Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Season Opener, DFB-Pokal -2
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***
‘Got it…!’
The moment Roberto Lewandowski scored the opener, I clenched my fist tight. Then I turned my head to look at Bayer Leverkusen’s bench.
There was Michael Skibbe, Leverkusen’s manager, his face a picture of shock.
He’d clearly failed to mask his expression in the face of this unexpected turn.
Leverkusen hadn’t prepared for us as thoroughly as they should have.
“Roberto!!”
“Foot of God!!!”
The fans were all chanting Roberto Lewandowski’s name after his goal, but I gave a thumbs-up to Thomas Meyer.
“Thomas, great job!”
Nod.
Thomas Meyer just nodded calmly, no big reaction even to the manager’s praise.
‘People get the wrong idea because of his name, but Thomas Meyer’s got a pretty even-keeled personality.’
‘Maybe Tuchel and Müller just cast too big a shadow.’
Oh, by the way—Müller? Can’t even attempt a signing.
He’s Bayern Munich’s golden boy, plays his whole career there and retires with them.
‘Müller’s the real talent fanatic.’
Anyway.
Thomas Meyer deserved the most credit for us dominating Leverkusen.
‘I wasn’t just buttering him up.’
Thomas Meyer had successfully switched positions.
His defending was still a bit raw, but he was improving fast.
‘Talk about lucky, though.’
Truth be told, Union Berlin had luck on our side in several ways today.
Arturo Vidal was out injured for Leverkusen.
If Vidal had played, the game might’ve gone differently.
He was still more prospect than star, but Nacho was a legend on par with Blade Vidal.
‘Want to bring him in. Left Thomas, right Vidal...’
I’d love to snag Vidal for Union Berlin, but no way he’d come to us.
‘If I were him, playing in the top flight, and some second-division side came calling? I’d shred the offer.’
Anyway, while our players relaxed after taking the lead.
Leverkusen’s faces hardened.
Getting scored on by a team that had just come up from the second division had bruised their egos.
“Sort out that defensive line! Plenty of time left—take it slow!”
Michael Skibbe came right out to the touchline, barking instructions at his tense players… .
‘Not happening.’
I wasn’t just sitting back watching.
With Lewandowski’s goal giving us the momentum.
We pressed hard to stop Leverkusen from reorganizing.
Thomas Meyer’s intense pressure forced another Leverkusen mistake.
The ball went to our overlapping left-back, then to Lewandowski.
Lewandowski clearly still lacked full understanding of the number 10 role, but he was more than holding his own on the pitch.
I’d started him as an attacking midfielder because.
‘He’s got real talent for link-up and playmaking.’
He had more than enough ability for the number 10 spot.
‘Jürgen Klopp used him as an attacking mid for a year, right?’
Yeah, it made sense why Klopp had played Lewandowski there.
Well... Klopp probably didn’t do it just for that.
Dortmund had Lucas Barrios up top, and Shinji Kagawa got injured, so maybe he slotted Lewandowski in to fill the gap.
Either way.
Dortmund’s situation back then was similar to ours at Union Berlin—but different too.
They had a clear striker in Barrios, but we didn’t.
Yannick Foigt was better as a second striker than a pure number nine.
‘Yannick’s off-the-ball movement is unreal.’
Putting Lewandowski in as attacking mid was also so Yannick could learn from his animalistic off-the-ball runs.
Anyway.
Lewandowski slipped a pass into the channel for Yannick Foigt breaking forward.
Yannick’s brilliant off-the-ball run had beaten the offside trap, slicing into the space behind.
He checked the keeper, then calmly struck it.
Thwack—.
Yannick’s shot grazed the keeper’s fingertips.
Clang—!
And smashed the post.
“Argh!!!”
Me and Yannick clutching our heads in frustration? Totally natural.
***
[Argh! Post! Yannick Foigt’s shot cannons off the bar!]
[Oh! If that had gone in, Union Berlin could’ve cruised to victory!]
Korean viewers listening to the broadcast let out wry chuckles.
The commentary had this subtle vibe of rooting for Union Berlin to win.
Fans watching the Leverkusen vs. Union Berlin match felt the same, so they laughed it off.
And right then.
The broadcast showed Yannick Foigt and Park Chan-hyuk clutching their heads in identical poses.
[Pfft. Déjà vu?]
The commentators couldn’t hold back their laughter.
[Y-Yes. You can really feel how much the players trust and rely on manager Park Chan-hyuk.]
Luckily for the chuckling broadcast team, the whistle blew soon after.
[The keeper boots it long as halftime ends. Cameras catch Son Heung-min on the bench. Will he come on in the second half? That’s another key watchpoint.]
[Indeed. Son scored against Bayern Munich in preseason, but he’s starting from the bench in this DFB-Pokal tie.]
[Yes. Unlike friendlies, the regular season means players need time to adapt.]
***
Halftime ended, and the second half kicked off.
Not much for me to do at the break.
Motivate the lads a bit, point out mistakes, praise the good stuff—that was it.
Union Berlin’s tactic this season was simple.
High-energy pressing based on work rate, turning it into counterattacks.
Most clubs built their game around a playmaker.
Makes sense—Zinedine Zidane, the world’s best midfielder, hadn’t been retired long.
Everyone knew one playmaker could swing a match.
‘Zidane dismantling Brazil single-handed? Shocking.’
Brazil had tactical issues, sure, but Zidane taking them apart alone was fact.
‘And against a title favorite, not some future punchline.’
Wonder what it’s like using a playmaker like Zidane.
Curious thought.
‘I’d love one too.’
But Union Berlin didn’t have the cash for a Zidane-level genius.
Limits of a poor mid-table club.
No wonder cash-strapped teams drop deep and go long ball.
‘Those managers would kill for other options....’
Well. Union Berlin’s better off than most.
Because of me.
‘Yeah, we’ll just develop our own.’
Here’s hoping Leon in the youth team grows up quick.
***
Time flew in the Union Berlin vs. Leverkusen match.
Leverkusen came out aggressive right from the second-half kickoff.
The momentum was slowly shifting their way.
‘Time for subs.’
Park Chan-hyuk eyed the flow and gave the order.
Around the 60th minute.
Son Heung-min started warming up on the Union Berlin bench.
“Heung-min, relax. Shoot whenever you get half a chance—be aggressive.”
Son Heung-min, nerves jangling, barely registered the words but nodded anyway.
‘Whew....’
He took deep breaths to steady his racing heart, staring out at the pitch.
Today’s game felt totally different from preseason.
This was his official pro debut.
Union Berlin fans’ passionate cheers echoed around the stadium.
“Son!!”
“Foot of God!!!”
At first, the noise had drained the color from his face.
But realizing it was cheers for him calmed him a bit.
Still, Son Heung-min didn’t light it up in his first outing.
He made a killer error during a counter, showing some shaky moments.
After that, his head went blank—he couldn’t remember how he’d run.
Son Heung-min sprinted around in a daze for a while.
‘Huh...?’
Then, out of nowhere, the ball came his way.
“Shoot!”
Park Chan-hyuk’s shout rang out from the touchline.
In that instant, Son Heung-min’s legs moved on instinct.
Thud.
A slight mishit, but the ball rippled the Leverkusen net anyway.
“Jaaaaaaaaa—!”
The crowd erupted as it bulged the net.
Son Heung-min saw teammates charging toward him.
‘...Manager.’
He thought of Park Chan-hyuk.
In a way, Park was his mentor.
The man who’d brought him to Germany straight out of his first year of high school.
But when he turned to look at the bench after scoring.
Park Chan-hyuk wasn’t there.
“...?”
The season’s first vanishing act.