Adaptation Complete
The U19 team's manager had no intention of playing Ha Sunmoon in matches for the time being, just as he had warned. "I'm not going to field you going forward. I'll only play you once I think you're truly ready."
"Understood, Coach. In that case, what should I be doing?"
The Espanyol U19 manager was inwardly surprised by Ha Sunmoon's unexpectedly positive reaction. He had assumed the boy would still be defiant, but his prediction had missed the mark.
'This might progress faster than I thought. Shall we begin right away, then? I don't know if this is an act or genuine, but I'll keep pushing his development anyway.'
Having organized his thoughts, the U19 manager fetched the whiteboard from the corner of the locker room.
"What you need to do is simple. It's not that difficult. But you... well, you're not doing it. Or should I say, you don't want to do it?"
The U19 manager drew a football pitch on the whiteboard and began dividing the pitch into several zones. Among them, he marked the left section below the halfway line as a rectangle and filled it with color.
"The important thing is to never leave this zone. Stay inside it as much as possible without crossing the halfway line. Depending on the situation, I'll raise or lower the lines, but in any case, don't cross these lines."
"Isn't that too narrow? You're telling me to play football without leaving that area? What about set pieces?"
"Set pieces are an exception. But even then, try not to leave this rectangle during the match as much as possible."
"Even in dangerous situations where I need to defend?"
"Yes. Even if you're defending, don't step outside this zone."
After finishing his explanation, the U19 manager looked at Ha Sunmoon slowly and asked, "Can you do it?"
Ha Sunmoon nodded at the manager, who was watching him with a questioning gaze. "I can do it. So I just need to stay within that, right?"
"That's right."
The U19 manager was worried about how long Ha Sunmoon would be able to endure this.
"Is this list really the best we can do?"
Kang Jung-ho, the newly appointed manager of the South Korean U-17 team, let out a deep sigh. The U-17 World Cup was about to be held in Brazil, yet the squad list left much to be desired.
"Still, this is the best we have. We've brought in quite a few players from overseas, and we've filled the domestic spots with the most talented kids available. Most of them are U-17 players, so the age balance is good too."
"We only need to add one or two more names to finalize it, but there aren't any standout candidates left to call up."
"Come on, there has to be someone... Just give me one name, anyone."
At Manager Kang Jung-ho's urging, the football talent development team finally spoke up.
"Well... there was one player who made a name for himself in Brazil..."
"There was one?"
"We can't get in touch with him."
"Can't get in touch? Who is it?"
Sparks flew in Manager Kang Jung-ho's eyes. A member of the talent development team showed him a player's profile.
"Oh... Ha Sunmoon, born in 2003? This kid played in Brazil?"
Since this U-17 World Cup was being held in Brazil, Ha Sunmoon—who had played matches there—was an incredibly valuable prospect.
"We should be calling up a kid who's actually playing in Brazil. Plus, his position is left-back? Isn't that one of the weakest spots even in the senior national team? We had to scrape together whoever we could because we're so thin there. Why wasn't this kid included in the list?"
"Originally, we planned to bring him in immediately. But... there were issues, so we couldn't reach him."
"What about now? Still no luck?"
The talent development team member found it difficult to answer.
"The thing is... last December, the son of the family where Ha Sunmoon was boarding was shot and killed... There were problems with that family, and Ha Sunmoon had mental issues as well, so we sent him back to Korea with half a year of his study abroad left."
"So he's in Korea, then?"
"But... we haven't been able to contact him since he returned. His mother was his only family, but at some point, we stopped being able to reach her either."
"What? Oh dear... We need to pay attention to a kid like this. We have to help him somehow and find him."
While Manager Kang Jung-ho was fretting, someone suddenly interjected from the side.
"Um... Who are you talking about?"
"Ha Sunmoon. Apparently he played for Fluminense in Brazil? Do you know anything?"
The person who had interrupted was from the strategy and planning team. And he was one of the people who had been present during the entrance tests conducted by Spanish clubs back in June.
"If it's Ha Sunmoon, I saw him three months ago."
"You saw him? Where?"
The fact that someone had seen Ha Sunmoon was hopeful. And since it was a staff member from the football association who had seen him, it meant it had happened during football-related work, which immediately sparked hope.
"Where did you see him? It wasn't just on the street, was it? Do you have any idea where he is right now, even roughly?"
"Yes. I believe he's in Spain now."
"Spain?"
Manager Kang Jung-ho tilted his head at the sudden mention of Spain.
"Yes. Didn't six La Liga teams come to Korea back in June? For entrance tests with young Korean players?"
"That's right. I did hear about that."
"I participated as on-site staff at the time, and that's when I saw Ha Sunmoon."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! Absolutely. We classified them by position back then, and since Ha Sunmoon was the only left-back, he played as left-back in every practice match."
"And how did he do?"
"He was incredible. The defenders on the left side were getting completely dismantled. No one in his age group could keep up with him."
Manager Kang Jung-ho immediately began smacking his lips in anticipation.
"So which team did Ha Sunmoon end up joining? We need to know so we can contact him."
"From what I remember, he was called away immediately after the test, so I'm certain he joined a Spanish team."
"Certain? Can't you be more precise?"
"It's almost definite. There's no other reason for all the scouts to take him to a separate location like that."
"Good. So that means he's doing fine, and we just need to find him?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Then we're set! Mobilize the staff on the ground or run searches from here—find out where he is and contact him. Tell him he's been called up to the national team."
"Understood."
The football association staff immediately began searching for Ha Sunmoon in earnest.
Fortunately, Ha Sunmoon hadn't gone off the rails and was participating in training with sincerity.
'Thank goodness. He's holding up well.'
The U19 manager was quite surprised that Ha Sunmoon was handling bench life better than expected. Two more matches had already taken place, and Ha Sunmoon had been left out of the squad for both, yet he hadn't complained at all. He didn't get angry about being excluded, nor did he take it out on his teammates. On the contrary, he would praise the players when they performed well or even cheer them on.
It was hard to believe this was the same player who had seemed ready to explode with frustration just days earlier.
'And on top of that, he's diligently carrying out those mind-numbingly boring training drills every single day...'
Thud.
"Here!"
Before anyone realized it, Ha Sunmoon had gotten along reasonably well with the U19 squad. He used words, gestures, and foot movements to coordinate with the other players and adjust their positioning. In this way, he stayed strictly within the designated zone during training while exchanging passes without difficulty with players in other formation positions.
Rather, whenever Ha Sunmoon exchanged the ball with his teammates, his solid individual technique stood out as he received the ball with various difficult motions every time, yet handled them all cleanly.
'He's deliberately making the receptions difficult. Is he doing that because staying in one spot is boring? Or...'
When watching Ha Sunmoon control the ball, each touch was executed with a different posture and a different foot for trapping, and when sending the ball elsewhere, he kicked it freely. So while it looked somewhat busy, he ultimately stayed largely within the area the manager had instructed and was distributing the ball to his teammates.
Young players usually took a long time to adapt when placed in such restricted situations. There were many cases where they couldn't endure having to do things they disliked, just like yesterday, and plenty of talented kids had ruined their careers by only doing what they were good at.
'At this rate... he might progress much faster than I expected.'
"Not bad at all. You claimed you didn't understand what I was saying, yet you're doing it perfectly. That's exactly it—operating within the space I've permitted you while connecting the players through passes."
Harrison chimed in to Ha Sunmoon.
'His ball control is definitely excellent. Since he can receive the ball in so many different ways, he'll be able to slip away even under pressure. I should add drills where he receives in various styles and redistributes using different methods to the training menu.'
The U19 manager thought as he watched Ha Sunmoon.
"If you keep playing football in line with our style like this, you'll be able to grow even more. Football isn't about only doing what you're good at, like using individual skill to break through. That's why your current approach looks so promising."
Then, Ha Sunmoon suddenly stopped the ball he was about to pass.
"Coach."
"Yes?"
"There's one thing I think you're slightly mistaken about."
"What is it?"
"Breaking through with individual skill isn't what I'm good at."
The U19 manager tilted his head at Ha Sunmoon's words.
"My position is left-back. I'm fundamentally a defender. What I'm best at is defense. Can't you see that?"
'What?'
As the U19 manager thought about it, he realized Ha Sunmoon was right. He hadn't fully registered it because Ha Sunmoon's defending had been so smooth. The ball would glide gently to Ha Sunmoon's feet as if the attacker had simply made a mistake, and the situation would flip instantly. Without video footage, it was hard to properly confirm.
'His real strength was defense? Then the story changes completely.'