Shooting Trajectory is Visible - Chapter 199



Only Krnovel

Episode 199

#The goalkeeper I want to hit

I definitely felt that our defense was more focused than in the previous two games.

Despite the fact that their opponent was Liverpool, Varane and Maguire did not easily open up shooting angles.

If it were Evans, he would have opened up space either because he was slow or because he was short on stamina, and I would have been the only one defending.

But this time it’s different.

Collaborative defense between Varane and Maguire.

Varane doggedly pursues Salah as he enters the box, and as Salah swerves to beat Varane, Maguire extends his foot and flicks the ball out of the box.

I concentrated and then clapped my hands in satisfaction at the scene.

“Fuck, this is soccer.”

And the ball he kicked is quickly stolen again. He must not have seen the Liverpool player running behind him. Yes. This is Manchester United.

But in the meantime, the box was full of Manchester United players, so there was no shooting angle at all.

The Liverpool players also seemed to be in a difficult position as they passed the ball to open up an angle, and it appeared as if they were going to cross the ball, but it ended up going out of bounds.

“Phew.”

And the supporters’ applause.

Still much better than the previous two games. Much better.

I received the ball from the ball boy and prepared to take a goal kick, then looked around and saw there was no place to pass it, so I passed it to Maguire.

Minwoo Classic 1st movement. If you have no place to pass, just pass it to the defender and build up.

My footwork has improved a lot, and I am now good enough to pass accurately to players from far away, but I don’t need to force myself to open up space when there is nowhere to pass.

Above all, since I had only recently joined Manchester United, I had no idea how strong the players there were in aerial duels.

When you don’t have data? It’s best to be safe.

Maguire, who received the ball from me, looked around like me. Liverpool players slowly came up, and Maguire tapped the ball and then suddenly started dribbling instead of passing.

‘What, what. What is that kid doing?’

No, why don’t you spread it around and do it yourself? Hyung. Hyung, you’re a defender!

As Maguire ran with the ball, the Liverpool players also said yes and put more pressure on him, and only then did Maguire, startled, turn around and pass the ball back to me.

No, what is this….

‘It’s a legend that it was almost stolen.’

Salah was running towards me, pressing the accelerator. I was just going to run forward, but then changed my mind and got close to my nose, so I simply dribbled past him.

“Woooooooooooo―!”

As he toyed with Sala with a light trick, the fans watching made a sound like a boiling furnace.

After that, I passed the ball to Mainu without any pressure, and Mainu, who received the ball from me, calmly started the build-up.

“Harry! Spray it right here! Stop dribbling around!”

Maguire neither nodded nor shook his head, whether he heard me or not.

Ahh… .

And then Manchester United’s attack continued.

The players continued to implement Giovanni’s tactics, but they made some changes because Liverpool were so cautious in their defense.

Drilling into empty space without drilling into non-existent space. This is actually a natural thing.

Captain Bruno received a one-two pass and passed it to winger Anthony, who, without any useless dribbling, passed it straight to Hoilun.

Then, the space in the box suddenly opened up, and a 1-on-1 chance was created in an instant. It was a big chance.

“oh!?”

Will you show me!? Last time it was offside, but this time it’s a life-extending goal!?

Hoilun spun the ball with his side foot and hit the ball, and it looked like it would definitely go in, but Alisson blocked the shot.

“Wow. That won’t fit?”

I sighed as I watched from afar. It wasn’t that Hoilun couldn’t do it, but rather that Alisson’s reflexes were too good. Hoilun hit the ball at the right time, but Alisson made a super save.

‘It’s a real monster. I can see its trajectory in advance and deal with it, but how does that person react and stop it so immediately?’

Is there some kind of crisis detection sensor inside your body? That’s amazing.

It wasn’t just me who felt that way, all the Man U fans raised their hands on their heads in protest. Hoilun did the same, as did other Man U players watching nearby.

And Man U’s momentum was just beginning.

It was as if the Brighton and Brentford games had been accidents, as United began to overwhelm Liverpool for a while.

‘Entering rhubarb mode?’

This was the situation after the corner kick.

Liverpool appeared to be on the attack for a moment, but were blocked by Manchester United’s defensive wall and lost the ball, and a long ball counterattack followed.

Hoilun and Van Dijk compete for the ball in the air, and Van Dijk jumps, loses his balance, and falls.

Hoilun, who was competing from the side, tried to pass by Van Dijk, who had fallen, wondering what was going on, but tripped over Van Dijk’s leg and fell down with him.

‘It’s really a sight… .’

A short bit of entertainment passed by, and Rashford, who was nearby, snatched the ball with his bare hands.

Rashford went straight into the box to Anthony. And as soon as Anthony received it from the side of the box, he hit it with one touch… … !

“No, that one won’t go in!?”

I watched with a pounding heart and arched my back like a bow. It was a series of regrets.

When Man Utd are on the move they are doing really well, but when they fail to produce meaningful results in the process, their shortcomings come to the fore.

The flow of attacks is blocked, space is gradually being given up, and in the end, just like in rounds 1 and 2, I get beaten up like a dog… .

‘I knew Alison was good, but he’s really good.’

Alison enters Kim Min-woo’s Binge mode.

And Liverpool must have judged that this was Manchester United’s flow, as they started to break the flow from then on.

Or rolling the ball.

Suddenly some players lie down.

As the good momentum suddenly came to a halt, it felt like Manchester United were losing their momentum, and then the game resumed.

Manchester United were unable to continue their active attack as before, and this time Liverpool began to attack fiercely.

Accordingly, I also became busy.

“Dallot! It’s okay if you can’t stop it, just drag it!”

“Harry! If you catch the ball, throw it around immediately!”

Maguire doesn’t seem to be responding, either because he can’t hear me or because he’s pretending not to. You’re out when you get to the locker room.

“Come on! Stick to it!”

“Saka! I know it’s hard, but please do a little more!”

Liverpool’s attacks continue like this.

After continuing to beat the ball until the end of the first half, it is now the final attack timing after using up all the extra time.

Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo received a short pass inside the penalty box and fired a shot.

‘?’

It was a waste of time.

I kicked with my right foot, but the ball hit my left foot, which was my stepping foot.

Wataru Endo hits the ball that bounced off his left foot again. It was an immediate attack, and a more threatening shot than expected.

‘Fuck!’

Startled, I flew, and the ball flew into my grasp and then out.

And then the opposing striker, Kakpo, suddenly runs towards me to hit the loose ball. I reach out faster than him, and the opponent’s foot hits my wrist with all its might.

“Ugh!”

What the hell!

This kid is on purpose!

Despite the excruciating pain, I didn’t let go of the ball and curled up into a ball, groaning.

The colleagues around me who saw me hit my wrist hard rushed to me in an instant and hurled harsh insults at me.

“What the hell are you doing!?”

“This fucking kid!”

And players from both sides rushed in and the atmosphere became tense in an instant. The referee blew his whistle and started to mediate, and the referee tried to gloss over the incident.

Not red, not yellow, just a verbal warning.

“What the heck! Judge! Why isn’t my card coming out! I told you that guy kicked our kid!?”

Colleagues who strongly appealed to their frustration. The referee frowned and put his hand on his left ear. Then, as if communicating with someone, VAR began to take action.

I guess the VAR referee decided that the card should be shown.

“Kim. Are you okay?”

A brief lull. Baran checked my condition. I frowned and sighed.

“It hurts a little, but I’m okay.”

“What about the medical staff? Should I call them?”

“Okay. Call me. I’ll buy you some time… .”

I guess I was just bruised. Even though the extra time had passed, I deliberately called for the medical staff to kill some time.

Because if the goalkeeper gets injured, the game won’t be restarted.

Varane signaled for the medical team, and the Manchester United medical team rushed inside the pitch to check on me.

“Can you move your arms?”

I said, turning my wrist. Actually, I wasn’t really worried. I had a trait that prepared me for this kind of situation.

Unless it’s something like a killer tackle that ends a player’s career, I don’t think I’ll ever be carried off the field with an injury.

“It’s fine. I think it might be bruised.”

“You don’t want to be replaced, do you?”

“… No way.”

I am also a person with a professional consciousness.

If you want to change the player to this level after receiving this much money… … You shouldn’t have been a soccer player in the first place. Damn.

* * *

Kim Shin-ah has become a total expert on the Bundesliga, but she is completely ignorant about the Premier League.

All I know is that Manchester United used to do well but is now in decline, Manchester City is doing very well, next is Liverpool, and below them are Arsenal, Tottenham, Aston Villa, etc. The ranking changes every season.

Of course, Manchester United has built up such a brilliant legacy in the past that even now, when they are much weaker, they still manage to make a comeback.

“And Man U is a rival team to Liverpool.”

It was said to be the fiercest derby in the league.

It’s called the North West Derby.

Of course, Shin-ah did not miss this famous feast.

Even if I have to sleep over at school tomorrow after watching the game, I will watch the game! Staying up all night on game days is something I am used to now… .

And the North West Derby I watched was surprisingly exciting.

“Man U is doing better than expected?”

I thought it would be pushed back endlessly, but it showed sharper attack power than expected.

Best, a long-time Manchester fan, was also quite satisfied with this performance as he watched the game, exclaiming, “Ahhhhh!”

[First of all, the defense is too stable because Evans is not there. And also… … .]

And then Manchester United’s chance to attack. Best puts his face right up to the screen and raises his voice.

[Ah! Okay! Okay! Okay! … … Aaaahhhhhh! I can’t put this in! This! Thiseeeeeeel! I can’t put this in!]

“Ehhhhhh.”

I feel like I know why people watch this show even at this hour of the morning. The reactions are amazing.

As I watched, I didn’t realize how much time had passed, and before I knew it, the game had reached extra time in the first half. It was Liverpool’s last chance to attack in the first half. There was a bit of an accident there.

[Hey hey hey! Moe-! That crazy kid! That’s Red! He kicked Kim Min-woo’s wrist!]

It was clearly captured on the screen. It looked like a kind of venting. As Kim Min-woo quickly snatched the ball, it felt like he was swinging his wrist instead of the ball.

“Hey, that bastard!”

Of course, Kim Shin-ah also jumped. That’s a wrist worth tens of thousands of dollars!

In addition, Kim Min-woo was holding his wrist and complaining of pain. It was a scene that brought back the slightly lethargic Kim Shin-ah’s consciousness.

Even Best was worried and groaned. If Kim Min-woo leaves Manchester United now, it would be a huge problem.

“Oh my… .”

I’ve felt this way for a long time, but you see players trying to physically break through goalkeepers when they can’t do it through normal means.

Beyond being pathetic, sometimes when I see those players, I wonder if they are really professionals.

[This isn’t Lee Chun-soo Maldini’s soccer kick. Do they still play this kind of soccer these days? Wow. What the referee! How can this not even get a card! It was a red card even though it was intentional! Wow!]

Best of all, jumping for joy and excitement.

Kim Shin-ah also sighed and watched the progress. However, judging from the fact that she didn’t leave right away and was acting awkward, it seemed like she was actually fine but was pretending to be sick on purpose.

In the meantime, a scene shown through replay.

The commentators also sighed and said, “This looks like a clear ejection, doesn’t it?”, seeming to be confused by the referee’s decision.

Pitter-patter.

[Kim Shin-ah: Did your wrist hurt a lot?]

[Kim Shin-ah: Should I give you a favor?]

Meanwhile, the referee checks VAR.

The replay scene came out once again, and the commentator said, ‘No matter how you look at it, this is clearly a send-off.’

Shin-A also strongly agreed with that opinion.

However, it remains to be seen what decision the EPL referees, who reign as emperors on the field, will make.

Shin-ah waited anxiously… … .

Beep!

“Nice!”

It was a dismissal decision. The commentators were happy as if it was their own business and continued their biased commentary as if it was justice, and Best was also very happy, shouting “Yes! Yes! It’s dismissal!”

Meanwhile, he added that he hopes that Kim Min-woo doesn’t get hurt too badly, as he was concerned that he liked it too much.

* * *

As soon as I entered the locker room, the coaching staff treated me like I was a kid who had fallen on ice.

“Kim! Are you okay?”

“Are you hurt a lot?”

“Can’t you play? Just say it.”

“Should we go straight to the hospital?”

The fidgeting looks. Well, I understand since I am such an important player to Manchester United.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. It won’t break to this extent.”

I looked closely at the wrist that had been hit by the bullet. Surprisingly, the wrist was fine. There was no pain or discomfort other than a slight blue bruise.

‘I guess I can just put a band on and run.’

But the coaches were furious when they saw the bruises on my wrists. Some of them even looked pale.

Director Giovanni also looked at me with a very worried expression.

“Kim. Tell me straight. Can you play in the second half? Don’t even think about hiding it. Please. For the sake of the team.”

I was dumbfounded for a moment, then shook my head.

“I’m really okay. I’m fine.”

“…Okay. Okay, I understand. After the game, let’s go straight to the hospital. Okay?”

I didn’t think it was necessary, but I did it anyway because I wanted to send him in the car.

And director Giovanni returned to his original form.

“Maguire! Why are you putting yourself in danger by dribbling uselessly! Didn’t you hear Kim yelling at you during the game? You were right in front of me!”

The director took care of the Maguire for me. I smiled contentedly as I watched the Maguire being torn apart.

Yeah, yeah. Good job, Director. Tell me more. Tell me more. You seem to have a good fit between Director Giovanni and me, don’t you? Now that I think about it, Yan was so kind…

The manager, who had been talking about Maguire for a long time, finally explained the tactics for the second half after the coaches tried to stop him. As always, I pretended to be focused and let it go in one ear.

In the first place, what the coach wanted from me was a free role. It seems like people here see me as something like the Messi of goalkeepers.

And above all… .

‘The second half is 11 to 10. We have 45 minutes to spare and we are one player short against the opponent, so it doesn’t make sense if we don’t win.’

No matter how much I tease him, he’s going to win this game. … He’s going to win, right? Please.

I rolled my eyes and looked at my colleagues around me. There weren’t many trustworthy faces. Still…

‘Captain. I believe you.’

Since I have one opponent, my running mate will do something.