Shooting Trajectory is Visible - Chapter 212



Only Krnovel

Episode 212 Graduation

The game ended with a dramatic 1:0 score.

The atmosphere at Arsenal’s home stadium was not tense despite the defeat.

Perhaps because the game was played with repeated attacks from the first half to the second half, everyone only felt regret.

From the audience’s perspective, it was the first game in a long time that had much to see… .

I stayed until the end to applaud and wave to the away fans who came all the way to London. Then, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

‘Arteta, who learned under Pep, showed this level of tactical ability, so just how good is Manchester City’s Pep?’

If the disciple is like this, then the master… … hmm.

And I walked to the booth set up on one side of the stadium for POTM selection and interviews.

There were reporters and staff there as if they had been waiting.

People congratulated me with smiling faces, and I nodded and stood in front of the microphone.

“Kim! Congratulations again on your win today! There was a bit of a war of nerves with Coach Arteta before the game, how was your performance today?”

“As you all saw, it was a really tough game. In the first half, I really thought we were going to lose. Arsenal were really well prepared.”

“I think that answer will lead to the next question. You won a dramatic free kick in the second half of extra time, and then scored a dramatic goal. It seemed like Manchester United copied the tactical moves that Arsenal showed in the first half. Did you prepare in advance?”

I laughed at that question. Actually, I didn’t prepare in advance. It was just a reckless move on my part. I did it with the intention of giving Arteta’s Arsenal a chance to have a go at it the way you guys did, but now that I think about it, I shouldn’t have done that. I should have just aimed for it myself.

“… I didn’t prepare in advance, I just copied what Arsenal did. I didn’t coordinate, but I felt like the Arsenal players were a bit loose towards the end of the game. So I quickly coordinated with the players. The result was good, but I feel bad for the manager because it was too hasty.”

“Oh… … .”

The reporter paused for a moment and asked again.

“There are rumors of discord within the team. What kind of coach is Coach Giovanni to Kim?”

“He is a capable director. First of all, he is much more mature than me. He is always cold, but surprisingly, he has a warm side.”

“Haha. Aren’t all directors like that?”

“Is that so?”

Phew. The question about the discord was passed over without a hitch. That was fortunate.

“Coach Arteta promised that if he didn’t score a single goal against Kim, he would do Gangnam Style. Today, Kim kept another clean sheet. Are you satisfied with today’s result?”

“I am 100% satisfied. And I will be looking forward to Coach Arteta’s London style. I will wait with bated breath until the video comes out.”

And then he held his breath and said, ‘Hmph.’ The reporter burst out laughing. It was a kind of Popomontsu.

* * *

The Premier League is renowned, even in Europe, for its intense schedule.

And I came from the Bundesliga, which has a lot of holidays in Europe, to the Premier League, which is the toughest league, so I felt it even more intensely.

“What kind of game is this where there’s no time to catch your breath?”

In the Bundesliga, I think they played once a week, but here, the norm is twice a week.

Of course, there are still times when I have free time. After finishing recovery training and personal training, I came home and lay down on my bed and looked at my phone.

This time again, it was a link sent by Kim Shin-ah.

[… I realized in this game how great of a goalkeeper Kim is. Now I have decided to respect him. I said I would do Gangnam Style in my underwear, so I will keep my word… … .]

This was Arteta’s interview.

I smiled as I read that interview.

“What if I knew that now?”

Still, it’s good to know now. Worship Arteta…

[Kim is a creative player. It is not easy to see Arsenal’s tactics once and immediately copy them. I respect Kim’s determination. Even if he failed, I would have encouraged him.]

This was Giovanni’s interview.

It seemed like he had responded after seeing my interview.

I feel strangely happy.

[Giovanni is a dictator type. He looks just like Mussolini.]

[A one-way coach with no respect or consideration. Many players within the team are dissatisfied with the coach’s style.]

“Tsk tsk.”

It was an anonymous interview.

And somehow I think I know who the players were who did those interviews. Maybe Giovanni has a vague idea too. Or maybe he figured out who was talking through his connections.

“They won’t be able to come to the training ground anymore.”

I also stretched as I read more community posts praising my free kick imitation.

I really need to get some rest now.

* * *

The next match was an international competition.

Europa League.

The opponent was Royal Union Saint-Gilloise of the Belgian league.

The club is ranked 72nd in the UEFA rankings, a full 60 places behind Manchester United, which is ranked 12th.

Even though it was a home game and the first Europa League match, Giovanni pushed hard and put his best first team members in the starting lineup.

Even if they were a relatively weak team, it would have been better to send out their best team and take the game from the start rather than letting their guard down and getting hit by an unexpected blow at home.

And, as if the club’s first international match was not a success, the match was rather dull.

Rashford’s opening goal.

Rashford received a back pass from Bayer inside the box and kicked it in easily. He kicked it in from the edge of the box, but the problem was that the defenders only checked Bayer and left Rashford too comfortable… .

Bayer’s second goal.

Rashford cut a short pass to captain Bruno, who turned wide and played an ambiguous ball from the edge of the box to the goalkeeper, who could not tell if it was a shot or a pass, before Bayer tapped it home with his foot.

The ball hit the defender’s foot and went between the goalkeeper’s legs, but Bayer scored a goal with just his foot. If Bayer was capable, then he was capable. If the goalkeeper was unlucky, then he was unlucky.

And Winnyeong’s decisive chance.

Maguire was tackled for touching the ball in the box, which resulted in a penalty kick.

It was pathetic, but what could I do? I had to stop it again.

‘Left or right?’

I don’t need to use advanced psychological warfare like other goalkeepers. I don’t need to watch the opponent’s feet closely. The trajectory is already known in advance.

I moved my body as the trajectory told me.

Surprisingly, this cheeky Winion penalty kicker tried to hit it towards the center. And it was a ground ball.

I was so shocked that I split the ball open, and then I kicked the guy’s cold shot.

He stopped the shot with his left foot.

I picked him up right away because he still hadn’t come to his senses and came running. How dare you. Does a goalkeeper who hasn’t conceded a goal since his debut look like a jerk?

Coach Giovanni must have thought about the upcoming schedule and made appropriate substitutions, and the game ended with substitute Hoilun scoring the winning goal.

There was still time left after scoring the third goal, but the game was over as it was.

It was a refreshing win for Manchester United after a long time….

* * *

My life in Manchester was a little different from my life in Hannover. I had only just joined the club so I wasn’t very close with my teammates and I didn’t have anyone to meet so it was very boring.

Hanover was already boring, but this is even more boring than Hanover.

‘There’s a reason they say you’re bored to death.’

For me, it was the first time in a long while that my daily life was shattered.

Someone came all the way to Manchester to see me.

“Player Kim Min-woo!”

Sophie still prefers to be called ‘player’ rather than ‘Mr.’ Kim Min-woo. She kept calling him ‘player’ whenever she was in Hanover, so it seems like the title has stuck with her.

It seemed like it had been a long time since I had seen her in person, so I greeted Sophie warmly.

“It’s been a while, Sophie.”

“I missed you.”

And Sophie hugs him gently. And she says,

“… It’s not a burden, is it?”

I was wondering what to say, but I just shook my head.

“I’ve been waiting.”

Sophie’s expression brightened at my words. Seeing her bright and happy face made me feel good too.

In fact, I had no reason to go to Hanover, so I had no chance to meet them. If the last match against Winnipeg had been an away game, I could have made time to go, but that wasn’t the case.

“Hannover is probably in the middle of the season now, how did you get all the way to Manchester?”

“I just came because I wanted to see Kim Min-woo.”

“uh….”

You came all the way from Hanover to Manchester just to see me? She’s a European woman who goes beyond being bold and aggressive.

“You have incredible drive.”

Sophie smiling bashfully.

But I meant what I said.

It was a few days ago that I sent a message on KakaoTalk saying that I wanted to see you, and you actually came.

And I got into Sophie’s car (it was a rental car) and we chatted for a while. The reason I didn’t bother to walk down the street or go to the park was because in Manchester, everyone recognises me.

It would be a headache if rumors of Kim Min-woo’s relationship were to spread due to paparazzi or ordinary citizens taking pictures of him.

‘Well, it’s true that we’re dating, but can we really call this a romantic relationship?’

I’m also terrible at relationships, and Sophie is no different. We don’t even hold hands, we just watch each other’s every move…

I was forced into a platonic relationship because I was a slut.

As we walked around Manchester city centre chatting, we heard a gurgling sound somewhere.

It wasn’t my boat.

I looked at Sophie without saying anything, and she was silent and had her mouth tightly shut. It was not like Sophie, who had been chattering like a cuckoo just a moment ago.

“Shall we go to a restaurant? There are more delicious restaurants in England than I thought.”

“… Are you okay? If anyone notices… .”

“I knew this would happen, so I prepared this.”

I took out my sunglasses from my pocket. I also took out a crude wig just in case. It was a wig I bought on eBay for 37 euros. As soon as Sophie saw it, she burst out laughing.

“I don’t think it will suit me?”

“Just a moment.”

I put on sunglasses first, and then I tried on a wig. Then I checked in the rearview mirror. It was a mess. Sophie saw me, stopped the car for a moment, and kept laughing, saying, “Ah, hah~”

“Oh, I’m sorry. It was too funny…”

“Actually, sunglasses can be conspicuous, so I also prepared regular glasses.”

Sophie burst into laughter again.

Hmm. Is that right?

* * *

“Whew!”

Kim Jun-young spat during the game. Today’s opponent was Newcastle’s second team. It was already the fifth game in the reserve league.

Kim Jun-young, who had 5 goals and 1 assist in 2 games, had 12 goals and 5 assists in 5 games, although he is still in the middle of the game.

If we look at the records alone, they were chewing up the reserve league for now.

The coaches had already given Kim Jun-young the nickname, “Korean bomber.”

‘I’m not the type of person to be here. I have to prove it with my grades and get promoted to the first team.’

With that in mind, I played five games like I was dying. It was the same even then.

At that moment, Kim Jun-young was preparing for a corner kick, but his kicking power was so good that he took away the position of the existing corner kicker. Of course, Kim Jun-young didn’t care.

It’s only natural that the one with better kicking power becomes the kicker.

Beep!

With the referee’s whistle, Kim Jun-young chose one. A particularly tall black man. I even remember his name now. Okoye Ebuka? He was African.

That guy seems to be aiming for the first team like me… … Fighting!

Kim Jun-young took a corner kick, aiming for Ebuka.

Ebuka, with his monstrous physique, was able to head the ball despite being outdone by two opposing players, and as the aggro was focused on him, James, who received the ball from behind in an unmarked chance, ate it right away.

It was a really lame shot, but it was a goal. And it was an assist for me.

“Yes~”

Renewed with 12 goals and 6 assists in 5 games!

In today’s game, he now had 2 goals and 1 assist.

The opposing team’s players, coaches, and managers seemed to be on guard to try to stop me from running wild in the league, but even if they knew about it, it wasn’t a gap they could block.

And then the game resumes again.

The dizzying development continues, and Manchester’s counterattack begins. Here, my role was to be a striker, but according to the manager’s tactics, I was now running on the wing.

Soccer wasn’t originally a sport where you had to play according to your position.

James Miller, who scored from my corner kick, watched the situation from the center and passed the ball to me as I ran down the flank. I received the ball, immediately entered the penalty box, folded once to confuse the opposing defender, and then immediately hit it.

Boohoo!

It was a shot that rolled once on the grass and went in, but the goalkeeper was unable to react and conceded a goal. It seems that he was unable to react because the defender’s view was blocked, but that’s none of my business.

“Yahoo~”

It was a goal.

With this, he has renewed his record with 13 goals and 6 assists in 5 games!

And then it’s time for the rising ceremony~

Players who have become close friends after playing five games together come together to celebrate together.

There were still a few British native dogs that were acting territorial, but it didn’t matter. I had already experienced them so many times in Korea during my childhood. In fact, I was glad to see them.

And then the game resumes again.

The game, which had resumed somewhat, ended on time.

3 goals, 1 assist. I finished the game with a perfect performance, holding my breath and clenching my fists in joy.

He played the role of the team’s ace well today. Well, he was recruited from the first team and sent down to the second team, so this level of role is natural. In the first place, the amount he receives is different from that of other players who are the kingpins of this league.

“Kim. Thank you for your hard work. After we disband, can you come see me for a bit?”

“Yes?… Oh, yes. I understand.”

And the director’s call.

It was my first time doing something like this after a game, so I was a little flustered, but I thought it was to be expected.

And after the usual schedule was over, I had a private meeting with the director.

The director looked the same as usual. His face was expressionless, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking or what he was up to.

“Kim. I’ve been watching you closely since you came down from the minor leagues.”

I listened in silence.

“After every game, I always sent a report about you to the first team manager.”

Hmm. Is it just me who feels like something good is going to come out of this?

“And after watching today’s game, I can now give you a perfect evaluation of yourself, Kim. You are not a player fit for the reserve league.”

I could barely understand because the director spoke slowly for me. I was very happy because it seemed like all the English I had been studying was paying off.

“I’ll make a formal suggestion to the first-team manager. He’ll either promote you to the first-team or loan you out to another league. You’re too talented to play here.”

“… … ! Thank you, Director.”

“Thank you. I just tell it as it is.”

Is he finally graduating from the minor leagues? It was only five games, but it felt like half a year.

After finishing his one-on-one meeting with the director, Kim Jun-young returned home with a big smile on his face.

His rival was Hoilun, and even the recently transferred Bayer was a striker who made him think, ‘Wow, this kid is really good at kicking,’ but it seemed better to be called up to the first team and compete with him than to be in his current situation where he can’t even compete.

And in the first team, there was also Minwoo Haetnim, a fellow Korean and a senior from Suyang High School.

“Ugh!”

Hoilun come out! Byer Taun! EPL emergency!

Kim Min-woo’s old colleague and beloved younger brother is leaving!

Kim Jun-young hummed as he fantasized about winning the EPL scoring title.