Dad was a Genius - Chapter 36
Only Noblemtl
My Dad Was a Genius Episode 036
Director Woo-seok Kim is now on the verge of retirement.
This season could be the last of his career.
But his eyes were filled with such intelligence that it was hard to believe he was someone approaching retirement.
“hmm-.”
Of course, his appetite seemed better than mine.
He took a big sip of the beer that was in his glass and smiled with satisfaction.
Then he turned his head towards me and said.
“Coach Cha Seong-eun. I personally am very much looking forward to the next game.”
“You can speak comfortably, senior.”
He replied with a slight smile.
“Is that so? Thank you for saying so. I guess I’ve been living in the hands of the chaebols for so long that I just naturally use honorifics when I see the children of chaebols.”
As I heard, he was a humorous person.
Of course, being the son of a wealthy family often served as a huge obstacle in my interpersonal relationships.
“I am also looking forward to the showdown with my senior.”
Director Kim Woo-seok looked at me blankly and asked.
“I heard that Coach Cha is being praised as a genius by soccer experts and K-League fans?”
“I’m still embarrassed by my skills.”
“Haha. You’re more humble than you look. Did you know that I watched all of Director Cha Seong’s interviews?”
“I didn’t know you liked this junior that much.”
“Of course. I knew it the moment I saw Cheonan’s first game. If I wanted to win, the person I had to beat was this young coach.”
He may seem reserved on the outside, but once he starts talking, he continues to talk as if we have known each other for a long time.
“You are a role model that all managers should learn from. Didn’t you raise Cheonan, a team that was dying, from the bottom to the top? I was so surprised when you used noise marketing to grab people’s attention and then won the game without stopping, taking their souls away.”
“You are too kind.”
“That means you meant it. I thought the media was attacking you too much. It was all a set-up. Hehe… … .”
Director Kim Woo-seok was truly impressed and drank the remaining alcohol in one go.
I was amazed at how that small body could fit all this food into it.
“The pressure defense tactics you showed in this K-League were definitely shocking. I can’t even imagine how meticulously you trained the players, and how they endured it. If that kind of blood and sweat hadn’t come together, you would never have achieved 10 consecutive wins.”
“Yes. Thank you for looking into it.”
“I saw it there. What kind of future football tactics does this guy named Cha Seong-eun think he has.”
This is what I think the future of football tactics will be like.
I already knew the answer.
Because I am the only person in this world who knows the future.
“Modern football places its strength on offense, but future football will prioritize defense. No, in a way, it would be right to say that it is an appropriate balance. However, it will definitely start with a rough, pressing defense.”
At those words, director Kim Woo-seok’s drowsy eyes lit up.
“Until now, or perhaps for the next few years, we will see the era of naturally gifted attackers like Pele, Maradona, and Ronaldo breaking down tactics and scoring goals solely with their individual abilities. But eventually, tactics that rely on such individual brute force will disappear. Football also evolves.”
Carry-type soccer.
Soccer is a sport in which players with great ability, some would call world-class geniuses, are used to suppress the opponents without peer.
That could be called modern football.
“Players above the team. Players above tactics. This is something that managers can never tolerate. So they are still looking for a way, and they will eventually find one. It will be a football that completely suppresses individual performance. In a word… … .”
“This is football that takes away romance.”
Football is a game that takes away romance.
It was a very appropriate expression.
As the saying goes, at some point, defense becomes the most important thing in soccer, and as the game becomes centered around defense, individual players’ skills are trampled.
The days of Maradona scoring a goal by beating multiple defenders in a flashy manner are now gone.
“I agree with you. I used to think that offense was the best defense. Then, at some point, I realized that the best offense was a defense that was so suffocating that it dragged the opponent deep into a swamp.”
Just as soccer tactics are born, change, and evolve, so too was Pohang.
Under Kim Woo-seok’s hands, Pohang became a solid and lofty fortress as the season progressed.
“It’s amazing. Even I, who have devoted my whole life to soccer, am only now beginning to see the future of soccer tactics, but you, at your age, are already seeing it through… … . Are the talents of a great general truly given to us by the heavens? I saw a glimpse of that future after watching the 3-5-2 tactics you used in the Ulsan match.”
Director Kim Woo-seok.
The tactic he mainly uses now is 500.
This will change to a 3-back in the future, and with two of the five midfielders sticking to the defense, the tactic will effectively be a 5-back formation when defending.
That was the tactic I used in Ulsan.
“There are so many disadvantages to using 300. It’s a formation that can never be used without systematic training. It’s not called the legendary 2002 tactic for nothing, right? Haha.”
“Yes. But there will come a day when 300 becomes the norm.”
“Haha. Just thinking about it makes my heart race. That’s why it’s even more heartbreaking. This season is my last. If I coach next season… … Then I’ll get to try out 300.”
“Have you not corrected it yet?”
“No. I know my limitations well. Aren’t you the green light for young directors? It’s time for directors to change generations. We’ve been doing it for too long.”
The more I look at him, the more I realize he is an amazing person.
His eyes are filled with passion for football, but his head is cool and rational.
That determination not to hold on to the director’s position until the end due to my own greed.
It must have been a difficult decision, but it seemed like he had already made up his mind.
“So, are you going to try attacking Pohang with the 3-5-2 tactic you showed in Ulsan?”
“No. Actually, I’m not very happy with the future of football.”
“Huh? What does that mean? The person who is closest to the future is saying that the future is not pleasant?”
“Yes. I like romantic football. Romantic football where one striker breaks through the defensive wall and scores a goal, a thrilling football from head to toe.”
Director Kim Woo-seok blinked a few times and then burst into laughter.
“A coach who is a thorough tactician who moves his players like a chessboard and leads them to victory in the game hates future soccer tactics and likes romantic soccer. Hahaha. I guess that’s why Gaekon disappeared.”
“Yes. It’s a bit strange for me to say that. But I’m serious. I will continue to pursue romantic football.”
“And you, Coach Cha Seong, are you? It’s strange to me that a coach who plans tactics in such a detailed way that it gives you goosebumps would pursue romantic soccer.”
“I guess I too am going through a process of evolution.”
“… … !”
Director Kim Woo-seok looked at me with somewhat surprised eyes.
“Evolution… … Heh heh. I’ll go against the flow of the times and evolve myself.”
He spoke to me, fiddling with his empty glass.
“It won’t be an easy road. But how can a senior stop a junior from following his path? That’s why I’ll give you a sharp lesson in the next game. I’ll teach you something that will become your blood and flesh.”
“It’s a little scary when you say it like that.”
“Haha. I’m even more scared of someone who seems completely unsuited to romance talking about romance. That’s why I’m determined to be even more vicious.”
After a while, Director Kim Woo-seok gulped down a glass of water and opened his mouth.
“I will desperately prevent Cheonan from scoring even a single goal. My philosophy is to never concede a goal, even if it means drawing. I hate conceding goals and losing. Even if it means drawing, I will not concede a single goal to Cheonan.”
“Is that what you taught me, senior?”
“Yes. Come and feel my tactics and learn them. They will definitely be a great help to the soccer you pursue.”
“Then I cannot receive your great teachings for free.”
Since the opponent provoked you like that, it is only natural to respond accordingly.
“I will break Pohang’s clean sheet record. And I will also give them their first defeat as a gift.”
“Haha. I feel nervous when you say that. Of course, your gift won’t reach me.”
Not only me, but this guy also showed no signs of taking a step back.
That persistence is what created today’s Pohang.
It’s like I created a new team called Cheonan.
“Seongeun-ah. How long are you going to be there? Everyone is lining up to see your face. They’re lining up.”
Just then my father called me.
I stood up, apologizing.
I think we’ve had enough conversation at this point.
“See you at the stadium, senior.”
Now the real conversation will take place on the field.
* * *
Director Kim Woo-seok muttered quietly as he watched Cha Seong-eun’s back disappear into the crowd.
“Romantic soccer… … .”
Is that the passion of youth?
He says that he wants to go against the times while being ahead of his time.
But the look in his eyes and the voice he used while saying those words did not sound like a joke.
“He is truly a man who will lead the future of Korean soccer.”
It’s like seeing a past master looking at a future master.
Of course, I never thought of myself as a master.
He was just a weirdo obsessed with one tactic.
“History is always made by those who aim for the difficult and the impossible.”
That’s how Cha Seong-eun looked to director Kim Woo-seok right now.
A person who does not follow the flow of the times but leads something of his own.
however,
“Not yet.”
This was Kim Woo-seok’s last season.
That’s why I wanted to win the championship with a team that fully embodies my philosophy.
So, it was a bit cruel, but I wanted to sprinkle some pepper powder on the path that my junior wanted to take.
“If that becomes fertilizer and a stepping stone… … .”
Clearly, Cha Seong-eun will become a tactical genius and an unprecedented general.
I felt that way.
Gulp-.
“hmm?”
I felt like I needed digestive enzymes, but instead, I felt like the food I ate had all gone down.
Is it thanks to the tea ceremony?
Although it was a short conversation, the conversation between the two was as clear as if they had been discussing it all night for several days.
Maybe that’s why.
I felt like my stomach was going to burst soon.
“Ahem-.”
He strode back to where the food was laid out.
* * *
“So, have you decided who you want to be your bride?”
The person who had declared earlier that he would never give up his precious child was now asking me in a quiet voice.
“No. I’m not thinking about it right now?”
“Oh my! Winning the K-League is important, but do you think a man of the house would look down on such an important matter as marriage?”
“… … .”
“Haha. If it’s hard for you to make a decision, just wait. I’ll pick out some really good kids and make a good seat for them.”
I ran to the office in a hurry because I felt like if I was held any longer, I would get a spot on the same day like lightning.
“phew-.”
I was about to take my seat with a sigh of relief,
“uh-.”
I staggered without realizing it due to the sudden feeling of dizziness.
“hmm-.”
Have you been overdoing it lately?
But that didn’t mean I could rest.
If you provoked coach Kim Woo-seok like that today, will you be able to hold your head up high if you lose the game?