident you can continue your current form?"
At least one thing seems certain.
This person won't be the one in this spot for the next interview.
I shake the water from my hair and speak.
"I'll have to work hard for that. And, I'm just as excited as the fans who support us. About the chance to go to the Champions League and face strong teams."
I give a long answer for the sake of this journalist, who might be the last one.
"I'm curious too. Whether I can play my game against foreign teams... How many players are above me? I've met so many players, learned from them, and learned again. So I'm looking forward to it, and I plan to do my best."
After I finish my answer, the journalist keeps nodding, and the interview ends there.
...