Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 145

< 145. The Indolent Genius Striker>

You can’t win every game.

This holds true not only for soccer but for all sports.

Even teams that seem perfect are bound to lose eventually.

Teams that dominated an era and set records that remain in history weren’t always victorious.

For example, let’s look at a team like Barcelona.

From 2008 to 2015, Barcelona remains one of the strongest teams of all time since the 2000s.

Barcelona changed the paradigm of the soccer world at the time, lifted every possible trophy, and relentlessly demonstrated the qualities of an invincible champion.

However, even Barcelona didn’t win every game.

In fact, they weren’t even an undefeated team, let alone achieving all-wins.

In the 08/09 season, with the appointment of Pep Guardiola, a rising star manager, heralding the dawn of a new era.

Barcelona stood tall at the center of European soccer but drew 6 times and lost 5 times out of 38 league games.

What about the next season?

Barcelona achieved an unprecedented feat of winning six titles, the first in the world.

Yet, they drew 6 times and lost once in the league alone.

Lastly, in the 14/15 season, when they achieved the ultimate feat of a treble [winning three major trophies in a single season]?

They drew 4 times and lost 4 times in the league.

That’s soccer.

Even the teams classified as the strongest can’t win every game.

Moreover, it’s even more amusing to look at the teams that defeated Barcelona, the strongest of their era.

Celta Vigo, Real Sociedad, Getafe CF, and even the promoted team Hercules CF.

These teams may seem unremarkable to have defeated a team that dominated an era, but Barcelona actually lost to them.

If we list the teams that drew against them, it would be even more absurd.

That’s soccer.

No team can win every game.

This season’s West Ham was no exception to that truth.

Although they are on a winning streak in the league, they have already experienced one defeat in the Champions League.

And,

the second defeat was in the League Cup.

The League Cup round of 32 match, which took place after the Chelsea game.

The opponent was Nottingham Forest, a Championship (second division) team.

Judging by objective strength alone, predicting the outcome of this game was easy.

Even if West Ham rested their starters, it seemed unlikely that Nottingham would take the victory.

But anything can happen in soccer.

Nottingham, who gave their all in this game, took the victory, and West Ham was defeated.

In fact, it wasn’t anything particularly special or earth-shattering.

Because it’s a common occurrence in soccer.

“It would have been nice to go one more round.”

“I agree. Nottingham played well today.”

Experienced coach Schmidt knew this well and didn’t take the defeat seriously.

The sentence ‘You can’t win every game’ actually hides the lesson of ‘you have to lose smartly’.

It means acknowledging that you can’t win every game and losing in the least painful way.

In the current team situation, frankly speaking, the League Cup was just a big burden.

It’s the first time in a long time that West Ham is participating in four competitions in one season.

Thinking of achieving good results in all four competitions is actually toxic.

In that sense, the League Cup elimination was even giving a sense of relief.

In fact, I couldn’t help but think about the next season, and I wanted to go one more round for the experience of the youth players, but oh well.

It was okay.

Anyway, West Ham, who recorded their second defeat of the season, returned to league play.

League 17th round, the opponent was Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The League Cup was a game that could be lost, but the game against Wolverhampton was not a game that could be lost at all.

So, West Ham won.

With Johan’s 2 goals and 1 assist after returning from the League Cup break.

<17 consecutive league wins! West Ham is only two games away from a perfect record in the first half of the season!>

Choice and concentration.

The two most important competitions for West Ham this season are obvious.

The Premier League and the Champions League.

As it has been since before the season started, the team will continue to prioritize these two competitions at all times.

Maybe that’s why the League Cup elimination felt more relieving.

The truth that you can’t win every game.

Because they couldn’t escape that truth, they experienced defeat in the League Cup.

But that’s why West Ham is in a position to win every game in the league.

Even if they win every game in the league, they haven’t won every game of the season.

Isn’t that not going against the truth?

Well, you might say this is nonsense.

Still, doesn’t it make you feel better to think this way?

*

There’s a saying that the protruding stone gets hammered.

It means that someone who stands out too much is likely to be targeted or criticized.

This is a Korean proverb.

However, people are similar everywhere.

There is a similar expression in English.

“Tall poppy gets cut down.”

If you’re doing too well, you’ll be envied by those around you.

This is an unavoidable fate.

This envy also stuck to West Ham, who are on a 17-game winning streak and are leading the league.

“John Patrick from Manchester Evening. I have a question.”

“Go ahead.”

After the game against Wolverhampton.

Johan was caught by reporters on his way home and had a brief Q&A session.

“West Ham is playing much better and achieving better results than last season. How is the team atmosphere these days? Do you feel it’s better than last season?”

“Um… it seems similar. I don’t really know what’s changed.”

“Are you saying there’s not much difference? However, from an outsider’s perspective, there is one change. That’s about Johan’s attack points [goals and assists].”

The reporter who asked the question compared Johan’s attack points up to the 17th round last season with this season’s attack points.

“Individually, Johan’s attack points have decreased, but the team is achieving better results. This can be interpreted as West Ham becoming a more solid team as a whole.”

“Excuse me, reporter.”

“Yes?”

“This is a time for questions, not a lecture. So, what’s the question?”

“Ah, yes. So, I’m curious about what you think about this. Are you disappointed that your personal performance is not as good as last season, or are you satisfied that the team is doing well…?”

After receiving such a loaded question, Johan scratched his head.

“I don’t really have any thoughts. It’s good that the team is doing well. But.”

“Yes?”

“Have my attack points decreased? How much have they decreased?”

“Ah, that’s…”

According to the reporter.

Last season, Johan’s attack points up to the 17th round were 29 goals and 11 assists, totaling forty.

This season, it’s 28 goals and 4 assists, totaling thirty-two.

Superficially, it’s a decrease of eight.

Johan didn’t know this.

He’s not diligent enough to keep track of every record.

But, after hearing it, he suddenly started to care.

Attack points mean a day off for Johan.

So, doesn’t that mean he came to the training ground 8 days more than last season?

That can’t be?

“Perhaps, is there a sense of frustration about the fact that your personal record has dropped even though the team’s performance is better…?”

“I don’t know. I can’t have this. I’ll have to score more goals or assists from the next game.”

The reporter kept probing, as if he had an answer he really wanted to hear, but Johan’s interest was already focused elsewhere.

He couldn’t rest 8 days less.

I can’t stand it.

I’ll have to do better from the next game.

Johan nodded.

Already, the hidden fact that Johan played 15 games up to the 17th round last season and 12 games up to the 17th round this season was not important to him.

ㆍㆍㆍ

Fulham, one of the three promoted teams this season, briefly appeared in the 2023/24 Premier League season and then returned to the Championship [English second-tier league].

And this year, they returned to the Premier League after 5 years.

-Fulham returns to the Premier League after 5 years!

-The synergy between young faces and veterans with Premier League experience, Fulham will remain in the Premier League next season.

Fulham fans, The Cottagers, are those who will love Fulham as it is, whether Fulham is in the Championship or the Premier League.

Even so, it was natural for them to hope that their team would achieve good results in the Premier League if possible.

As they hoped, Fulham was showing quite a good performance this season.

As the team with the best record to be promoted after winning the Championship last season, they recorded 4 wins, 6 draws, and 7 losses up to the 17th round.

Fulham is marking the highest ranking among the promoted teams, ranking 13th in the league.

Simply looking at the league ranking is positive, but the most positive thing was the goal difference.

Fulham’s goal difference is +2.

Leeds United, who are one rank below in 14th place, is -10, and even Brighton in 12th place is -6.

Looking at it this way, you can see that Fulham’s goal difference is exceptionally good.

The secret was in the defense.

Based on a solid defense that is unlike a promoted team, or like a promoted team, Fulham has created 5 clean sheet games.

There are only 3 differences from West Ham, who played 8 clean sheet games.

Based on such defensive power, Fulham has drawn games that could have been lost and won games that could have been drawn.

For Fulham, if they finish the first half of the season smoothly, there seems to be no difficulty in staying in the league next season.

However, an unexpected problem arose ahead of the game against West Ham.

-Johan Van, “I will surpass my attack points from last season.” Reveals determination… Predicts goal explosion

[Content] ······In response to this reporter’s question that his attack points have decreased by 8 based on the same round, Johan Van showed his determination, saying, “I will have to score more goals or assists from the next game.”······

└I’m going to kill that reporter ㅅㅂ [Korean slang, similar to ‘f***’] Why did he ask such a question right before our game?

└Are you a Fulham fan? Sorry, but you guys wouldn’t have had this even if… I’ll stop here

└After getting hit by Johan, you’ll probably want to go back to the Championship

└Fulham will have a proper Premier League comeback ceremony ㅋㅋ [Korean slang for ‘lol’]

└What’s the name of the reporter who asked that question? I can’t stand it because I want to lynch him?

└I found the reporter’s Instagram. It’s a guy named John Patrick from Manchester Evening. Address www.instagram/j_patrick

└Is it you again, Manchester?

└Wow, I went in and it’s private

└Instagram defense is better than Catenaccio [Italian defensive tactic] ㅋㅋㅋㅋ [Korean slang for ‘lol’]

└ㅅㅂ [Korean slang, similar to ‘f***’] What’s our fault, really

No one would have predicted that a question from a reporter who had nothing to do with them would ruin the records they had built up so far in an instant.

League 18th round, the game between Fulham and West Ham.

As the game time passed, Fulham’s goal difference drew a long negative candle like a plummeting coin [a metaphor for a rapid decline].

It was a historical crash.

Fulham’s goal difference was +2 when the game started.

However, when the game ended, Fulham’s goal difference was -4.

They conceded a whopping 6 goals.

And Johan was deeply involved in all 6 goals.

<4 goals and 2 assists! I think it was the best performance of this season!>

Johan added 6 attack points in this game alone, showing the power to accumulate 32 goals and 6 assists, 38 attack points up to the 18th round.

Of course, he still couldn’t surpass himself from last season.

Last season, Johan’s attack points up to the 18th round were 43.

However, it seemed to be a matter of time.

Even to the golden cross [likely a reference to surpassing a significant milestone].

From Fulham’s point of view, he’s a son of a x [a vulgar expression of dislike], but John Patrick may have been as good at motivating as coach Schmidt.

Because he made the great Johan feel a sense of crisis.

-“I think my attack points were low this season.” Humor from a striker who is recording 2.9 attack points per game!

-Is it possible to win all games in the first half? Johan’s scoring ability is getting hotter!

-West Ham, who achieved 18 consecutive league wins, aims for Southampton, the last opponent in the first half

Now the baton has been touched from Fulham to Southampton.