Dad was a Genius - Chapter 31
Only Noblemtl
My Dad Was a Genius Episode 031
bang-!
After the first half, Hae-il Lee, who was entering the locker room, kicked the door hard.
“What the heck!”
He had a hard time calming down his boiling anger as he hurled curses.
“… … .”
When things weren’t going well for Lee Hae-il, he would often lose his temper like that.
Although he is young, no one dared point out Lee Hae-il’s actions because he was playing so well in Ulsan that he was the top scorer.
Although Hong Dae-soo, the leader, was able to control it, it seemed that even that was no longer working.
‘That’s true. There’s never been anything this clogged up before.’
Originally, it was Lee Hae-il who was marked by the defense.
But today was different.
‘The guards harassed Hae-il Lee as if they had some kind of personal grudge.’
Thanks to this, other players were able to easily penetrate the space and attempt attacks.
But from Lee Hae-il’s perspective, it was driving him crazy.
He wanted to score a goal by dribbling coolly and quickly, but three opposing players were determined to stick to him, so he couldn’t make the play he wanted.
Eventually, he had no choice but to continue playing selflessly, and his confidence in dribbling gradually declined.
It drove him crazy.
“Why are these crazy guys sticking with me?”
It was difficult for the players to offer even a word of comfort to Hae-il Lee, who threw a water bottle and got angry.
Because he looked more excited than ever.
Coach Cho first tried to dispel such misunderstanding.
Wouldn’t it be difficult to proceed with the game if the players are that excited?
“Hae-il, calm down. The opposing defenders are following you because you’re so hard to block. Thanks to that, we were able to score a goal.”
Then Lee Hae-il responded in a bold voice.
“It was only one goal. How can you believe that I created so many chances and that was all you could score?”
“… … !”
It’s okay to get angry.
However, Lee Hae-il’s remarks just now were enough to irritate the players.
Eventually, Director Cho stopped the captain who couldn’t stand to watch and got up from his seat with a frown as he tried to approach Lee Hae-il.
“Hey, I understand.”
This is something that the coach, not the player, should step in and give a stern reprimand to.
“Are you playing alone? Soccer is a team game. It’s a game where 11 people have to work together to score and win. Why are you playing soccer if you’re going to do it alone, you idiot!”
As expected from the manager of Ulsan Tigers, Coach Cho’s voice is similar to his large size.
“You just stay in your position. Don’t worry about how many defenders are there. Just do what you do best.”
“… … .”
At his rebuke, Hae-il Lee nodded, gritting his teeth.
“This is Cheonan’s home. You should never think of the old Cheonan home. Did you see that before? There are so many spectators. And the passion of the cheering is no joke. They came here with the sole intention of eating us up.”
Even the team owner is standing up and cheering like that, so this team really can’t be anything but terrible.
“Cheonan is receiving that much support right now, so naturally, their momentum is bound to be higher than ours.”
but,
“Even so, Ulsan is not the type to back down like this. What are we? We’re the tigers of the K-League. There’s no need to overthink it. Just keep attacking like crazy like you always have. Got it?”
“yes!!”
The Ulsan players answered with loud voices.
If Cheonan continues to aim for the win, there will be no easier game for them.
But the problem was the state of understanding.
bang-!
It was Hae-il Lee who got up first and opened the door almost as if breaking it open.
He’s a guy with a really bad personality, so he’d get angry in the locker room often, but I never thought he’d get that angry.
“… … .”
There, Director Cho felt something strange and suddenly had this thought.
‘Why is Cha Seong-eun focusing on marking Lee Hae-il?’
Lee Hae-il is Ulsan’s ace, so it is only natural to assign a defender to him.
But they are focusing their defense on Hae-il Lee to an excessive degree.
Because of that, Cheonan even scored an equalizer.
If it had been that much, it would have been okay to let Lee Hae-il loose and defend the other side, but Cha Seong-eun only blocked Lee Hae-il until the very end.
‘What am I missing?’
A cold and uneasy feeling somehow tormented him.
* * *
“Phew.”
The difficult first half is over.
If you were to pick the player who has played the most for Cheonan, it would be left back Ryu Min-cheol.
‘I should have done better.’
Ryu Min-cheol scratched his head.
Because I missed the ball for a moment, it went straight into the goal.
If only that had been stopped, Cheonan would still be ahead.
‘If we don’t get 10 consecutive wins here, will I be cut from the starting lineup?’
Before the season started, when he heard that Cheonan was going to be disbanded, Ryu Min-cheol had no particular place to go.
At a time when I was seriously contemplating whether I should just give up soccer, a savior named Cha Seong-eun appeared.
But it was not easy to relax for a moment.
Cha Seong-eun barely managed to keep his spot despite the crazy training intensity and constant competition for selection.
But since I made such a big mistake today, I must have fallen out of favor with the manager.
Moreover, he often missed the timing after conceding a goal, putting the team in danger.
If this continues, I might be substituted in the second half and not be able to start in the next game.
“Player Ryu Min-cheol.”
It was when Ryu Min-cheol was alone, blaming himself and covering his head.
He looked up in surprise at the director’s sudden call.
“Oh, yes. Let’s go, Director.”
“Just like you did in the first half, you should do the same in the second half.”
“yes?”
Same thing in the second half?
What that meant was that Ryu Min-cheol would not be replaced.
Although I was very happy about that, I still felt like I had to say something.
“But, Coach. Is it right to maintain this tactic? There seem to be too many people marking the day of understanding… … .”
Fortunately, the players also sympathized with what he said.
They also saw that it was dangerous to continue this tactic.
But it seemed like Cha Seong-do had already thought about it.
“Ulsan’s offense is currently the strongest in the K-League. Our defense probably can’t stop them. But in football, there’s nothing that can’t be stopped. You just have to use some unconventional methods.”
He continued talking as he walked slowly through the locker room.
“Lee Hae-il is a striker with incredible talent. He has speed, dribbling, and excellent finishing ability. We have to admit that he is a nightmare for us. However, he has one fatal flaw.”
Fatal flaw?
“That’s his mentality. For a soccer player, mentality is very important. If you don’t manage your mentality well, one mistake will lead to two or three, and you may even do something you shouldn’t do when you’re upset.”
Could it be that Cha Seong-eun had something else in mind?
“Ulsan’s strong offense is because they have a special player named Lee Hae-il. So what would happen if Lee Hae-il disappeared?”
“yes……?”
“Today, we focused on attacking Lee Hae-il. As a result, we gave up space and conceded an equalizer, but we succeeded in shaking Lee Hae-il’s mentality. You may have seen him getting a little overly excited.”
That’s true.
It’s not uncommon to see players get excited, but it’s rare to see them get so angry as Lee Hae-il.
“That’s why I put Ryu Min-cheol against Lee Hae-il. Even though his opponent is faster, he sticks to him tenaciously and puts up a strong physical fight.”
Cha Seong-eun returned to Ryu Min-cheol and spoke again.
“It’s okay if you miss Lee Hae-il’s pass. Even if he doesn’t have the ball, just stick to him until the end. Never let him get close to the goal. Then, you will definitely get a signal. I think Ryu Min-cheol will definitely feel that signal.”
Ryu Min-cheol could feel it in Cha Seong-eun’s eyes.
This means that the director has complete confidence in himself.
* * *
[Be strong like Mt. Taesan, Cheonan~! Cheonan~!]
Beep-!!
The whistle blew to signal the start of the second half, accompanied by a powerful cheering song.
‘Again?’
As soon as the whistle blew, the large Ryu Min-cheol slowly approached Lee Hae-il.
‘Aren’t you really tired of it?’
This is so bad that I wonder if he’s a stalker.
‘I want to dribble, go out and shoot too!’
Given his personality, just passing the ball just didn’t suit him.
Hasn’t the key striker role in Ulsan been played by Lee Hae-il himself so far?
But I have to be tied up like this against Cheonan.
‘You annoying kids.’
In addition, I felt sorry for the Ulsan players who were just attacking but not scoring any goals.
then…….
Bam-!
Isn’t this something I can solve?
“Hey, Hae-il! Pass it!!”
I saw a striker running into the box ahead of me.
As a winger, it would be right to pass the ball there, but
“… … !”
Lee Hae-il chose to break through directly instead of passing.
So I beat one player and then two.
However, the ball was blocked in the last third and went over to the opponent.
“Hey! You should have just passed!”
Lee Hae-il did not respond to his fellow player’s words and just let it go.
Instead, it just kept going like this.
And once again, the opportunity came.
“Here!! Pass here!!”
Should I pass again or dribble?
Hae-il Lee, who is at that crossroads, is once again-.
“No. That’s real!”
I chose dribbling over passing.
But this time, the ball was stolen before he could even get past one player.
Ryu Min-cheol pushed with his body and knocked over the small-framed Lee Hae-il.
There, the understanding exploded once.
“No. Referee!! What the heck is that with the eyes! That’s foul play!”
Beep-!
The referee blew his whistle to stop the game and then strode towards Lee Hae-il.
“What did you just say?”
Then the Ulsan team captain and players came running.
“I’m sorry. I think Haeil got angry for a moment.”
“I guess you’re really angry because you keep getting pressured. We’ll calm you down.”
The referee nodded at the players’ earnest pleas.
“If you do that again, it won’t end with a verbal warning.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Fortunately, Ulsan overcame the warning crisis.
The leader, Hong Dae-soo, ran to Lee Hae-il and shouted.
“Hey! Hae-il. Why are you so excited? Calm down. And if dribbling is difficult, I told you to pass. Pass! Why do you keep pushing yourself?”
But Lee Hae-il pretended not to hear.
And Ryu Min-cheol, who was watching the whole scene,
‘Is this the signal the director was talking about?’
I got a feeling.
Cha Seong seemed to know why the director had assigned him to Lee Hae-il.
‘Now I know what I have to do.’
Beep!
The game resumed and the Ulsan players once again went on the offensive.
And of course, Hae-il Lee caught the ball.
“Seasonal!!”
“Don’t be greedy and pass!!”
The players shouted at him to please pass the ball.
Coach Cho, who was behind, also urged them to dribble simply and then quickly pass the ball.
but,
‘Everyone shut up!’
He charged forward, firmly believing that only he could solve this game.
‘This time I’ll break through them all.’
Understand that he is starting to charge so fiercely!
But Ryu Min-cheol, who was stuck to him like a piece of gum, clung to him and never let him go.
As other players joined in to apply pressure on the defense, Hae-il Lee ended up falling and losing the ball.
“What the heck!”
Lee Hae-il looked at the referee.
But the referee said it was not a foul and gestured for him to get up quickly.
“These guys are really!”
That eventually triggered a crisis of understanding that had reached its limit.
Choaaaah-!!
“!?”
A deep sliding tackle from behind.
Ryu Min-cheol, who tried to convert the ball stolen from Lee Hae-il into a long pass, groaned and rolled over.
Beep beep beep-!!
The referee ran over, blowing his whistle urgently.
Players from both sides rushed towards the tackle at the same time.
Some of the Cheonan players ran to Lee Hae-il and shouted at him.
Because it was such a deep tackle.
“Hey Inma. Are you crazy?!”
“There’s a limit. Throwing a tackle like that?!”
In an instant, the stadium turned into a battlefield.
“ah…….”
And Lee Hae-il came to his senses belatedly.
For a moment, I lost my sense of reason and launched a malicious tackle.
Even after the opponent kicked the ball far away.
“Player Lee Hae-il!”
The referee was already walking towards Lee Hae-il with a firm look on his face, as if he had made a decision.
The Ulsan players tried to plead with the referee, but the referee only gestured for them to get out of the way.
and,
chuck-!
The referee raised the red card with his right hand.
It was Lee Hae-il’s departure.