Germany couldn't rest easy even after their match ended.
Their fate still depended on the outcome of the remaining game between France and Côte d'Ivoire.
Their last hope was Côte d'Ivoire.
If Côte d'Ivoire defeated France, Germany could advance.
However, that hope was crushed within just five minutes.
Already the weaker side, Côte d'Ivoire went down a man after a defender was sent off, giving France an opening to dominate.
France did not miss their chance.
With solid defending and sharp attacking, they scored two goals just before the final whistle and secured a 3-0 victory.
As a result, the group stage standings shifted.
1st (-) South Korea – 2 wins, 1 draw, 0 losses, 8 goals for, 4 goals against
2nd (↑1) France – 2 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss, 7 goals for, 3 goals against
3rd (↓1) Germany – 1 win, 1 draw, 1 loss, 5 goals for, 4 goals against
4th (-) Côte d'Ivoire – 0 wins, 0 draws, 3 losses, 0 goals for, 9 goals against
France, previously in 3rd place, climbed to 2nd and secured a spot in the semifinals.
Germany, despite their strong squad, were forced to swallow the bitter pill of elimination.
Ho-young's brace and Kim Shin-woo's crucial goal-line save had flipped the entire situation.
Later that day, the Man of the Match for the Korea-Germany match was announced.
There had been much debate over who should receive the honor.
That was how many standout players there were.
Toni Kroos, who played despite an injury and recorded two assists.
Thomas Müller, who finished off both of Kroos' key passes with goals.
Either one could have taken it without question, but the technical committee gave higher marks to the player who led Korea to the semifinals: Ho-young.
Thanks to that, Ho-young succeeded in acquiring Toni Kroos' talent that night.
In total, Ho-young acquired three talents by meeting the conditions in that match.
Thomas Müller's High Football IQ (A-).
Mats Hummels' Sharp Anticipation (A-).
Toni Kroos' Precise and Quick Kicks (A-).
There were two or three other talents he could have claimed, but he failed to meet the required conditions, such as "play as a defender" or "win the match."
Still, acquiring three talents in a single match was unprecedented.
And they were all A- grade.
It was a tremendously satisfying performance.
Yet even so, Ho-young licked his lips as if still hungry.
This wasn't enough to quench his thirst.
Ambition.
Ho-young had his sights set on winning the title.
My first international trophy!
One more step to reach the final.
Their next opponent in the semifinals was Japan, the Asian powerhouse that advanced from Group B with 1 win and 2 draws.
"Heh heh."
A sly grin spread across Ho-young's face.
This was going to be a fun match.
At that moment.
With the time difference, workers in Korea, 8 hours ahead of France, were already commuting to work.
In Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, Mr. Kim, who ran a newspaper stand, was having a hectic morning.
Newspapers were flying off the shelves, especially sports papers.
That was because the front page of the sports section featured a massive photo of a sports star.
Usually, sales spiked when faces like Park Ji-sung, Park Chan-ho, Choi Heung-man, or Park Ju-young appeared, but today's star was Park Ji-sung of PSV Eindhoven.
The article discussed whether Park would play in the Champions League quarterfinal.
Meanwhile, the second page also featured a football player's face, and surprisingly, it was not a professional, but a boy.
Born in 1993, his name was Ho-young.
U16 national team reports, usually buried at the bottom of the sports pages, had finally made it to page two.
[The Miracle of Korea, Woo Ho-young Does It Again!]
The article detailed Ho-young's performance against Germany and previewed the upcoming semifinal.
[Versus Japan's 'Web Defense,' Key Will Be Diverse Attacking Routes. Expected to Be Easier Than Germany Match]
The Korea U16 national team was set to battle defending champions Japan in the semifinals for a spot in the final.
Having topped Group A, Korea would face Japan on the 26th at Montaigu Stadium...
...and the answer lay with Ho-young.
Having joined the team earlier this month, Ho-young had scored 5 goals in 3 matches and was currently tied with Thomas Müller as the tournament's top scorer.
"Hahaha!"
Reading the article, the man laughed so hard it looked like his mouth would tear open.
Forgetting he was on his way to work, he parked himself in front of the stand and bought every newspaper that featured the article.
Mr. Kim found it amusing.
"You want those too?"
"Oh yes, absolutely. I need to get every article about Ho-young."
"Heh. Anyone would think you're his dad."
"With a face like mine, there's no way a kid that handsome could be my son. I don't know whose kid he is, but he sure is good-looking."
"You're not wrong. His parents must be proud."
"Hehe."
Grinning wide, the man picked one copy of each paper.
"All of these?"
"Yes, I'll take them all. Heh heh heh."
Woo Hwang-sun had received an unexpected gift on his way to work.
It was a proud day, one he wanted to remember forever as a father.
That same day.
Japan was just as fired up as Korea.
Even though it was an U16 match, the fact that it was a semifinal and against Korea created a must-win atmosphere.
Normally, it would have gone unnoticed, but keywords like "semifinal" and "Korea vs Japan" lit a fire among the Japanese fans.
[Hey! Who do we have on our team?!]
[No idea. But Korea's got a star. Name's Ho-young. He's the current tournament top scorer.]
[Top scorer? That's ridiculous! The tournament must be low-level.]
[Gross. What a trash tournament.]
[Guys... our country won that tournament last year...]
[...So it's actually a prestigious tournament!]
[The paper says we have a super prospect named Kagawa!]
[Oh! Kagawa! Let's crush the Koreans!]
But the hottest response didn't come from Korea or Japan.
It came from Europe's top clubs.
Scouts dispatched to the Montaigu Tournament had submitted summaries to their clubs, and most European teams were reacting similarly.
Madrid, Spain.
Inside the offices of Atlético Madrid.
Two staff members were discussing the Montaigu Tournament.
"I send him to scout, and instead of reporting on South Americans, he comes back talking about an Asian? A Korean, no less? I mean, okay, that's better than a Chinese player, but still."
The technical director frowned, exhaling smoke from his cigarette after reading the report.
Ho-young's name was listed with the note, "A player reminiscent of Fernando Torres."
"So this Ho-young kid reminds him of our Torres?"
"Apparently, he's incredibly quick with his dribbling and off-the-ball movement."
"How quick could he possibly be."
The technical director grimaced.
It was unusual for a scout to report on a 1993-born Asian player.
He even wondered if the scout was slacking off.
"Haha. Let's just take a look first."
As the technical director scoffed, his colleague began to skim through the report.
Not long after, he spoke.
"He's played in the Brazilian league."
"U13?"
"U15."
"So he was a sub?"
"No, a starter."
"Wait, isn't São Paulo FC U15 in the second division?"
"They're in the top division. They won the treble this year."
"Hmm? What are his stats?"
"He scored over 40 goals."
"...What?"
Only then did the technical director look closely at the report.
"His mother had Spanish citizenship before marriage. His maternal side immigrated to Spain and still lives here. The kid has a lot of advantages. He speaks Portuguese, so he'll pick up Spanish quickly too."
"Oh! He's a very appealing prospect. But why are we only hearing about him now?"
"You know how it is. With over 500,000 domestic youth players, it's hard to keep track of Asian prospects. Plus, our South American scout is currently in Argentina watching Agüero ahead of the U17 South American Championship finals later this month."
"Right, of course. Then have him send regular updates from the Montaigu Tournament. We should at least see what kind of player he is."
"Understood."
This wasn't unique to Atlético Madrid.
Ho-young's performances were attracting worldwide attention.
Barcelona and AC Milan had been watching him for some time, and now other big clubs, as well as selling clubs known for nurturing and flipping prospects, were interested.
In Spain, Valencia CF and Sevilla CF were taking notice. In the Netherlands, Ajax and PSV Eindhoven. In Germany, Borussia Dortmund.
However, due to Germany's strong domestic player preference and language barriers, they weren't seriously considering him yet.
The shortlist had narrowed down to around nine clubs.
Among them, none showed more enthusiasm than Real Madrid.
"See? I told you. That kid is the real deal."
"You're talking about Ho-young again?"
Real Madrid scout Antonio had recently returned to Madrid and couldn't hide his excitement.
The one responding was Michelle, the youth development director.
The two were friends, which made candid talk easy.
"That kid proved his worth again in this tournament. Talk to Pérez for me. You know the old man loves star players. Think about how much we could make if we raised an Asian star and sold him."
"You know how Pérez is. He only buys stars after they're already shining."
"What do you mean not shining yet? He's already sparkling."
Their conversation revolved around how to convince President Pérez and bring Ho-young to Madrid.
"Take it easy, man. Every year there are dozens of monstrous prospects."
"Have you seen him? He's not a prospect who's like a monster. He is a monster."
"Whoa, calm down. So they're facing Japan in the semifinals now? Let's talk again if they make it to the final. I'll take it seriously then."
"Pfft. Japan? No doubt about it. That kid is going through."
"And what makes you so sure?"
"He's got that winning mentality. Especially against Japanese players, it doubles."
"Why's that?"
"Come on, don't you get it? He's Korean."
Interest in signing Ho-young was heating up fast.
But Ho-young paid no attention to that and focused entirely on preparing for the match.
And the result of that effort would soon be revealed the next day at Montaigu Stadium.
Caw, caw!
On the afternoon of March 26, a black bird, unclear whether it was a magpie or a crow, cawed in the distance.
"Feels good. The weather's perfect."
In Korea, magpies were seen as a good omen. In Europe, crows were. Either way, it meant the same thing.
I've got a good feeling.
Maybe it was because Japan, compared to France and Germany, was seen as the weaker side, but Ho-young was bursting with confidence.
That confidence lasted all the way to the stadium and as he stepped onto the pitch.
It wasn't just Ho-young. The entire Korean squad radiated high energy.
Ho-young especially was restless with excitement.
On the other hand, the Japanese team looked slightly intimidated, their eyes focused on one person.
Ho-young.
Just based on morale, Korea had already won.
But they couldn't afford to be careless.
With a smile, Ho-young exchanged handshakes with the Japanese players while checking their talents one by one.
Before long, he reunited with that familiar face.
Kagawa.
Three years had passed since he last saw Kagawa Shinji.
Back then, the boy had looked down on Ho-young. Now, the grown-up Ho-young stood taller, as Kagawa looked up and said,
"I told you. Next time, I'd win. And today is that day."
It wasn't confidence.
It was desperation.
Kagawa's stiff body said it all.
Like a rabbit challenging a tiger.
That was how he appeared in Ho-young's eyes.
This isn't good.
"Hup!"
He couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
It was just too cute.
But when he checked Kagawa's talent, the laughter stopped.
[Kagawa Shinji]
[Possessed Talents: Football Prodigy (B+), Precise and Delicate Ball Touch (B+), Consistent Off-the-Ball Movement (B-), Decent Dribbling (C+3)]
(You can obtain one talent by meeting the required condition.)
(Condition 1: Play football together for 60 minutes)
(Condition 2: Record more attacking points than Kagawa Shinji)
(Special Condition
(If the special condition
Special condition.
Ho-young froze for a moment.
Potential?
Not just talent, but potential?
What kind of guy is this?
One thing was clear.
He needed to win by at least three goals.
Tonight, they had to destroy Japan.
(To be continued.)