Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 143

< The Art of Forgetting How to Lose >

2028/29 Champions League Round of 16 Teams

– Real Madrid (Group A Winner)

– Sevilla FC (Group B Winner)

– Manchester City (Group C Winner)

– Atletico Madrid (Group D Winner)

– West Ham United (Group E Winner)

– FC Bayern Munich (Group F Winner)

– SL Benfica (Group G Winner)

– Liverpool FC (Group H Winner)

– Juventus FC (Group A Runner-up)

– AFC Ajax (Group B Runner-up)

– Borussia Dortmund (Group C Runner-up)

– Arsenal FC (Group D Runner-up)

– Paris Saint-Germain (Group E Runner-up)

– Villarreal CF (Group F Runner-up)

– Inter Milan (Group G Runner-up)

– Sporting CP (Group H Runner-up)

Looking at the Round of 16 teams, the group stage seemed largely predictable, with a few notable exceptions.

The teams expected to win their groups generally did, and the teams projected to finish second mostly followed suit.

Only Group E presented a truly unexpected outcome.

Barcelona’s elimination and PSG finishing second were surprises.

And West Ham’s first-place finish was a shock.

PSG, a team with a strong European pedigree, dropping to second place meant that one of the group winners was in for a difficult draw.

However, the group winners were generally pleased with the potential matchups.

After watching West Ham’s games, many felt it would be easier to face PSG in the next round.

Conversely, the group runners-up were hoping to avoid West Ham in the draw.

Of course, no team in the Round of 16 was an easy opponent; they all presented a significant challenge.

The matchups were gradually being revealed.

The group winners hoped Juventus or PSG would be drawn against other teams, while the runners-up were hoping to face Sevilla or Benfica.

Man City was the first to draw PSG.

A tough draw for both Man City and PSG.

Two teams that could have met in the quarterfinals, semifinals, or even the final, were facing each other much earlier than expected.

With Man City drawing PSG, the remaining teams hoped Juventus’s name would be called soon.

Following Man City, the second team to draw a tough opponent was,

Unfortunately, it was West Ham.

Manager Schmidt sighed once again during the draw.

This was quite a challenge.

West Ham’s first Champions League appearance, and the initiation was proving to be exceptionally difficult.

After facing PSG and Barcelona in the group stage, they now had to face Juventus in the Round of 16.

West Ham was already facing three teams of final-level quality.

However,

Juventus sighed even more deeply.

‘Of all teams…’

Juventus’s manager, Mariano Venetta, who was watching the draw on TV, rubbed his forehead.

Based on reputation alone, West Ham might have seemed like an easier opponent.

Among the group winners, that is.

However, that was only a superficial assessment.

Looking deeper, West Ham was one of the most difficult, if not the most feared, opponents.

West Ham was on an incredible run of 15 consecutive Premier League wins.

At the heart of it was the world’s best striker, Johan.

Anyone who remembered the UEFA Nations League games from the previous year could understand Manager Venetta’s sigh.

Italy was crushed by England, led by Johan, and the core of Italy was largely the core of Juventus.

Although they had never faced West Ham directly, they had already experienced Johan’s prowess firsthand.

So, it was no wonder he already had a headache.

Well, they had to prepare thoroughly and try to win.

Still, West Ham was a team new to the Champions League knockout stage, and anything could happen in the tournament.

The completed bracket, following the draw, was as follows:

2028/29 Champions League Round of 16 Draw

◆ Bayern Munich VS AFC Ajax

◆ Atletico Madrid VS Sporting CP

◆ Liverpool FC VS Inter Milan

◆ Manchester City VS Paris Saint-Germain

◆ Real Madrid VS Borussia Dortmund

◆ Sevilla FC VS Arsenal FC

◆ West Ham United VS Juventus

◆ SL Benfica VS Villarreal CF

The Round of 16 draw takes place in December, but the actual games start in mid-February.

In other words, no one can confidently predict the winners based on the current situation.

West Ham’s momentum might be sky-high now, but no one knows what the team’s atmosphere will be like in February.

Perhaps they will suffer a series of injuries over the winter, their winning streak will be broken, and the team’s morale will be low.

You never know.

Therefore, to prepare well for the Juventus game, they should focus on the games immediately ahead.

They need to maintain their current positive momentum.

Anyway, West Ham’s Round of 16 opponent was confirmed to be Juventus.

…

“Hey, Capello. You’ve played against Juventus before, right?”

“Why ask the obvious?”

“How good are they? Not unbeatable, are they? Stronger than PSG or Barca?”

“Well, you might consider them strong by your standards. But by my standards, they are subpar.”

“What? Are they good or not?”

“Apologies. I spoke without considering the listener’s level. In short, Juventus cannot eliminate me in the Round of 16.”

“Cocky, but I like the answer.”

The West Ham players had reason to feel hard done by.

Why was their first Champions League campaign proving to be so tough?

They overcame PSG and Barcelona, and now they had to face Juventus.

It was as if there was no point in finishing first in the group.

Villarreal and Arsenal finished second and got to face Benfica and Sevilla, while they finished first only to face Juventus.

Because of that, Arsenal fans seized the opportunity to tease West Ham fans for the first time in a while.

Why bother trying so hard to finish first?

They should have just finished second like them and faced Sevilla, they said.

Well, it didn’t really have any impact, though.

Anyway, despite drawing Juventus in the Round of 16, the atmosphere wasn’t gloomy, perhaps thanks to their experience of beating PSG and Barcelona.

Capello, in particular, seemed eager for the challenge.

It was a good thing for Capello.

Ever since Capello snubbed Juventus and chose West Ham, he had been heavily criticized by Juventus fans.

It was the same this time.

└You’ll regret turning down a big club and going to a small club

└It’ll be the worst decision of your career. How dare you turn down Juventus and go to West Ham?

└He’s a disgrace to Italy. And a disgrace to Serie A [Italy’s top professional league for association football clubs].

└Honestly, I think it’s a good thing. Capello isn’t even the first option there, is he? He wasn’t good enough for Juventus in the first place.

└Hey, even so, isn’t it a bit much to criticize him for not being the first option? The first option there is the best player on the planet right now…

└Shut up, you traitor. You’re an islander, aren’t you?

└Is the guy above a West Ham fan? Stop lurking creepily and go back to your community.

└Anyway, Capello will regret it. He threw away the chance to lift the Big Ears [nickname for the Champions League trophy] himself.

Capello scoffed at the Juventus fans’ reactions.

Stupid Turin folks.

Capello planned to shut them up through this Round of 16 match.

“Hey, aren’t you all looking too far ahead? Our opponent this week isn’t Juventus.”

“Yeah. Juventus isn’t important. We have to face Chelsea.”

Anyway, what they needed to focus on now wasn’t the Juventus game in February, but the Chelsea game this week.

The last Big Six team [the six most successful and dominant English football clubs] they would face in the first half of the season, Chelsea.

This season’s Chelsea was definitely different from last season’s Chelsea.

After failing to qualify for the Champions League and having a disappointing transfer window, Chelsea’s squad was significantly weakened.

Of course, the biggest reason for that weakening was currently at West Ham.

“Bellamy. You made your SNS [Social Networking Service] private?”

“Don’t even mention it. I received hundreds of DMs [Direct Messages] threatening to kill me.”

“Why do you do those interviews? You started the fire.”

“It’s fun.”

“You’re crazy. If this were South America, you’d be dead on the streets.”

“That’s why I did it here. Of course, it’s not completely safe here either. But I have the Hammers [nickname for West Ham United] behind me, right?”

Bellamy had a lot of guts.

Bellamy had given an interview that was close to provocation ahead of this Chelsea game.

He felt like he had been led on by the reporter, but there were no lies in his answers.

– Shay Bellamy, facing his former team, what do you want to say to the Chelsea fans who call you a traitor? “I have no ill feelings towards Chelsea. However, I am a very competitive person. I just wanted to play for a winning team.”

└So you’re saying Chelsea isn’t a winning team?

└You’re talking shit?

└Many fans supported you when you left, but you shouldn’t talk like that.

└He didn’t move, did he?

└What are you going to do, you crazy bastard?

– When asked if he was confident about the Chelsea game… “I know the Chelsea players well. No one made it difficult for me in training. On the other hand, I am nothing in West Ham training. My training partner is Johan.”

└I want to argue, but I don’t have anything to say

└If you can’t argue, just swear without thinking. Bellamy, you son of a bitch

└Bellamy will step on poop tomorrow

└Bellamy will get Pepsi when he orders Coke at a restaurant

└Bellamy will wash his pants with tissues in his pockets

It was only natural that Chelsea fans became furious at the interview.

He was scared, but honestly, it was also fun.

The Hammers’ response was overwhelmingly supportive.

Of course, if they lost the game after talking like that,

It would be hard to hold his head up.

However, he didn’t talk like that without any basis.

“Please do well.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“My life might depend on your two feet.”

“Okay, stop touching me.”

Bellamy massaging Johan’s shoulders.

That was his basis.

He acted tough in the interview, but in the end, this guy was the only one he could truly trust.

“You’ll win, right? Huh?”

“Not for you, but I have to win.”

“Okay. That’s enough.”

The game with Bellamy’s life potentially on the line was waiting at Stamford Bridge.

…

“Are you doing well? Your face looks much better, you know?”

“I can’t deny it.”

“Sorry, but I can’t go easy on you today.”

“Why be sorry? I should be sorry. But I’ll try to refrain from celebrating.”

“I hope you shit your pants during the game.”

Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea and West Ham players were waiting in the tunnel for the player entrance.

Chelsea captain Mathias Gustavo and Bellamy were exchanging pleasantries.

“How’s your condition?”

“Me? Good.”

“I’m not asking about you, you idiot. How’s that guy?”

“Johan? He’s in top condition.”

“Fuck, we’re screwed.”

“Have a hard time.”

Gustavo sighed, and Bellamy chuckled.

Not only Gustavo, but the other Chelsea players’ expressions also hardened.

In particular, Niklas Ginter turned pale.

“But don’t let your guard down. I’ve been preparing a lot to give you a hard time too.”

“Oh, do you have something good up your sleeve?”

“Well, you’ll see.”

“Oh, I’m not scared at all.”

When he was at Chelsea, Bellamy spent a lot of time analyzing Gustavo and Johan.

How to stop them.

Whether he should do this or that.

However, he couldn’t find the answer until he left the team.

Gustavo seemed confident, as if he had prepared an answer.

However, Bellamy wasn’t nervous at all.

There was something he always said while researching with Gustavo.

“I know there’s no answer.”

“Shut up.”

There’s no answer.

That was always the conclusion.

So, there won’t be one this time either.

Gustavo’s words were just a bluff.

“Players, enter!”

Sorry, but as long as Johan is there, there’s nothing to fear at Stamford Bridge.

Bellamy smiled triumphantly and headed to the ground.