[Blue Team]
Goalkeeper: Kim Seong-su (15)
Defenders: Park Chang-su (16), Kim Jae-min (17), Kim Seong-ho (17)
Midfielders: Lee Chang-ho (17), Nam Woo-jung (17), Koo Ja-young (16), Ho-young (13)
Forward: Suk Hyun-jun (15)
A 9-on-9 practice match was about to begin.
New additions to the U-16 team for the upcoming tour to France, Lee Chang-ho and Nam Woo-jung, were positioned in the defensive midfield.
Sixteen-year-old Koo Ja-young, acting as both the Blue Team captain and central midfielder, took the reins in the middle.
Ho-young was deployed as the attacking midfielder, handling the second line.
At the front was Suk Hyun-jun, the surprise standout from last year's Asian Championship, placed as the lone striker.
It was a highly experimental lineup.
Especially for the U-17 team, which had been struggling with a lack of attacking resources, the addition of an offensively inclined player like Ho-young was a significant boost.
However, he had yet to gain the full trust of his teammates.
'No matter how good he is, he's still just a kid.'
Founding member Koo Ja-young couldn't make sense of Coach Park Kyung-woon's decision.
He was well aware that Ho-young was an exceptional prospect.
With the media hyping him up so much, it was impossible not to know.
'I'm sure he's good.'
Winning the treble in Brazil and taking the top scorer title was certainly impressive.
But still...
'He's just too young.'
The fact that Ho-young was 13 was baffling.
Even if he had the physicality to hold his own, it was still jarring to have a sixth grader among middle and high schoolers.
'At 13, he's just a kid.'
It felt like a misjudgment on the coach's part.
Maybe it was even a publicity stunt to stir up national interest.
'Still, how are we supposed to face the first team with this group of rookies?'
In any case, there was no choice but to follow orders.
He didn't have the authority to speak up.
Sure, he was captain of the Blue Team, but in the bigger picture, he was barely hanging on as a first-team fringe player.
'I'll just focus on doing my part and not overextend.'
Quick to give up.
He just wanted to avoid falling out of the coach's favor by doing his job properly.
Piiik!
"Blue Team, gather!"
Coach Park Cheol-woo, whose rough appearance could be mistaken for a gangster, called the players over.
He began the tactical briefing for the match against the White Team.
"Ho-young."
"Yes."
"Your role is key. Between the striker and midfield, you need to distribute the ball... basically, do you understand what a playmaker is?"
"Yes. Please continue."
"Yup, definitely a foreign-trained player~"
Park Cheol-woo joked half-seriously.
He wasn't exactly welcoming, but he wasn't hostile either.
He still harbored slight dissatisfaction with Coach Park Kyung-woon's decision to bring in Ho-young.
They were already struggling to build cohesion among the regular members, and now they had to integrate an elementary school kid just because he played well in Brazil. It was tiring from the get-go.
Such a big generational gap was bound to cause issues in a team setting.
Park Cheol-woo wanted to make that very clear.
"You're the youngest one here. Everyone else is in middle or high school. So don't play like you did in Brazil. Got it?"
"You mean don't play alone."
"Exactly. And don't overdo it and get hurt. Pass the ball to the older players. We play a pressing-based system, so just focus on making your passes. Hyun-jun, drop deeper to receive the ball. If Ho-young's left alone, he'll get isolated."
"Got it."
"Still... he's just a sixth grader. I don't know what the coach was thinking, placing him alone in the second line."
As the tactical meeting wrapped up, Park Cheol-woo still couldn't figure out Coach Park's intention.
Piiik!
10:10 a.m.
With Park Cheol-woo's whistle, kickoff began.
The White Team's midfielder Yang Seok-ho took the first touch.
They were using a 2-5-1 formation to bolster their midfield.
Applying pressure and building up with short, simple passes, they advanced slowly.
It was a common strategy.
But it was efficient and stable, which made it accessible.
Tap!
Centre-back Kim Shin-woo received a back pass in the midfield area.
He looked forward.
"...!"
As soon as he received the ball, he spotted an opponent charging at him.
Ho-young.
'As fast as the rumors say, but not very smart. Pressing all the way up here? Guess a kid is just a kid.'
Tap!
Thinking that, he calmly passed the ball out to midfielder Kim Tae-jin on the left.
Not a hint of concern on his face.
But that was exactly the problem.
"Uh-oh...!"
The ball rolled smoothly toward the left to Kim Tae-jin, but the real issue was Ho-young, who had been charging in.
Pop.
Ho-young's eyes quickly read the passing lane and he suddenly changed direction.
It was a sharp, sudden cut, like flipping a page.
Just watching it was enough to make your stomach churn.
'What the...'
What happened next was even more shocking.
Tap.
Just as Kim Tae-jin received the ball, it vanished.
Ho-young, like a bolt of lightning, had intercepted it with a tackle.
Had Kim Tae-jin engaged in a physical duel, he might have been able to shield the ball.
But that was a pointless hypothetical.
He simply had no time to react.
Ho-young's speed was literally explosive.
"Huh."
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
Ho-young.
There was no better word than thief.
He wasn't just fast. His tackling was impeccable.
The ball-cutting skill he had obtained from Casemiro.
Polished over two years, it had become one of Ho-young's signature weapons.
'That was clean...'
It was one of the best tackles Kim Tae-jin had ever seen from a youth player in Korea.
'Wasn't he supposed to be an attacking player between the first and second lines?'
He recalled what Coach Park had said before the match.
—Watch out for Ho-young's runs and dribbling. He's dangerous with or without the ball, even if he's young. Don't underestimate him. Got it?
To that, Kim Tae-jin had confidently replied, "Haha. Of course, Coach."
He regretted those words now.
'Damn.'
There was one thing the coach hadn't told them.
'He's dangerous all the time. Shit.'
The fact that he was a constant threat.
The coach's omission was a huge one.
But this was the pitch.
Too late to blame the coach.
Ho-young, who had stolen the ball seconds ago, was already sprinting toward the goal, covering 40 meters.
Swoosh.
He added a slight body feint to outmaneuver the goalkeeper.
Then, calmly slotted the ball into the far corner of the net.
The net rippled, as expected.
The goal-scoring ability he had honed from Pato was already top-tier.
"...What was that?"
Most footballers swear, each with their own style.
But even in a situation that would make anyone curse, Kim Tae-jin kept his mouth shut.
Cold sweat ran down his back.
Gulp.
Everything that had just happened took place in the time it took to swallow once.
And then, a frustrated voice rang out.
"Hey, you idiot!"
"Uh... yes, Shin-woo hyung."
"Get your head in the game! When someone's pressing, come meet the ball! Can't even stop an elementary schooler?"
"Sorry."
Kim Tae-jin swallowed his frustration instead of talking back.
'What am I, a robot? How am I supposed to react when a human battering ram comes at me like that? Why doesn't he try stopping him himself?'
Sure enough, Kim Shin-woo was grinding his teeth.
His eyes clearly said that if Ho-young came near him, he'd crush him without mercy.
On the bench, both Coach Park Kyung-woon and Coach Park Cheol-woo stood up at once.
They wore the exact same expression.
"...Coach Cha was right."
"Hmm."
It was understandable for Park Cheol-woo, who hadn't seen Ho-young's match footage, to be surprised.
But even Park Kyung-woon, who had watched those clips multiple times, looked like he still couldn't believe what he was seeing.
He suddenly remembered the match footage from São Paulo FC vs. Santos FC that Coach Cha had brought back with great effort.
The match where Ho-young had dominated the field with incredible plays.
Now, he was performing exactly as he had then, at his full potential.
'Is he a player who shines on the big stage?'
What Ho-young had just done wasn't completely unprecedented.
There had been a famous quote in the past.
—Why do we even have positions? Why talk about formations like 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2? Why bother with tactics at all, when "that player" is the strategy?
That was said about Maradona after his wonder goal in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal, where he dribbled past nine England players.
Football is a team sport played by eleven. But at that time, Maradona had transcended that definition.
Having faced Maradona himself during the 1986 World Cup, Park Kyung-woon fully agreed with that statement.
And now, seeing Ho-young, memories of facing Maradona came rushing back.
It was absurd to compare the two. Still, a sliver of possibility entered his mind.
That Ho-young could become someone like that.
"Haha."
"What is it?"
"No, nothing."
A football star rising in Korea?
It sounded laughable even to himself, and he chuckled awkwardly.
Chilled to the bone, Park Kyung-woon zipped up his thick padded jacket.
'Let's see what the White Team's ace can do.'
His eyes turned toward the White Team's right midfielder.
Ten minutes into the scrimmage.
With Ho-young's opening goal, the Blue Team took the lead and began focusing more on midfield pressing than scoring, per the coach's tactical direction.
After all, it was just a practice match. There was no need to obsess over goals.
It was preparation for targeting the compact midfield of the USA, Korea's first opponent at the World Cup in September.
There were no shots, but the match was intense.
The midfield battles were fierce, and one player stood out in particular.
The White Team's right midfielder.
With solid ball control and composed pressing resistance, he protected the ball with finesse.
At 18 years old and 175 cm tall, his frame was so skinny it looked fragile, yet he stood out above the rest of the White Team.
And Ho-young knew exactly who he was.
He had been a fan of his even before returning to the past.
Ho-young's eyes gleamed.
[Lee Chung-yong]
[Possessed Talents: Football Prodigy (B+), Motor-Powered Fast Legs (B-), Exceptional Composure (B-), Decent Passing (C+), Quick Situational Awareness (C-)]
(You can obtain one talent by meeting the required conditions.)
(Condition 1: Play together for over 60 minutes)
(Condition 2: Block a pass)
(Condition 3: Win the match)
Lee Chung-yong.
Despite his age, he was already part of FC Seoul's reserve squad—a professional footballer.
'My first time playing against a pro.'
Ho-young could feel the difference.
He might not have explosive talent like the Brazilians, but the number of talents he possessed was impressive, likely due to his age.
Especially 'Excellent Composure' was a talent Ho-young very much desired.
Tap!
In that moment.
Even under Ho-young's relentless pressing and sharp interceptions, Lee Chung-yong held firm and smoothly carried the attack forward.
'He's good.'
As expected of a professional.
His light yet sharp style of play soon led to a goal for the White Team.
He didn't make as strong of an impact as Ho-young, but he was clearly a standout.
The two boys exchanged glances and continued their own battles.
Piiik.
30 minutes into the second half.
As time passed, the Blue Team began to lose momentum.
Being the second-string, their stamina didn't quite hold up.
As the Blue Team's midfield started to wear down, the White Team began sharpening their attacks.
Lee Chung-yong eyed the space ahead.
'There it is.'
He sent in a confident, surprise through pass.
A pinpoint pass, honed at FC Seoul, with deadly accuracy.
But he had overlooked one thing.
Tap!
Ho-young, who had been positioned quite far from the ball, pounced like a tiger and intercepted it.
He had been waiting for that moment all along, and Lee Chung-yong hadn't picked up on it.
'Damn.'
Ho-young's interception triggered a swift counterattack for the Blue Team.
Fwip!
He made a short pass to central midfielder Koo Ja-young and sprinted forward.
Receiving the surprise pass, Koo Ja-young had an unexpected thought.
'I've really misjudged him.'
Contrary to his expectations, Ho-young's play was smooth and polished.
It was only their first time linking up in a match, but he could feel it.
'If we just support him properly...'
Maybe he really could overcome the age gap.
With newfound belief, he slipped in a return pass deep through the middle.
That was the moment it began.
Ho-young's storm-like dribble.
Gulp.
Centre-back Kim Shin-woo, facing him head-on, swallowed hard.
'I have to stop him.'
He was the one who had loudly scolded Kim Tae-jin earlier for not stopping "some elementary school kid."
Now it was his turn.
'Just a damn sixth grader...'
He focused everything on Ho-young's feet, calculating the tackle timing.
If needed, he was ready to barge in and take the ball by force.
But then...
"Wha...?"
Grin.
As Ho-young charged forward, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and then he spun.
Marseille Turn.
With lightning-quick footwork, he rotated 360 degrees and broke past Kim Shin-woo, heading straight for the goal.
The goalkeeper rushed out in a panic, but it was too late.
A quick toe poke.
The ball slipped cleanly between the keeper's legs and rolled into the net.
Ho-young's second goal.
"Sui!"
With a celebration that made his presence known, the match came to an end.
Kim Shin-woo, completely broken, stood there dazed.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)