Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 15

< 014. Will You Prove It? >

Training like it’s a real game.

A real game like it’s training.

That’s Coach Schmidt’s favorite saying.

And,

the West Ham players under Coach Schmidt also keep that phrase in mind as their motto when they play.

“Keita! Wake up, you son of a bitch!”

“Don’t just stand there like an idiot, move!”

“Rollins! Are you holding back right now? Why are you giving up on that ball!”

It was just a simple practice match.

A practice match as part of training, with a mix of starting players, reserve players, and some youth players.

However,

from the start, the game was fast and intense, almost like a real match.

Tatatatat-

Whoosh-!

It was as if everyone had some kind of animosity towards each other.

Some players pushed with their arms, going beyond shoulder-to-shoulder contact, and some made sliding tackles even deeper than in a real game.

The Premier League, known for being rough among European leagues.

Exactly that kind of rough and fast game that easily comes to mind when you think of the Premier League,

was unfolding on this training ground with no spectators or broadcast cameras.

“Good, good! Keep pushing!”

“Don’t back down, don’t back down!”

Since Coach Schmidt took over,

West Ham had been reborn as the toughest team in the PL [Premier League].

It was, of course, due to Coach Schmidt’s style.

Coach Schmidt was one of the coaches in Europe with the most distinct style.

Constantly pressuring the opponent, constantly moving to receive passes, and always running one step more than the opponent.

This has now become the standard for almost all teams, especially Premier League teams,

but Coach Schmidt was the type to emphasize it even more.

Coach Schmidt had spent most of his career with mid-tier teams.

Before joining West Ham,

he had coached Frankfurt and Hertha Berlin in the Bundesliga [German Football League], and Southampton in the Premier League.

To achieve good results with a team that has mid-tier or lower-mid-tier strength, there’s ultimately no choice but to run one step more than the opponent.

Therefore, Coach Schmidt always emphasized that, and the West Ham players playing in this training match were players who had been training under Coach Schmidt for a year, so a game that resembled a real match was unfolding, even though it was just a practice match.

“He seems a bit flustered?”

Coach Jamie said, watching the game.

He was talking about Johann.

About 10 minutes into the game,

Johann hadn’t even touched the ball once.

It was like,

he was isolated.

It was natural since his tempo didn’t match the other players at all.

This fast tempo was not familiar to Johann.

Beyond being unfamiliar, it was probably the first time he had ever experienced such speed and intensity.

It was natural for him to feel flustered.

However,

what was interesting was that Johann wasn’t making any effort to keep up with the tempo.

He wasn’t even running.

He was just strolling around near the box [penalty box, the area where the goalkeeper can use their hands], watching the players as if he were watching someone else’s game.

In any case, to match the tempo with the players, he had to move actively.

But Johann’s appearance was completely different from the word ‘actively.’

“Oh, that’s what the coach hates the most.”

If Johann wasn’t a sixteen-year-old kid who had joined the training yesterday, it would have been a play that would have gotten him in big trouble.

That kind of play where he just waits for the ball to come.

It would be fortunate if he just got scolded; it wouldn’t be strange if he was immediately excluded from the roster and sent down to the reserves.

It was fortunate that he was still a kid who didn’t know anything yet.

“The other guys are suffering because of him.”

Because Johann wasn’t running, the game was flowing with the other side completely dominating.

The effect of one person was this great.

If one person’s activity level is insufficient, the remaining ten people have to run one step more.

The entire team has to sacrifice and shoulder the burden for that one person.

It would be okay if there was a reason to use that one player even while enduring that sacrifice.

But if there’s no reason, there’s no reason to keep him on the team.

“He should be getting impatient soon, but he’s still stubborn.”

“If he was the type to give up his stubbornness, he would have given it up a long time ago. You saw yesterday, he didn’t change even when we told him he was wrong.”

Coach Jamie shook his head, watching Johann still strolling around even though the game’s momentum had completely shifted.

He should be getting impatient soon, but he’s really persistent.

He must be full of thoughts of wanting to show something, but still, his feet don’t even think about moving busily.

It seems like he has no intention of changing his style at all.

When you think about it, it was also a natural thing.

“Until now, he would have scored two or three goals even while playing like that.”

That video that Coach Schmidt first saw of Johann.

Even in the game against Chelsea, Johann was like that.

He strolled around near the box like that, and when the ball came, he didn’t miss the opportunity and connected it to a goal, leading the team to victory.

In fact, that’s all that matters.

In the end, everything exists for the sake of victory,

and if you can bring victory with a goal, no matter if you walk around all game or whatever, all other shortcomings can be covered up.

But the problem is,

“There’s no way that’ll work here…”

The problem was whether he could do the same thing here.

The biggest difference between professional and youth is, of course, defense.

Youth teams play for the future, and professional teams play to win today.

In academies, they sometimes deliberately make defenders go 1-on-1 with attackers, even if they get through.

To develop their man-marking skills.

But in professional, there’s no such thing.

Blocking them right away is the most important thing.

So they defend using all sorts of methods.

Whether it’s rough physical fights or organized cooperative defense.

The level of defense in professional is on a different level than in youth, and especially since Coach Schmidt was a coach who put effort into defensive tactics, West Ham’s defense was quite decent.

But,

for a sixteen-year-old kid to score two or three goals among those players?

Especially while strolling around slowly like that?

There was no way that was possible.

“He’ll know once he feels it himself.”

Coach Schmidt also acknowledged his talent.

He brought him in because he wanted to nurture him since he had talent in the first place.

But,

if he becomes lazy relying only on that talent, he’ll only become half-baked.

Coach Schmidt wanted to make Johann complete.

So it was important for him to feel it himself.

Since he’s not the type to listen to others nicely anyway.

He’ll only start listening to others when he feels it himself and acknowledges his shortcomings.

However, it was clear that it would take quite a long time.

Until he acknowledges it himself.

But, during that period, he’ll gradually become imbued with diligence, and Coach Schmidt just has to guide Johann, who has equipped himself with diligence.

There was plenty of time anyway.

Johann was only sixteen years old.

“Oh, the ball’s finally going to him.”

Therefore,

around 15 minutes into the game.

When the ball started flowing to Johann for the first time.

Coach Schmidt thought that Johann would feel an emotion he had never felt before shortly after.

“Hey, kid! Here!”

“There’s also someone on the opposite side!”

“Cover the person going back in!”

Front of the arc [the semi-circular area in front of the penalty box].

The ball rolled to Johann, who was facing away from one of the opponent’s defenders, and at the same time, the left and right wingers rushed into the space behind the defense, raising their hands.

Naturally, the defense spread out to the left and right to not allow space.

But the defender marking Johann, who caught the ball, remained in place.

It seemed they were more wary of the left and right attackers without the ball than the striker who caught the ball.

It was natural.

To the players who had experienced all sorts of things in the PL, there was no way a sixteen-year-old kid would be threatening.

Moreover, that was even more so in this case, where he was receiving the ball with his back to the defense, standing in place.

They were confident they could prevent him from turning around.

In that case, the only thing he could do was pass the ball back.

Therefore, at that point,

rather than paying attention to Johann who had received the ball, the defenders started moving, keeping the situation after that in mind.

But,

It was instantaneous.

“···Huh?”

The center back, Antonio, who Johann was facing away from, had a flustered look.

It was because his center of gravity had already been pushed back.

Antonio had been pushing Johann forward.

But, the fact that Antonio’s center of gravity was leaning back meant only one thing.

It meant that he had been pushed back in the strength battle by Johann.

‘Look at this guy?’

Taat-!

Johann, who had pushed Antonio away with his back, quickly turned around in that gap.

He succeeded in turning around for now.

But the problem was from here.

He hadn’t gotten past the defense just by turning around, and the defenders had already taken their positions in that brief gap while he was struggling with Antonio.

There’s nowhere to pass.

In that case, the attacker only has two options.

Get past the defender in front of him, or pass the ball back again.

Of course, most attackers choose to move forward in this situation.

They don’t want to pass the ball back again after turning around with such effort.

Antonio knew that too.

“Alright, welcome! Kid.”

Antonio smiled brightly, seeing Johann taking his left foot forward.

He intended to teach a lesson to the cute kid with fluffy hair still visible on his face, even though he had quite a bit of strength.

That dribbling past wasn’t that easy.

However.

“···!?”

Unlike Antonio’s expectations, Johann’s left foot wasn’t extended to dribble past.

Johann’s extended left foot was a supporting foot.

A supporting foot for a shot.

Johann pulled his right foot back in that spot.

Ppeoooeeoooeeong-!

“···!”

Antonio’s expression distorted.

To dare shoot with him standing right in front of him.

And,

“Kuh!”

For it to pass through his legs!

Chwaaaaaaaa-!

The ball, which passed through Antonio’s legs, grazed the grass and shot towards the corner of the goal.

A fast, ground ball shot heading towards the corner of the goal.

Moreover, it was shot right in front of the defense, blocking the view.

From the goalkeeper’s perspective,

It was the most difficult shot to block.

Thud-!

With his first shot.

Johann was the first to tear the net in this game.