Dad was a Genius - Chapter 106



Only Noblemtl

My Dad Was a Genius Episode 106

If you were to ask what the most useful talent in soccer is, there would be many answers, but the most frequently chosen one would be ‘running speed’.

Passing, shooting, individual skills, etc.

While they are all important, running speed has quite a big impact on the game.

A fast-running striker is scary on the counterattack and is also very threatening when breaking the line.

Additionally, fast defenders are better at dealing with counterattacks and make attackers reluctant to run deep.

The reason why Kyle Walker, our Wolves fullback, would later become the best fullback is because of his running speed.

When supporting an attack, it is easy to overlap because the player runs fast, and when defending, he can return to the camp with a quick sprint, so he is bound to be an object of fear for attackers.

That’s why fast attackers and defenders are bound to be a threat to the opponent.

In that respect, Adama Traore was a player with very fast feet.

But he was unable to spread his wings as a player.

He has quick feet and crazy breaking power, but his finishing ability is very poor.

In addition, the level of understanding of tactics was non-existent.

[Player Adama is really threatening! He runs around the field like a bull!]

So, if things had gone as planned, Adama Traore would have moved from team to team before settling at Wolves, where he would have stayed for a few years before moving to Fulham, where he would eventually retire as his speed, once his pride and joy, diminished.

That was his future.

But I personally felt that his talent was wasted.

His ability to sprint quickly is a rare talent even in the EPL, and if used well, he can be a truly destructive attacking force.

However, there is no director who can use Adama properly.

Everyone gives up on him because the aforementioned shortcomings outweigh his advantages.

But I thought a little differently.

I wonder if forcing tactics on him and trying to force something on him actually ended up being poisonous.

There are players like that.

Usually, players think about where to pass or where to hit first and move their bodies. However, players move instinctively rather than thinking.

Players with particularly outstanding dribbling skills move instinctively before thinking.

It means that you break through your opponent and move forward only with your wild senses.

So, competent coaches recognize the temperament of such players early on and give them a free role so that they can dribble on their own, relying on their instincts.

And I believed that Adama was one of those people.

So they trained him really hard.

So that you can move without thinking, only as you have been trained, only as your body has become accustomed to through repeated training. And so that you can move only with your own instincts.

So, I didn’t let him play until he was ready, and I finally let him go today.

“Is that the player?”

“hmm?”

“You said that last time. You’re sure about all the other players, but you’re not sure about one. That’s Adama, right?”

As Ramsey said, I wasn’t sure even after recruiting and training Adama.

But his talent was clear, so he didn’t let go.

And today,

[Ah! Adama’s mid-range shot from outside the box!!]

The reward for that faith has come.

[Gooooooo-!!]

[What a great goal! The shot from out front went straight into the net!!]

“Oh, crazy. What was that just now?”

That’s what I wanted to ask.

Adama Traore’s weakness was his lack of tactical understanding.

So, I trained them to just run based on instinct and not worry about the tactical part at all.

And the second thing he lacks is his finishing ability.

He lacked finishing ability, and to compensate for that, he had to complete training sessions focused on improving his finishing ability.

But this was unexpected.

An out-front shot from outside the box, about 30 meters away.

Isn’t that just drawing an artistic trajectory and shaking the goal net?

The keeper tried to jump in a hurry, but it was no use.

“Wow-!!”

The players ran to Adama after the dramatic equalizer.

He had a blank expression on his face, as if he couldn’t believe he had scored a goal like that.

“ah-!”

Then he suddenly came to his senses and started running towards me.

“Director, this is me-!!”

“!?”

A bull was charging towards me in a frightening manner.

* * *

‘The atmosphere has changed like this.’

The mood changed when Wolves let go of a player named Adama Traore.

Wolves, who were having a hard time dealing with Everton’s ten-back defense, were starting to lose their attack, when a player with a muscular body like the Hulk started running down the field at a crazy sprint.

Adama was fast, unconstrained by position, and seemed to run exactly as he pleased.

Defenders increasingly found it difficult to keep up with the speed, so they decided to retreat and build a wall rather than chase after the players.

And that was the catch.

With no defenders to get to him, Adama fired a long-range shot that hit the outside of the box and scored a fantastic goal.

“… … .”

Everton manager Martinez glanced at Cha Sung-eun next to him.

I wondered how he would overcome this situation, but he solved it with neat mercenary tactics.

Even the formation changed.

Previously, the strategy was to put Salah and Miguel as the two top players and send central attacking midfielder Bruno Fernandes deep as if he were a striker, but with the introduction of Adama, the formation changed to 4-3-3.

The idea was to put Miguel forward as the lone striker and add Salah and Adama on both wings to create a bit more space.

However, Adama seemed to be playing in a free role, not being restricted by the wing position.

Otherwise, he would not have been able to roam the field so vigorously and freely.

‘There are differences between the players, but is it also a difference in tactics?’

Soccer is a sport that relies on players’ speed.

That’s somewhat true.

But if your tactics are a mess, bringing in the best players is useless.

That is a fact that has already been proven throughout the long history of football.

In that respect, Cha Seong-eun was running an excellent tactic with good players.

Although he struggled with Everton’s jinx, he eventually brought the team back into line with the right tactics and changes in formation.

[Wolves’ offensive continues towards a comeback victory! Will they be able to break the jinx that has plagued them today?]

[Everton. You’ve been doing well so far. Just hold on a little longer!]

However, I couldn’t just sit there helplessly and be attacked by my opponent like that.

Everton is also a team with potential.

The players are shaken by the equalizer, but this is also down to the coach’s ability.

“Everyone, wake up!! We have to stop this no matter what!!”

Since it has come to this, I will take it even if it is a draw.

Living up to their reputation as the killers of winning streaks, we can never allow Wolves to continue their winning streak.

* * *

There are days like that.

A day where there are a lot of shots, but strangely, no goals are scored.

A day when the goal post is broken, the goalkeeper suddenly shows off his divine saves, and the defenders desperately block shots with their bodies.

Days like this come several times during the season, whether you’re a strong or weak team.

It’s one of those days when you wonder if someone is intentionally trying to prevent you from scoring a goal…

But there is a way to overcome that situation.

Rather than trying to force a field goal, aim for a set piece situation.

So the players followed my instructions and actively shot from mid-range.

The idea was to induce the ball to go out after hitting the opposing defender or hitting the keeper’s hand.

That was when we had already had over 10 corner kick opportunities in the second half alone.

As I had warned you before, Trippier was targeting the goalkeeper, who was good at blocking shots, rather than firing the ball at the players gathered in the box.

[Cross goes up! Ah! The ball bounces off the goalkeeper and striker!]

Instead of putting the ball towards the goalkeeper, one player marks the goalkeeper to prevent him from getting the ball. The ball usually bounces off the goalkeeper and the players get tangled up.

That was exactly the kind of vulnerability they were trying to exploit.

[The ball bounced out! Van Dijk heads it in-!!]

Van Dijk, who had been standing upright, squeezed into a narrow space and flew.

Then the ball bounced off his head and flew into the goal.

Everyone was so tangled up in a frenzy that no one could stop the ball.

The goal was scored thanks to taking advantage of that opening.

The results came out exactly as we had trained.

[Gooooo-!! A dramatic goal scored in the 90th minute of the second half!!]

“Wow-!!”

I let out a small, trembling sigh.

I always say this, but I hate theater alleys like this.

I hate watching games like this, with my heart racing.

I just hope the game goes the way I planned.

But the world is not that simple.

That is why humans feel joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.

This thrilling comeback victory was also unexpected, which is why it makes my body tremble so much.

Beep-! Beep-!!

[The game ends!! Wolves break Everton’s jinx and achieve a whopping 7 consecutive wins!!]

The game is finally over.

My legs were starting to tremble as the tension eased, but I tried hard not to show it and approached Coach Martinez to shake his hand.

“… … .”

He looked at me with blank eyes and said.

“You have this look on your face like you knew this would happen.”

“… … ?”

Not at all.

I originally thought we would beat Everton 3-0 with ease.

If I had known it would be this hard, I would have studied the tactics more thoroughly.

“They say that those who know how to use tactics to the extreme can almost see the future and that was exactly the kind of game it was. If it weren’t for the last mercenary strategy, we might have won… … .”

That was true.

Adama Traore’s last-ditch effort saved the day.

Plus, he changed the flow of the game with a mid-range shot that I didn’t expect.

“I was lucky.”

“Luck… … You’re more humble than you look. I honestly don’t feel bad about this match because I was completely outmatched tactically.”

“I was also very surprised by Everton’s ability.”

“Thank you for telling me that. And I think I should seriously consider the tactic of forward pressure. I know from what I experienced today that there are tactic that are so suffocating.”

After greeting me, he walked away with a bitter look on his face and spoke to me from behind.

“Ah. Congratulations on your 7th consecutive win. Watching today’s game, I had the feeling that maybe a team will break Chelsea’s record for the first time.”

I answered with a smile.

Surpass Chelsea’s record.

However, the results could not be certain because the teams they would have to face in the future were not easy.

* * *

So this is how it ends.

As Cha Seong-eun said, it wasn’t that unfair.

We tried our best, but the difference in tactics was too great.

In the end, Everton lost as they were unable to close the gap.

That was it.

‘But there was also a gain.’

It feels like the blood that was blocked for so long is being cleared.

Even though I lost, I strangely felt good.

I’ve been having a lot of trouble with my tactical setup, but today’s game has helped me realize what direction Everton should take their tactics going forward.

Because Cha Seong-eun showed us the method today.

‘By the way… … It won’t be easy for other teams either.’

Cha Seong-eun’s Wolves.

When I played against them, I could feel how scary a team they were.

That’s why I was curious.

How far will Wolves’ winning streak go?

And how far will Cha Seong-eun’s tactics work?

Watching that was probably the most entertaining part of this EPL.