Chapter 187
Chapter 187
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 187
Chapter Title: 2010 South Africa World Cup - 6
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***
["Tank Division" Germany Claims Victory Over Australia]
The match between Germany and Australia ended in a straightforward win for Germany, with no major surprises.
[Union Berlin Captain Yannick Foight Scores His First World Cup Goal Against Australia]
└ From factory worker to national team player in Germany?
└ Captain, oh my captain ㅠㅠ
└ Yannick's story really hits home—makes you feel like you gotta live life hard.
└ And reality is?
└ Yeah, get off work and scratch your belly in your room while gaming lol
└ That's living hard too.
Yannick Foight and Thomas Mayer both started in that game.
In the 22nd minute of the first half, Foight timed his run perfectly onto a cross from Toni Kroos to score on his World Cup debut.
Thomas Mayer dominated Australia's midfield with the same relentless work rate he'd shown at Union Berlin.
Watching Union Berlin's players beaming with joy, I felt just one thing.
‘Ease up a bit.’
Seeing them pour everything into the national team win twisted my gut. Union Berlin—not the national team—was the one paying their salaries.
And if they got injured, it was the club—not the country—that bore the risk.
‘Even if you lose, just don't get hurt.’
Maybe this was a feeling shared by all sports clubs.
Well. That said, the World Cup wasn't all bad.
It was the tournament that drove soccer's global popularity.
The World Cup pitted the best players from each country against one another to crown the world's top nation. It was the only legal way to thrash a rival country—how could people resist?
‘Can't call yourself a man if you hold back.’
Plus, there was some marketing upside for clubs from players shining at the World Cup. Fans who followed them there often became club supporters naturally.
Anyway, quite a few Union Berlin players had been called up to the Germany squad.
Yannick Foight, Thomas Mayer, Manuel Schmidt—not to mention Luca Schneider, whom I'd scouted back in our lower league days—had all made the rotation.
For reference, the Bender brothers had narrowly missed out this time. They'd been solid rotation players at Union Berlin, but it wasn't quite enough to catch the national team manager's eye.
Still, with the brothers burning with determination to make the next World Cup, it served as decent motivation.
‘Just don't transfer out if you want to make the World Cup squad.’
Big tournaments like the World Cup or Euros often sparked more transfers than you'd think.
Some players moved specifically to earn a national team spot through regular starts.
Others transferred to big leagues or clubs to raise their profiles.
In that light, Union Berlin wasn't a bad choice. We'd won the Champions League last season, grabbing the attention of soccer fans worldwide.
Sure enough, after the Champions League triumph, agencies flooded us with inquiries. Zlatan wasn't the only one who'd reverse-offered us.
[Zlatan Ibrahimovic Transfers to Inter!]
For the record, Zlatan went to Inter instead of his original-history AC Milan move. Mourinho sticking around at Inter must've led to some aggressive recruiting.
Oddly, though, for someone of Zlatan's fame, far fewer clubs seemed interested than expected.
Part of it was his fallout with Pep Guardiola at Barcelona.
[Union Berlin Manager Park Chan-hyuk Firmly Rejects Zlatan's Love Call. "Not buying."]
My blunt rejection of his reverse offer seemed to have ripple effects.
The AC Milan director—even with his ties to our "Union Berlin legend" Cafu—called me personally to ask if Zlatan had any hidden issues or how his chemistry might be with Milan.
‘...Huh? Am I getting treated like some kind of fortune teller?’
With Thomas Tuchel and Jurgen Klopp recently asking my take on players too, it probably wasn't coincidence.
***
The South Africa World Cup schedule rolled on.
There were quite a few new players at the tournament I didn't know about.
Honestly, even as a manager, I couldn't remember every prospect from the past. Most who were once hyped ended up forgotten.
And new talents poured out every year anyway.
Remembering them all was impossible.
‘Oh yeah, there was this guy Marco Marin, called the German Messi.’
Childhood prodigies rarely panned out as expected.
Potential wasn't a reliable predictor of success.
Even innate geniuses could stagnate from laziness, or get derailed by injury.
‘And that's why I invested in medical.’
Anyway. While some underachieved relative to potential, others wildly overachieved.
Team chemistry could push limits.
The prime example: Manuel Schmidt.
His club and international form showed the starkest gap.
At Union Berlin, pairing with Thiago Silva let Schmidt outperform his 5-star ceiling.
Bluntly, his shot-stopping was the best I'd seen in any keeper.
His lower stats in distribution, defense organizing, and feet held him back—but pure saves? On another level.
‘This is straight-up broken.’
It hit me anew: my Scouter ability was insanely overpowered. Spotting strengths/weaknesses fast, patching flaws with chemistry.
Someone watching might say using cheats kills the fun in games.
But reality wasn't a game.
‘It's always fresh. Always thrilling. Praise me more.’
Unlike FM, reality overflowed with fans chanting my name.
***
I boarded a flight home after Spain vs. Switzerland in Group H.
‘Hm...? Did Spain lose in original history too?’
For reference, Switzerland won 1-0.
Post-match, the media went wild over the Swiss upset.
Anyway, Charles and I flew back to Germany. I'd have loved to watch to the final, but manager life wasn't that leisurely.
As Union Berlin's head coach, I had next season prep—including preseason and the Asia tour.
[Park Chan-hyuk's Astronomical Ad Fees?]
First preseason since the Champions League win.
As Asia's first European Champions League-winning manager, time to cash in.
"Hey. Park Jung-ah. Company's loaded—can't you bump my ad rates?"
"So, whose is the 51% stake in the corporation that effectively owns Guten?"
"...Mine."
"Then shut up and work, Manager?"
I was done with free ads for Guten.
With my wedding to Charles coming up, I'd need some pocket money.
Anyway, as Union Berlin and I sorted the Asia tour...
Time flew. South Korea, finishing second behind group-topping Argentina, drew Uruguay in the round of 16.
I watched the Uruguay-Korea match at home with family. Charles and I knew the result, but we cheered for Korea anyway.
You never know—upsets happen.
Uruguay's standout was Luis Suarez, of course. He'd later form Barcelona's deadly MSN with Messi and Neymar.
Not that I wanted to sign him.
‘Hm... Should I tip off Tuchel?’
Suarez seemed unmanageable.
Anyway. Soon after.
The Uruguay-South Korea match kicked off.
The first goal came from...
"Go, GOOOAAAL! South Korea! South Korea takes the lead! Lee Sung-jae! Union Berlin's Lee Sung-jae scores the opener!"
None other than South Korea.
"Hm. My sweet, pretty little sister."
I quietly called to Park Jung-ah.
"What."
"Can we cancel the bet?"
"Nope. Who told you to bet like a traitor?"
"I didn't know! I had no idea Korea would score first!"
I'd bet on Uruguay to win.