Shooting Trajectory is Visible - Chapter 190



Only Krnovel

190.23 season Kim Min-woo

The preliminary results of the medical test are out.

Manchester United’s director of football, Richard Johnson, nodded his head in satisfaction after receiving the results.

“There won’t be any problems with admission.”

In fact, it still felt like a dream.

We finally won the competition with Madrid and now we are really on the verge of signing Kim.

Last season, Manchester United finished in 5th place and unfortunately failed to advance to the Champions League, but that didn’t matter at all.

If Kim joins the team, not only will they advance to the Champions League, but they will also be on track to winning the league title they so desperately desire.

“There are a lot of trophies to take home….”

The Premier League trophy. The Europa League trophy. The Champions League trophy. And then there’s the FIFA Club World Cup, and umm…

“wait for a sec.”

By the way, I heard that when Arsenal won the league undefeated, they were given a separate trophy made of pure gold.

Us too?

While Richard Johnson was alone, daydreaming, he happened to see some bad news.

Actually, I knew about it in advance, but when I confirmed it officially, my mood really got worse.

“EPL office: ‘Hannover’s Kim to undergo intensive drug testing if he comes to the Premier League’”

It was kind of a rumor.

Kim is so good at his job as a goalkeeper that it’s hard to believe he’s human, so people are saying things like that here and there.

[Is Kim’s Secret to Two Seasons of Clean Sheets Actually Steroids?]

[The secret to Kim’s skills that no one knows about, it’s drugs]

The yellow press spread baseless information. Some racists even went so far as to disparage Asians, saying that they couldn’t possibly do that well. All of this combined to create the drug theory.

It’s kind of a sham that all of Kim’s achievements were made with drugs.

People even went so far as to criticize the Bundesliga, saying that they should conduct a special drug test on Kim, but when the Bundesliga office did not even pretend to listen, they continued to publish articles criticizing the league as a rural league.

And Richard Johnson was right there to see what was happening.

This article was a rekindling.

Some media outlets even reported that Kim had been selected by the U.S. government and had been administered drugs.

“… If that’s the case, why not pick on an American instead of a Korean?”

When asked that question, the US government responded that it was because it could not inject its own citizens with dangerous drugs. Even that kind of nonsense was novel.

Richard Johnson was annoyed that the Premier League office seemed to be acting on such ridiculous rumours, but he also thought it was a good thing.

“If it passes the test, the drug theory will be dispelled, right? … No, no. Since it’s a new drug developed by the US government, even the EPL won’t be able to detect it.”

It was a modern-day witch hunt.

If the test comes back positive, you think, “As expected! I knew it! Let’s get back the trophy that Hanover took!” If the test comes back negative, you think, “It’s a new drug from the US government, so current technology hasn’t been able to detect it yet!” or, “It’s not showing up because it’s already been hit enough and doesn’t need to be hit anymore, right?”

It’s not like it’s some kind of human-morphing chimera… .

“And we brought in that kind of player.”

Hehehe. Hehehe.

Naturally, Richard Johnson did not believe the rumor.

If the rumors were true, there should have been some kind of abnormal reaction in this medical test. However, Kim’s body is completely normal.

Rather, I felt greater joy at having caught a player who had such rumors going around.

‘Proof that the world can’t accept Kim yet. Two clean sheets in two seasons. There has never been a player like that in the world.’

Of course I thought about that.

Can they continue that clean sheet streak in the EPL, arguably the best league in the world?

Wouldn’t he be hiding the overwhelming form he showed in the Bundesliga as soon as he moved to Manchester?

It’s historically common for a player to show great form and then lose it when transferred to another league.

However, Kim’s appearance was so overwhelming, and it makes no sense that he would open and close like an automatic door in the EPL while not allowing a single goal in the Bundesliga. It’s unimaginable.

“I just burned 450,000 pounds (about 750 million won) in basic salary, it’s absolutely not possible….”

With various allowances and options included, Kim’s weekly salary could rise to a whopping £650,000 (about 1.1 billion won).

It was literally a wage that would break Manchester’s spine, if not break it. Kim was already ranked first in Manchester’s weekly wage rankings based on basic wage alone.

It’s a weekly salary that requires you to get grades.

If I get scammed again this time… … .

“No. That can’t be true.”

Richard Johnson shook his head, shaking the thought away.

The agreed contract period is 4 years. With the right to negotiate first, contract extension negotiations are much easier than with other teams.

Although he was at a disadvantage in these negotiations, Richard Johnson was looking far ahead.

The idea was to make Kim a franchise star, a one-club man, and place him alongside the likes of Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Paul Scholes as Manchester United’s most iconic players.

Johnson’s goal was to create the so-called ‘Please, if you’re Korean, cheer for Manchester United!’…

* * *

The decisive reason for my return to Hanover was the advice of Philip Harris, the CEO of H&B and my agent.

[You might regret leaving Hanover like this. Why not at least say goodbye before you go?]

It certainly wasn’t a wrong statement.

Because I couldn’t even say hello properly.

Also, since there was nothing to do during this pre-season, other teams were slowly gathering their players for friendly matches and tours, but there was no news at all from Hannover.

It was like the calm before the storm.

There seems to be a big change coming among the players, but until then it’s been quiet.

‘First of all, the fact that I’m leaving is a huge change.’

Hanover, where I arrived after a long time, was a lovely sight. Two years was a time when even an unfamiliar city became familiar.

I hugged my mom who came out to pick me up and got into the car.

On the way home, where I would soon have to move out, I chatted with my mom.

There is an endless amount of paperwork to deal with, all the furniture has been sold to a second-hand dealer, and the house is now quite desolate.

“… So what? There’s not much I can do to help you?”

“I was impressed that my son wanted to help, so I left a few things to do.”

“Oh. Really?”

There’s no need to go that far.

So the house I returned to was truly desolate.

There was no sofa, no bed, no computer.

‘This is definitely….’

It’s just as it was when I first came to Hanover.

An empty house with nothing in it.

Now that I can see at a glance that it is truly time to leave, I even feel a little sad.

However, if there is a meeting, there is a parting, and if there is a parting, there is another meeting.

After helping with a little bit of tidying up, I got back in the car and drove to the clubhouse in Hanover.

When leaving a team, sociable players are said to throw a farewell party, but I didn’t do that.

The house we were staying in wasn’t big enough to host a party, and I didn’t even think about it because I was worried that if we invited everyone there for no reason, we might end up having a tactical meeting instead of a party.

However, I told the players that I would be visiting the clubhouse that day and asked them to come out if they wanted to, and now that I think about it, I regret that action a little.

‘Should I have just waited until the assembly day and said hello then?’

I went but there was no one… … Ah.

It might be a little heartbreaking.

Some players had already sent me messages apologizing for going home. I understood. No player would come back halfway across the world just to see me once.

And then I got to the clubhouse.

My mom said she had something to do and left, and I just walked to the front door of the clubhouse.

At the main gate, Sophie was standing there, holding a camcorder, as if she had been waiting.

“Player Kim Min-woo!”

As soon as she saw me, Sophie raised her hand and greeted me. It felt strange to see Sophie after such a long time. It felt like the events that happened before were a dream.

“hello.”

“hello!”

And then there was a moment of silence. It was awkward so I opened my mouth again.

“How have you been?”

“Of course! What about Kim Min-woo?”

“I’ve been doing well too. Haha… .”

“aha.”

Silence again.

We avoided eye contact with each other.

It was awkward.

“Hey, hey, should we go in? There are a lot of people waiting!”

“… Oh really? It’s the off-season, but there are still people there?”

“For salaried workers, it’s a season all year round!”

That would be the case.

I entered the clubhouse under Sophie’s guidance.

Then, familiar people appear.

My staff in Hanover.

I greeted them one by one and hugged them.

“Kim. I’m really leaving now… .”

“Yes, that’s what happened.”

Some emotional staff members even burst into tears. Sophie followed along silently and took diligent pictures with her camera. So this is all going to be posted on SNS?

I started by greeting the staff, then the coaching staff and the managers.

Everyone was at work and having meetings even though it was the off-season.

“The giant of Hanover is leaving! Farewell, Kim! Don’t forget me!”

It was the goalkeeper coach, Gerald Hermann, who had been treating me so badly. I smiled and replied.

“I can never forget you. How could I forget you?”

I still grind my teeth when I think about training.

I also said goodbye to several other coaches. They all said goodbye and gave me words of encouragement. They all made sure to tell me not to forget them.

And… … Jan.

“I really liked you, Kim.”

“You’ll meet a better player, Jan.”

Jan bursts out laughing at my words.

“Kim. Until I retire from coaching. No, until I die, there will be no goalkeeper in the world better than you. Thanks to you, I was able to extend my contract with Hannover and also benefited greatly from salary negotiations. Thank you.”

“Did I make you a master?”

“If you had stayed in Hanover, maybe I could have become the Special One.”

“ha ha ha….”

And then Jan clicks his tongue.

“The new coach who will be guiding you now will be seriously ill.”

“Huh? Are you sick?”

“Yes. It’s a very serious disease. It’s called a famous general’s disease.”

“aha.”

“It took me quite some time to recover from that illness too.”

And Jan led me out to the training ground, where there were several players playing with a ball among themselves.

As we walk towards them, the players immediately notice and run towards us.

Fortunately, there were many familiar faces.

Corsic. Ariumbi. Phil Neumann. Captain Fisher. Daniel Becker. Cedric Teuchert. Derek.

Transfer student Coutinho was not there. He is probably resting hard in Brazil right now.

“Kim!”

The players who had been waiting for me came rushing in and picked me up in a group and threw me into the sky. I was suddenly shocked, but I trusted the players and put my back to them… … .

“Sophie.”

Jan approached Sophie, who was diligently filming the scene with a camcorder.

“yes?”

“Now that Kim is really leaving, what will happen to their relationship?”

“…yes?”

“You didn’t have the courage? It seems so.”

Ian said with a regretful tone.

And he continued speaking in the typical middle-aged man’s tone.

“It’s foolish to keep waiting for the best opportunity. It’s also foolish to worry about what happens after you’ve done something without doing anything. In my opinion, now is not the right time to confess your feelings, but if you don’t want to regret it, now is the time―”

“I sent it.”

“…hmm?”

Jan tilts his head.

Sophie and Jan were talking a few feet away from the players.

Sophie answered with a grin.

“I committed the 20 seconds of courage that Jan taught me.”

“……okay?”

Jan tries to keep his composure, but looks quite surprised. Then he coughs and asks for the results.

“What happened?”

“When you get to be your age, do you start to be curious about other people’s love lives?”

Jan shrugs his shoulders at Sophie’s sarcastic remark.

“Once you pass your 40s, sometimes you start to miss the primal stimulation.”

“Back then, you said that if you just had 20 seconds of courage, something amazing would happen?”

“That’s right.”

“That was right.”

“…Did it succeed?”

“Well, whether I succeeded or failed, what matters is that I tried. Thank you, Jan. If it weren’t for what Jan said, I wouldn’t have even tried because I was afraid of failure.”

“… … .”

Kim Min-woo and the players leave the training ground and go somewhere. From what I heard, it seemed like they were going to the cafeteria.

Sophie followed along, carrying a camcorder.

Jan just stood there dumbfounded… .

“Wait! Sophie! So you’re saying it was a success or not!?”

* * *

[(Official) Manchester United signs Kim Min-woo.]

◆(Photo of Kim Min-woo smiling while holding a Manchester United uniform)

→You’ve put us through a lot, Minwoo… .

→Kim Min-je (Bayern Munich), Lee Kang-im (Paris Saint-Germain), Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur), Kim Min-woo (Manchester United) Wow~~

→The team name behind me could have been Real Madrid… .

→How long has it been since a Korean player played for Manchester United since Park Ji-sung?

→They probably won’t be able to keep a clean sheet in the EPL

→ㅇㅇ Especially since it’s a blind date, it’s even more impossible

→If you keep a clean sheet at Manchester United, you will be a goalkeeper who will go down in history.

→If you keep a clean sheet at Manchester United, you will definitely win the Ballon d’Or

[Why did you choose Manchester United? Kim Min-woo, “Manchester United is where the best players are”]

→ManU fans are so happy

→Daeminwoo is good at lip service too

→Kim Min-woo’s tongue dribble ㄷㄷ

Kim Shin-ah snickered as she confirmed Kim Min-woo’s transfer saga. Kim Min-woo’s interview was already a hot topic overseas. In particular, Manchester United fans were in a festive mood beyond happiness.

[Keeeeeeee! Keeeeeeee! Keeeeeeee!]

“Wow. Who is this guy…?”

Some naked, bald, fat guy was checking out Kim Min-woo’s transfer saga and was screaming like a pterosaur.

Kim Shin-ah gaped at the shocking scene. This is… …a Manchester United fan?

There was also a video posted on Manchester United’s SNS. It was a video of Kim Min-woo wearing a Manchester United uniform and playing the violin while entering the Old Draft.

Even though it’s a short video of about 30 seconds, it came out so cool that it made me exclaim ‘Huh?’

“But Minwoo Ham is a person who struggles even with the recorder, let alone the violin.”

Maybe lip syncing?

It doesn’t matter what happened. In fact, Shin-Ah knew about the transfer to Manchester United in advance.

[Kim Shin-ah: Lee Juck, good job]

[Kim Shin-a: But people ask why I went to Man U. Isn’t Real a much better team?]

1. And the reply that comes back disappears quickly.

[Kim Min-woo: Real is too easy lol]

[Kim Min-woo: I plan to go to Manchester United and gain experience]

[Kim Shin-ah: Wow, double experience event]

[Kim Shin-ah: The pain that doesn’t kill me makes me stronger, is that it?]

[Kim Min-woo: If you go to Madrid and win, the team that is supposed to win will win, but how would it feel if you went to Manchester United and won?]

[Kim Shin-ah: Ah]

This guy went to Hanover and worked as a boy’s father for two years, and then he got the disease.

Kim Shin-ah clicked her tongue, but on the other hand, she was curious. Will Kim Min-woo go to Manchester United and play the role of a boy like Hannover, or will he crumble in front of the wall of the world’s best league?

“Above all.”

[Keeeeeeeeee! Keeeeeeeeee!]

The bald fat guy reads Kim Min-woo’s lip service interview and then screams like a pterosaur again.

“You won’t be bored… .”

* * *

“I will begin the inspection.”

I was now surrounded by white people.

‘I definitely finished the medical test last night… .’

Today’s test was a high-intensity test conducted directly by the EPL office, not Manchester United.

The office explained that they wanted to understand that this was a test conducted for the honor of the athlete and to directly address suspicions that he had taken drugs, as the world was talking about… … .

‘I don’t feel so good.’

An atmosphere that feels cold, if not businesslike.

Philip Harris says it is unprecedented to single out a specific player for such intensive drug testing.

So H&B and the entire Manchester United club stood up and protested to the office, but it was not accepted.

“Wow. This is something I used to do in middle school….”

The high-intensity, high-precision drug test was more familiar than I thought. Putting urine in a small container and transferring it. And taking blood. Other than those, it was a new test for everything.

‘How does this feel similar to a medical test?’

The office’s confirmation that the tests were all the same was also largely similar to what was confirmed at Manchester United.

“Wow. That’s amazing.”

I said as I watched them put a bucket of urine into some machine and turn it around.

Of course, the people here didn’t say anything. Everyone was silent and just mechanically went about their business.

And, the examination was over in about an hour.

After completing the examination, I also had an interview with Manchester United’s director of sports.

Because there was quite an age difference between us, the manager treated me comfortably.

“A lot of people are expecting your downfall, Kim.”

“…yes?”

And here’s the news.

The yellow press was already pushing the idea that I had been given the drug, even though the results hadn’t come out yet, and people were suspicious that I was being tested because there was something fishy about it.

Some people even claimed that Hannover should be relegated to the second division and that everything from their promotion to their first division title should be nullified.

“…Why are people making decisions when the results aren’t even out yet?”

“Chief Richard said with a kind smile like a principal.

“Kim. The results don’t matter. People just want to see you fall.”

“Why?”

“Because it’ll be fun.”

“…yes?”

“There are some people in the world who enjoy the downfall of celebrities. In particular, many Europeans do not want to acknowledge your existence.”

“Because I’m Asian?”

Captain Richard didn’t answer, but his expression confirmed my question.

I laughed, even though I was shocked.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. The results will come out soon. Then everyone will shut up.”

“I think most people, but some people will be skeptical about the credibility of the test.”

To summarize what the captain said, no matter what, those who want to criticize you will continue to do so.

That’s the fate of celebrities.

Yeah, I get it.

I was the type of player who inevitably had many enemies. If I blocked every attack from every team, wouldn’t I just become a public enemy?

‘Are the only people who like me the most, Koreans and fans of my team?’

I wonder if even the fans of my team would curse me as if they were going to eat me up if we met during a national team match.

After finishing my interview with the manager, I checked the accumulated KakaoTalk messages.

[Eugene Ho: Minwoo. Don’t be too upset. There’s a saying that goes, “A square peg gets rounder.” It’s just something that happens because you’re doing too well. I’m always on Minwoo’s side.]

“A square peg in a square hole….”

I think this is an accurate description of the situation I’m in right now.

[Kim Min-woo: Yes, hyung! Thank you!]

[Eugene Ho: Hahaha, you don’t even call me coach anymore?]

[Kim Min-woo: Just like brother and sister?]

[Eugene Ho: Good~~~!]

Of course, if we met in real life, I would never call you hyung. We have an age difference, but you still call me hyung…

[Kim Shin-ah: Look how much you get bullied as soon as you go to Manchester United. ㅋㅋㅋ]

[Kim Shin-ah: Cheer up]

[Kim Shin-ah: … But you really didn’t do it?]

Oh, this kid.

Even if you can’t trust anyone else, you have to trust me!

I was a little annoyed and said something.

[Kim Min-woo: Seriously?]

[Kim Shin-ah: Of course I’m joking]

I think he knew I was really pissed and was trying to avoid it. Hmm.

[Sophie: There are a lot of bad people in the world]

[Sophie: But Minwoo. There are probably more people in the world who believe in Minwoo like I do. It’s just that they express it so actively that it’s not noticeable.]

[Kim Min-woo: Thank you!]

[Sophie: (laughing emoticon)]

.

.

A few days later, the official announcement came from the EPL office. Unsurprisingly, the drug test results were negative.

Many people who had been on edge, especially the Korean community, breathed a sigh of relief, and most of the yellow media that had actively raised suspicions about my drug use shut their mouths, or among them, a few prominent ones published articles questioning the credibility of the test.

Even so, when H&B threatened to sue if the article was not taken down immediately, the article was hastily deleted.

And the reporters, who couldn’t miss this, asked me about this part at the inauguration ceremony.

“Kim. Doing this kind of testing on a specific player can be seen as racist. What does Kim think about this?”

“… Rather than racism, I think they are afraid that my activities will continue here as well.”

“Are you scared?”

“I think the fear was that the best league in the world, the best manager in the world, the best players in the world, would struggle to get through me. I think this incident happened because of that fear.”

“……oh my god.”

Ah. Shit. I screwed up.

Kim Min-woo, who had been holding on well since his pro debut, suddenly popped out without me knowing it.