Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: U-17 World Cup: Spain Match
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The ball slowly rolled toward the goal.
My body was already sprinting toward the stands.
The moment it crossed the goal line.
WAAAAAAAAAA—!!!
Thunderous cheers pounded in my ears.
I dashed straight to the corner flag in front of the stands.
More precisely, the moment I reached the massive camera beside the corner flag, I spun around and pointed to the back of my jersey.
BAN
18
The moment my name was broadcast to the world.
——
Korean fans were ecstatic after Ban Yeager's goal.
They'd said they'd root for Spain or that expecting anything from the national team was stupid, but everyone tuning in for the U-17 World Cup loved Korea fiercely.
It was just their way of protecting themselves amid repeated losses and disappointments.
Hidden beneath those defense mechanisms, their passionate hearts would leap back into action at the slightest hint of hope or possibility.
Hotter... roar of victorious spirit!
Roaaaaar Korea!
Hotter... roar of victorious spirit!
Roaaaaar Korea!
...
Kooooorea!!!
The cheers echoed endlessly.
The match against Spain in Qatar.
Koreans in the crowd were less than 10%.
But we were undoubtedly the masters of this stadium.
'Ugh... awesome!!'
I wanted to feel cheers like this again.
Repay them with even more goals.
I'm still hungry.
——
"Ban Yeager!!!"
Ah... voices praising me.
"Hey, Ban Yeager!! Get over here!!"
They want to see me up close, I bet.
But I'm a player proudly wearing the Taeguk mark on the pitch.
"Do what you're told, you bastard!! Stick to defense from now on!!!"
I have to focus solely on the game.
Tweeeeet—!
The game restarted with Spain's kickoff.
One goal ahead, but the flow hadn't changed much.
Korea kept repelling Spain's fierce attacks.
But as if to mock Ban Yeager's miraculous opener, Spain equalized.
Spain's scorer was their left winger, Oscar Valverde.
A crack winger boasting blistering speed and destructive dribbling.
The game reset to even.
At that moment, the arrows of blame pointed at the scorer, Ban Yeager.
Ban Yeager had given hope that Spain could be beaten.
But watching him stand by even after conceding the equalizer was infuriating.
It was clearly a defensive error, but the other players at least looked like they were busting their asses.
Getting breached and conceding against Spain was expected, so no one ragged on them.
All the frustration and disappointment from Korean fans poured onto Ban Yeager.
That one perfect play—toying with Spain for the opener—had sparked "what if" expectations.
Everyone was glued to his every move.
——
30th minute of the first half, score 1:1.
Spain still dominated possession, but Korea's counter attempts were picking up.
The trigger: whenever Korea stole the ball, it went straight to Ban Yeager.
Not out of trust—just that he was the only one up front receiving passes.
Ban Yeager lurked high up, waiting for chances.
Naturally, he became the hub of Korea's counters.
Having witnessed that absurd solo goal, Spain had no choice but to assign at least two markers to him.
Yet they couldn't contain him.
"Mark him!!"
An aerial ball dropping into the middle.
He bent his knees like he was about to leap high.
A textbook chest trap setup.
Spanish players charging from both sides anticipated the drop after the chest control.
But if he skipped the trap and turned instead...
WAAAAAAAAAA—!!!
Spain turns into a recreational kickabout team.
A light feint sent the two Spaniards tumbling.
Still, learning their lesson, Karn Garcia pulled back quicker to cover behind.
Tap— tap—
I accelerated slowly, dribbling forward.
Karn Garcia, burned once, approached cautiously.
His caution gave me the space to spot a perfect passing lane.
Thwack—!
Right-footed outside-of-the-foot pass.
The ball sliced laterally across the grass, landing perfectly at the feet of the prospect right winger, Ki Daeryong.
"Huff... huff..."
Ki Daeryong drove into the penalty box.
'Cross? Or shoot?'
Split-second decision time.
"Daeryong!!"
The shout made him look up.
A narrowing-angle keeper rushed him, and a teammate stood perfectly positioned.
Tap.
Goal was as good as in.
Thwack—!
Spraaaaaw—
True to the trust, a crisp net-rippling sound rang out.
——
Ban Yeager had already notched his second goal.
Fans rejoiced at his exploits but wondered why such a player was only starting now.
The coach was just as baffled.
"Was Ban Yeager always this good?"
A sacrificial sub in a sure-loss game was single-handedly dismantling Spain's golden generation.
An awkward situation.
Winning against Spain was worlds better than losing, but explaining why he stuck with Kim I-seok over this guy? No words.
WAAAAAAAAAA—!!!
The scoreboard flashed Ban Yeager's celebration.
Right hand flashing a V-sign, boasting his brace.
——
Conceded first but clawed one back. Good.
Then conceded again less than five minutes later.
Spain's chase momentum shattered; they faltered.
All because of one player.
Even with a center-back and defensive mid glued to him, Korea's striker somehow scored again.
Having expected a blowout before that ridiculous opener, their coping was poor.
The playbook for trailing Korea?
Might be buried in the coach's mind, but not reaching the players.
Thwack!
Goalkeeper's punch sent the ball central.
Spain's midfielder receiving it turned to distribute.
'None...'
No passing options.
Korean players charging to steal up front.
Drop it back? The multi-goal threat lurks there.
A split-second panic gap.
Tap.
A foot poked through his legs, nicking the ball.
It rolled perfectly to the onrushing midfielder Lee Doran, who lofted it forward.
"Block him!!!"
Ban Yeager's third chance.
But not as easy this time.
The pass was long, receiving deep.
Spain had reorganized their defensive line in the meantime.
No rush—wait for the team to push up.
Teammates sprinting from midfield.
I turned and drifted slowly to the flank outside enemy territory.
Karn Garcia followed my movement.
Creating a gap between Spain's right-back Alvaro Pereira and Karn Garcia.
I slotted the pass in.
"Run onto it!!"
No clue if teammates saw the lane. Didn't matter.
They just needed to keep their built-up speed from midfield.
Pereira and Garcia lunged in sequence to intercept.
Spraaaaaw—
Both missed by a hair.
Thwack—!!
Striker Moon Seonjun easily collected and buried the one-on-one.
Shortly after, first half ended without added time.
News spread worldwide: Korea dominating Spain 3-1 at halftime in U-17 World Cup.
Soccer fans encountering this miracle tuned in late.
Viewership spiked at halftime.
Meanwhile, in the locker room of the miracle-working Korean U-17 team, the atmosphere was strangely tense.