Soccer Genius Wants to Get Noticed - Chapter 156



Only Krnovel

Episode 156 Winners and Losers

Players from both teams move their tired legs and head to one place. It is where the coaches who have been talking since the second half of extra time are waiting.

“Modeste, you are the number one kicker.”

“Ja.”

“Jonas, number 5. Is that possible?”

“As much as you want.”

There is no hesitation in determining the order of penalty shootouts.

Of the five digits, two are fixed, and the remaining digits are three.

“Ut, I want you to take number 2. Ryubichi takes number 4.”

“huh.”

“Leave it to me.”

Before I could say anything, the second and fourth kickers were confirmed. That left only the third spot, so I secretly glanced at Schmitz and Skiri.

In terms of kicking power and accuracy, one of the two would have been able to get in.

But soon, as he locks eyes with the bear captain, reality dawns on him. It’s not hard to tell who Steffen Baumgart has in mind.

“Want to try?”

“… …If you leave it to me.”

“……good.”

I admit it honestly.

I hesitated for a moment to answer.

My form wasn’t good from the start of the game, and now I was out of stamina and it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to play any longer.

But I can’t pretend to be weak.

He nods quietly and nods to head coach Andre Polak, before responding too late.

Crunch, rustle.

For me, it was something like courage or determination, but the movement of the ballpoint pen writing the name on the note was unstoppable.

“Numbers 6 and 7… … Ellie and Jan. Number 8, Schmitz, you should take care of it.”

“All right.”

Was that because penalty shootouts aren’t decided by just 1 to 5?

The reflection doesn’t take long.

Bing-gur-rur.

As the process of deciding the roster is quickly completed, the referee tosses a coin to determine the direction of the goal and the right to kick the ball first.

“Cologne can decide. Where do you want the goalposts to be?”

“Over there.”

“What’s the order?”

“We’ll go first.”

“Okay. Then Leipzig is the second attacker.”

“okay.”

Thanks to Jonas’s win, the referee points to the goal on the right side of the pitch, filled with Cologne fans. The players move to the halfway line and the goalkeepers move to the goal.

Without a moment to catch his breath, the first kicker, Anthony Modeste, trudged towards the penalty box.

“… … It’s tea.”

“Well then, shall we start by singing a song?”

“… … .”

“… …Is this your first time?”

“I’ve taken a lot of penalty kicks in the minor leagues… … Yeah. This is my first time taking a penalty kick in an official match.”

“Don’t think too deeply. It’s inevitable that you’ll be nervous, but if you get caught up in those emotions, you’ll make mistakes.”

Mark Ut’s sarcastic remarks are followed by advice, but it is more a matter of frustration with the sense of time than with words.

Under the suffocating silence of the Olympiastadion, which seats 74,475 people.

Bam! Thud-

“Hey-!”

[Wow-!!]

Modeste pierces the bottom left corner of the goal with a shot, and before he can celebrate, the next player moves on.

Isn’t this progressing too… too fast?

“Ut is right. Don’t worry about the goalkeeper, just focus on the shot itself. I heard it somewhere, but in theory, if you shoot well, there’s no way to stop it.”

“……huh.”

Bam! Thud-

Just as Benno Schmitz added his comment, Leipzig’s first kick was also successful.

Then Mark Ut takes his elbow off my shoulder and walks away with a wink.

“I’ll be back soon. Take care, kid.”

“… … Don’t make a mistake.”

“Hahaha, no way.”

Indeed, he displays skills that match his overflowing confidence.

Thud, thud-

Cologne’s second kicker fired a powerful shot slightly to the right of the goal, the ball rolling effortlessly into the goal line, cushioned by the net.

[Wow!]

“Isn’t it awesome? Isn’t it incredible?”

“… … .”

“Just be like me, just be like me.”

The answer doesn’t come out.

After Leipzig’s turn, before I knew it… it was my turn to go out.

* * *

Phew-!

Friendly goalkeeper Timo Horn dives with all his might, but his shot curves to the left and lands neatly inside the goal line before reaching his fingertips.

[Wow!!]

The score is 2 to 2.

“You don’t have to feel pressured. Just relax.”

“Have a nice trip. I’ll be waiting.”

“……huh.”

Jonas’ hand pats your back, and Skiri’s hand strokes the back of your head. A moment when even the cheers of your colleagues don’t reach your heart.

Thud thud.

As expected, as I walked forward… … my steps felt unusually heavy.

Is it because I’m tired?

I wish it were like that.

“After the whistle blows, you can kick it as soon as you’re ready.”

“huh.”

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

As if he had forgotten German, he was near the penalty line. The referee came over and kindly explained it to him, but the answer that came out of his mouth was the same as before.

Cook, cook, cook.

In addition, I tap the grass of the penalty spot with my foot for no reason, measure the width of the goal while avoiding the opposing goalkeeper’s eyes, and look behind it – at the packed Cologne fans.

ah.

I shouldn’t have seen it.

Their ages, genders, appearances, and clothing were all different, but their bright eyes were all filled with anticipation.

I guess that means you trust me that much.

But, I… … wasn’t ready.

okay.

The guy next to me places the ball on the penalty spot and only realizes his own shortcomings when he slowly backs away.

I should have met the goalkeeper’s eyes from the very beginning. I should have shown overflowing confidence and made up my mind to tear him apart.

As for me now, I actually haven’t even decided where to go.

Beep!

But sometimes you just have to do it.

It’s not that I’m really confident, but I guess what kind of decisions ‘Seong Ha-neul’ would make when he’s confident and then I act on that.

If it were me, no. If it were Seongha-neul-

Slightly to the right of the center of the goal… … top. Same spot as the team’s second kicker, Mark Ut, but with a different height, he would have caught the goalkeeper off guard.

Thud, thud, tadadak!

The steps just before shooting were impeccable.

The first two steps are leisurely, the next three are quick, and then you perfectly plant your foot on the left side of the ball.

Instead of using any half-assed tricks, the upper body is balanced to remain faithful to its functional role of ‘shooting’.

Swish, thu-ung!

Good, very good.

As soon as I swung my right foot, the instep of my foot gave me a special feeling, telling me the good news. I pushed the ball well, and the impact was great.

After that, time seemed to pass slowly.

As I took my eyes off the ball and lifted my head, I saw my reference point – the goalkeeper – diving towards the left side of the goal.

Since the direction of the shot was also misjudged, the official ball just ended up in the goal net.

And soon-

Thud!!

A shot that draws a straight trajectory hits the top of the goal… …and bounces back towards me.

[Wowaaaaaaah!!]

what.

What happened?

Behind the goal, the Cologne fans respond with their heads held and silence, while the roar of excitement echoes in their ears.

“… … Hanul, I’m sorry. Go back to your place.”

“… … .”

You missed the mark.

I guess I was wrong.

They failed in the penalty shootout.

When I realized the situation late and turned around, I saw Leipzig fans on the other side of the field, frantic, behind my teammates who were applauding as if everything was okay.

Seriously, it was ridiculous.

* * *

A dark stadium.

It’s so dark that it’s hard to believe that this is the stadium where the game is being played, except for the lights from the cell phone cameras held up by the spectators.

Only the central stands were illuminated with circular lights.

[21-22 Pokal winner is RB Leipzig!!]

Boom! Choaaaak!

In an instant, golden pieces of paper fluttered above the podium along with the stadium announcer’s comments. Firecrackers also went off outside the stadium.

[Wow-!!]

As captain and team goalkeeper Peter Gulacs lifted the gold-plated Pokal trophy, the stadium was filled with celebration.

Cheers followed by cheers, and cheers followed by congratulatory messages from the players’ families.

But there are places where the exact opposite atmosphere flows.

“Well, that’s a shame.”

“… … .”

“But you can come back next time, right? Okay?”

Cologne side locker room.

Mark Utt picks up the Pokal runner-up medal that had been thrown on the floor and stuffs it into the boy’s bag.

“It was good to be the runner-up. Luck plays a big role in penalty shootouts.”

“… … .”

“… … Ah, say something, you punk. Why are you just hanging your head like the world is ending again?”

Perfect silence.

While the other players washed off their sweat and disappointment and headed to the showers, Sung Ha-neul did not respond even to the comfort of the coaches and Mark Ut.

‘You’ve been doing so well so far, so it must be hard for you to accept the bitterness of failure. Just give me some time.’

‘I should have excluded it from the penalty shootout. At least it should have been postponed to a later date.’

‘That’s not true. Those who succeed at everything can’t get up once they fall. It was something that had to happen at some point. So don’t think like that.’

As Steffen Baumgart said, we have to get up again.

If you look at the current situation, it looks like you’re about to slam your head against the locker room wall and commit suicide, so Mark Ut speaks in a more gentle tone than usual.

“It’s okay. If it was a losing game, we would have lost anyway, even if it wasn’t because of you. I’m being serious about this.”

“Everyone succeeded except me.”

“That’s true.”

“… … Then it’s true that it was because of me.”

“No, what I mean is… … .”

Mark Ut can’t help but lament.

Teenagers these days.

When I was young, if a veteran of the team tried to comfort me, I would just hug him and shed tears in the air.

Of course, I didn’t actually hug her (if I had, I would have had to endure a punch)… … . Anyway, that’s what it felt like.

“I’m telling you not to be sorry about a game that’s already over. You can do better next time.”

“… …when next time.”

“… … .”

Soon, it seemed obvious that I had said something I didn’t mean. Even Ut had no answer to give in the reply that followed.

Perhaps he had a vague idea that he would have no choice but to leave the team, either this summer at the earliest or a year later at the latest.

Cologne is strong, but it’s not a big club.

“… … Yanma, whenever and wherever, with your skills, it’s strange that you can’t win a trophy-”

Bam!

While I was trying to offer some consolation, the locker room door suddenly opened and a giant figure appeared.

It was Anthony Modeste, who had just returned from washing up.

“… … .”

“… … .”

Why does he have to come first?

Although he wasn’t on bad terms with Utt, everyone on the team knew that he was at odds with Seong Ha-neul, so he was on edge.

“Aren’t you going to shower? Don’t delay the time you get home.”

“… … I won’t do it.”

“Well, you don’t even deserve to shower.”

As expected, it is as expected.

“Anthony, stop there. Everyone is upset. There’s no need to criticize your colleagues. They all did their best.”

“… … .”

On the one hand, I understood.

Modeste also had no affinity for trophies.

Despite his clear merits, he was rarely called up to the French national team and has collected zero trophies, whether cups or leagues.

So, I can’t control my temper and I take it out on myself.

Of course, that doesn’t mean I could understand what he was saying afterward.

“… … Sometimes the best isn’t enough. This is a place where professionals play. If you lack the ability, you should know when to step down. From the moment that damn kid wasn’t replaced, the finals were basically a bust.”

“Anthony.”

“Did I say something wrong? That kid was crawling all the way to the end. I just gave up from then on.”

He is worried that it might lead to an argument, but fortunately, Seong Ha-neul does not show any particular reaction.

No, that’s not a good thing.

In the parlance of Sung Ha Neul, it was because the ugly gorilla wouldn’t stop wiggling his snout.

“#@Son, the more I talk, the more angry I become. It’s all because of you. Thank you very much. Not only me, but also the families of other players came all the way to Berlin, but because of your ridiculous behavior, we just left disappointed. I don’t know how the coach cooked it, but from now on, just moderate it.”

“Modeste, you’re the one who’s moderate-”?

“Know the topic.”

“Hey, you little shit!”

Mark Utt blushes and stands up, having finally made me let out an angry voice.

chin.

Suddenly a hand comes up onto my shoulder.

“You are right.”

“… … ?”

Perhaps he had learned a lesson from his great failure. Sung Ha-neul calmed Mark Ut’s excitement with a calm expression and stared at Modeste.

At most, it’s two steps ahead, so if you fall, your nose will touch it.

Looking back, I should have noticed this earlier and stopped it.

“No matter what excuse you make, it won’t be convincing. Even I can’t do that, so what about you? As a soccer player, you have to prove yourself with your performance on the field.”

“… … I guess you have no intention of making excuses for the mess you were having today?”

“Yeah. Just… … .”

“Just, whatever.”

Incidents happen suddenly.

Just as Sung Ha Neul was pursuing… … Bam! He raised his right fist and slammed one of Modeste’s heads into his larger face.

“Saying that I gave up… … isn’t bragging! I ran so desperately-”

The surprise attack only momentarily staggered them.

Modeste, who quickly regained his balance, rushes in with an angry look on his face, and the locker room turns into a place of chaos.

Boom, boom!

As the two idiots fell to the ground, tangled together, Mark Ut was the first to intervene and try to separate them.

Then the coaches who had been chatting near the door came running in a hurry, and one after another, the players who had returned from the showers intervened with bewildered expressions.

“You, you $@#… … .”

“Hey, you crazy kids! Stop it! Stop it!!”

However, it is not easy to separate the two people who are already entangled and fallen on the floor.

especially-

“Ahhhh!”

“This crazy… … .”

Seong Ha-neul, who was feeling weak and worn out after being trampled by the gorilla for some reason, punches him in the heart.

“Kwaaaaak!”

“Hey, don’t bite! I told you not to bite!!”

Until he ended up biting his opponent’s side with his teeth.

“Hey, open your teeth. You’ll really hurt yourself!”

“… … .”

“Elijah!”

“… … Huh? Uh, can I help you with something?”

So what can we do?

“hand!”

“… … ?”

“Give me your hand!”

In order to make him open his mouth, the boy had no choice but to borrow the hand of the person he liked for a moment.

“Why is my hand… … Aaaah!”

“… … .”

Eliye’s bewildered look and the complicated emotions contained within it were things that could be dealt with later.

Although I managed to open my mouth, I couldn’t just pass it by as if nothing had happened… … It was a major accident.