One Who Sends Accurately
You have advanced to the U-20 World Cup Final!
A card has been awarded as a reward.
Jung Hyuk reached out to flip the card the moment he saw the message.
That was when it happened.
"Jung Hyuk."
A massive shadow fell across him. Jung Hyuk, mid-reach toward the card, lifted his head.
"Pogba?"
The owner of the shadow was Paul Pogba. The giant of a midfielder dropped down to sit beside him.
"Ha... what even are you?"
Pogba asked with a hollow look on his face. Jung Hyuk tilted his head, puzzled.
"What about me?"
"Where the hell did a monster like you come from?"
"What are you talking about? Monster?"
"I thought I was the best at this U-20 World Cup, you know? Figured the Golden Ball was mine for sure. But I've changed my mind. No matter how I look at it, the Golden Ball's going to you."
Originally, it should have been yours.
Jung Hyuk gave an awkward smile. If he had never played, the Golden Ball for the 2013 U-20 World Cup would have belonged to Pogba. The winner still hadn't been decided, of course, but plenty of people already saw Jung Hyuk as the frontrunner—especially after today's victory over France had made it even more likely.
Pogba kept going.
"Honestly, I'm still in shock. I've always been called a genius, and I actually believed in my own talent. Every other player looked like they were beneath me."
"Fair enough."
Jung Hyuk nodded. Paul Pogba really was a genius—his stats alone made that obvious. On top of that, at only twenty years old he was already playing for Juventus, Italy's top club, and not as a benchwarmer either. He was getting regular minutes and putting in solid performances.
And Jung Hyuk knew Pogba's future. Starting this very season, in Serie A 2013/14, Pogba would become a full-time starter for Juventus. At his age, that was enormous.
Yet here that same extraordinary player sat, crushed.
"I realized it today. Looking at you, Jung Hyuk. I'm not a genius. A real genius is what you call someone like you."
"...Is that so."
"So I want you to come play with me at Juventus. I want to compete on the same team as you. I know you're at Southampton right now, but with your skill you could easily move to a much bigger club like Juventus. What do you say? Want to become legends together at Juventus?"
Become legends at Italy's greatest club. To any footballer, those words made the heart race. They were beautiful.
But Jung Hyuk only stared at Pogba with a look of pure disbelief.
Anyone listening would think you were going to bury your bones at Juventus.
If he hadn't known the future, Pogba's pitch might have sounded convincing. Jung Hyuk, however, knew exactly what was coming—including Pogba's own path.
You're going to Manchester United in a few years.
A few years from now, Paul Pogba would grow into Serie A's best midfielder. His next move after that would be a transfer to Manchester United. Hearing a guy like that talk about becoming a Juventus legend only made Jung Hyuk want to laugh.
"What? Don't tell me you don't know Juventus? They're the best team in Serie A. They just won the league recently—you know that, right?"
Pogba's eyes went wide. Jung Hyuk let out a short, incredulous laugh.
"I know Juventus. I know they just won the title too."
"Then why the face?"
"Just... a weird thought crossed my mind."
"Weird thought?"
Pogba looked at him, completely lost.
"The thought that you probably have bigger dreams than that."
"...Huh? What does that mean?"
Pogba's expression shifted.
"Pogba."
"Y-yeah? What?"
"Just checking—you're not planning to drag me into the Italian league and then leave for another league yourself, are you? Say, the Premier League?"
"W-what? W-what are you talking about?!"
Pogba's face was a masterpiece of panic. He couldn't hide it if he tried. Jung Hyuk's mouth curled into a high, wicked smile.
"I'm kidding. Just a joke. Why so flustered?"
"Ha... haha! Uhahaha! Right? Just a joke, yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Haha...! I love Juventus. I love them! I'm definitely going to become a Juventus legend."
That was when a boy came walking toward them—a very large boy. Jung Hyuk spotted him and spoke.
"Being a legend sounds good. Look, another future legend is heading this way."
"What? Legend? Who? That guy?"
Pogba's eyes went wide as he watched the approaching boy. Oh Jung-hoon closed the distance, scowling hard at Jung Hyuk.
"Hey! Jung Hyuk! I just heard something about legends or whatever—were you making fun of me?"
"No way. This guy here said he was going to be a Juventus legend, so I just played along."
Jung Hyuk played dumb. Oh Jung-hoon's fierce expression was the kind that would make most thugs cry and run. Jung Hyuk suddenly had zero desire to poke the bear.
How does an eighteen-year-old even look like that?
Beside him, Pogba—who had been listening—asked in a small voice,
"...He's not lying about his age, right?"
With the long-awaited final ahead of them, the Korean national team began special training. A little breathing room before kickoff made it possible.
Manager Yoo Jung-seok refused to let his guard down even after defeating France, the so-called strongest side at the U-20 level. He settled for nothing.
"Chase them all the way! You going to give up like that in a real match too? Huh?"
Yoo Jung-seok stood on the training pitch, sprinting from spot to spot and roaring. The second any player started jogging half-heartedly, the shouting erupted.
"What are you all doing?! Get your heads on straight! Did you forget training is supposed to be like a real match?"
He was pouring sweat, pure passion in motion. Watching him, Jung Hyuk felt genuine admiration.
He's incredible.
He had no choice but to admit it. At middle age, running around and personally directing training that even active players found grueling was no small feat. Without real passion—without real hunger—it simply couldn't be done.
Yoo Jung-seok kept coaching with sharp eyes. Still...
He looks more tense than usual.
Jung Hyuk could see it clearly. The manager was wound tighter than normal.
Of course he is.
They had beaten the mighty French side, but the final opponent was no pushover.
Uruguay...
The final opponent was Uruguay—a team that could never be taken lightly. They had knocked out Spain, another heavy favorite alongside France, to get here. True to South American football, their players had excellent individual technique and blistering speed. Their physical balance was solid too, making them strong in the tackle.
In many ways they were a poor matchup for Korea, a side that relied on raw stamina and played a thick, physical brand of football. On top of that, Korea was already running on empty. A few days remained before the final, but that was nowhere near enough time to fully restore exhausted legs. In football, a few days was never long.
This is going to be a tough match.
Jung Hyuk thought it through. The final against Uruguay would be anything but easy. It would be extremely difficult.
Of course...
If I weren't playing, that is.
He was certain that with him on the pitch, the match wouldn't be all that hard after all.
On the day of the long-awaited U-20 World Cup final, Korean fans could barely contain their excitement.
Advancing to the final after beating France—the side with the strongest squad at the U-20 level. Even when they had been outplayed at times, they had still delivered clean, decisive football. That fact alone sent Korean football fans' expectations soaring into the stratosphere.
Their opponent was South American powerhouse Uruguay, yet the fans weren't worried.
Because they had Jung Hyuk.
Because they had an ace who showed a completely different class no matter who stood opposite him.
And in the hours before kickoff, Jung Hyuk waited for stadium entry time with a conflicted look on his face.
I could manage without it, but should I use it anyway?
The card he hadn't been able to open thanks to Pogba's interruption. Whether to open it before the Uruguay match started... or leave it for later because he was confident he could win without it.
He hesitated. Deciding, however, didn't take long.
"Might as well open it."
Jung Hyuk reached for the card.
The result:
You have obtained the special trait One Who Sends Accurately.
A new trait was his.
Peeeeep!
With the referee's whistle, the U-20 final between Korea and Uruguay began. Both sides, momentum at its peak, crashed into each other hard from the opening minutes and hunted goals with ferocity.
"Tighten the space! Don't give them a shooting angle!"
"Run harder! Stick with them to the end!"
"Defend carefully! Don't give them free kicks!"
Korea struggled to contain Uruguay's high-speed attacks. They allowed breakthroughs and conceded shooting angles. Even so, they refused to concede a goal. Bodies flew to block shots; balls were desperately cleared. Goalkeeper Lee Chang-gon stayed locked in and turned away Uruguay's attempts.
They kept getting pushed back, yet the Korean players' eyes were still alive. They didn't give up. They had no reason to.
Just get it to Jung Hyuk somehow.
If we give Hyuk the ball, he'll make something happen.
Jung Hyuk will turn this around.
Having a team ace—and an ace who always repaid their trust—gave the Korean players belief. It erased any doubt about winning.
And Jung Hyuk did not betray that faith.
Thud!
Jung Hyuk stretched out a long leg and took the ball. Song Ju-heon had thrown himself to the ground to clear it. It wasn't the cleanest pass, but it was more than enough.
That was a good enough pass.
Whoosh! Jung Hyuk spun. In an instant he mapped every teammate and every opponent.
Normally he would have carried the ball a little farther, drawn defenders out, then released a pass—or tried a dribble himself. Not this time.
Even though it was a counter, Jung Hyuk didn't drive forward with the ball. He swung his leg straight at the ball at his feet.
Boom—
The ball he struck rocketed away, then suddenly lost power at a precise distance and dropped. Waiting right there was Oh Jung-hoon. Thud! Oh Jung-hoon cushioned it with the inside of his foot—an excellent first touch that killed the ball a step away. After that, a striker had only one job left.
Shoot. Hit a powerful, accurate shot that rattled the net.
Bang!
Oh Jung-hoon was exactly the kind of player who could do that.
Swish—
From then on, the pattern of the match barely changed. Korea weathered Uruguay's vicious attacks by sheer grit, then launched counters. The heart of every counter was always Jung Hyuk's feet.
Today Jung Hyuk moved differently from previous matches. Before, his lower pass rating had forced him to avoid long balls and through balls whenever possible—anything less than excellent passing ability risked interceptions. Against Uruguay, that restraint vanished.
On every counter he boldly attempted long passes and through balls, and the accuracy was remarkably high. Naturally, the Uruguayan players—who had never expected this—were thrown into chaos.
"What? Why is he suddenly playing nothing like the analysis?"
"They said Jung Hyuk wasn't good at long passes! Damn it, what the hell were the coaches doing?!"
"Why are his passes suddenly so sharp? What is going on?!"
Uruguay's manager and coaches were just as rattled. Jung Hyuk suddenly prioritizing bold progressive passes was something they had never seen coming.
And right now, Jung Hyuk's mouth was curling so high it looked ready to take flight.
This is even better than I thought.
The card he had received for reaching the final. The trait that had come out of it—One Who Sends Accurately—was performing better than he had expected.
The trait's information was as follows:
Effect: Pass accuracy increases by 20%.
A full twenty percent boost to pass accuracy! With that effect, Jung Hyuk spent the entire Uruguay match spraying better passes than usual—delivering the ball more precisely to the exact spots he wanted.
And with yet another weapon in his arsenal, Jung Hyuk put on a more merciless performance against Uruguay than he had against Cuba or even France.
With overwhelming skill, he ruthlessly dismantled them.