Became The Premier League’S Youngest Manager [EN]: Chapter 171

171: Reversal

The atmosphere in Burnley’s locker room during halftime wasn’t bad.

It wasn’t exactly a celebration, especially since two starters had to be helped off the field with injuries. However, the players were energized by the fantastic free-kick goal scored just before the end of the first half.

“We’ll do a thorough examination, but it seems like Dwight only slightly twisted his ankle,” said team doctor Simon Morris, catching up with Hyeongmin in the hallway outside the locker room.

Hyeongmin sighed in relief.

“What about Andre?”

“Andre has a groin muscle issue. We’ll need a thorough examination there too, but…” Simon Morris shook his head.

Hyeongmin felt a mix of relief that Dwight’s injury wasn’t serious and distress that another player had fallen victim to Burnley’s injury woes. He tried to remain positive.

At least Lorenzo Lucca and Emanuel Vignato had been signed before the transfer market closed, bringing Burnley’s first team to 24 players for the first time since Hyeongmin took over.

“I understand. Please let me know when Andre’s situation is confirmed. Then I…”

Liverpool, facing the possibility of losing the Super Cup, would undoubtedly come out aggressively in the second half.

If Jurgen Klopp wasn’t already doing it, captain Jordan Henderson or vice-captain Virgil van Dijk would be instilling a fighting spirit into the Liverpool players.

Hyeongmin sighed, knowing he’d have to endure another 45 minutes of defense to secure the victory. He composed himself before opening the locker room door.

“The manager’s here!”

“Ooooh!”

Hyeongmin smiled faintly at the enthusiastic atmosphere.

“Alright, let’s give it a try!”

“…Pardon?” Tommaso Pobega, sitting next to the door, looked confused by the manager’s sudden muttering.

“No, it’s nothing.”

Closing the locker room door, Hyeongmin renewed his determination.

Only 45 minutes left to endure.

***

Bwee!

“No, why is that a foul!” Burnley’s Nicholas Seiwald, wearing the captain’s armband, rushed to protest as soon as the referee blew his whistle.

The Liverpool player sprawled on the grass and the referee both looked at him, dumbfounded.

“How is that not a foul!” Liverpool’s young midfielder Harvey Elliott retorted, brushing grass off his face.

“Maybe it isn’t!” Nicholas Seiwald, anticipating a possible counterattack from Liverpool, stalled while arguing with the referee. Once he confirmed that the Burnley players had all taken up defensive positions, he raised both hands and stepped back.

“Ah, now that I think about it, it might be a foul. Goodbye then!”

“Agh!” Harvey Elliott, finally receiving the ball for the free kick, looked annoyed. Hyeongmin and Carolina, watching Nicholas Seiwald move towards the edge of Burnley’s penalty box, quickly exchanged opinions in the technical area.

“Tommaso seems to be getting tired, doesn’t he?”

“Lucca doesn’t look much better… I think we can only substitute one of them.”

Both Lucca Sukic, who started in place of the injured Sebastian Szymanski, and Tommaso Pobega, who started alongside him, had been very active, but both looked exhausted as the second half passed the 70-minute mark.

Liverpool was pouring on the attacks, forcing even central striker Lorenzo Lucca to drop below the halfway line to defend. It would be surprising if the starting midfielders weren’t tired.

Except for Nicholas Seiwald, who never seemed to tire, no matter how much he ran.

Hyeongmin chuckled, watching the captain shout, organize the defense, encourage the players, and cut off Liverpool’s attacks with physical play.

“What would we have done if we hadn’t given him the captain’s armband?”

“I think he would have said everything he wanted to say on the field even without it.”

“I guess…”

Position shapes the person, but personality also leads people to positions.

In Nicholas Seiwald’s case, it was the latter.

He played the role of captain even without the armband, so he was appointed vice-captain despite his young age, surpassing the veterans. Now, he was filling the void left by the departure of James Tarkowski.

“Anyway, Lucca or Tommaso?”

“…Let’s go with Tommaso. We might still need Lucca.”

Midfielders like Patrick De Paula and Christian Medina, warming up on the sidelines, might feel sorry, but only one midfielder on Burnley’s bench was deemed capable of strengthening the team.

Christian Medina, still considered a promising player, had made remarkable progress over the past season, experiencing the Premier League and European football. However, he wasn’t suited for such a combative game.

“Then I’ll have Patrick replace him.”

“Okay, thank you.”

As Carolina approached, Christian Medina looked disappointed, while Patrick De Paula, full of joy, threw off his vest and approached the fourth official with Carolina.

Hyeongmin, watching the Brazilian midfielder receive tactical instructions from the head coach while warming up, turned to the opposing team’s manager, who was quietly watching the game with his arms crossed.

“Now, what are you going to do?”

The German manager, who had become the longest-serving manager in the Premier League after Pep Guardiola’s resignation, simply watched the game without moving, as if he couldn’t hear Hyeongmin’s question.

***

[Goal! It’s a goal! Liverpool’s number 8, Jude Bellingham! He scores the equalizer in the 88th minute!]

The stadium announcer’s cry echoed through the Liverpool fans’ cheers.

“Uwaaaa!!!”

While the Burnley players kicked the grass in disappointment, the Liverpool players surrounded Jude Bellingham, making his official debut, and celebrated the goal.

Hyeongmin, standing in the technical area, clapped and encouraged the Burnley players.

“It’s okay! Don’t get discouraged! The game isn’t over yet!”

They could have lifted the trophy if they had endured just seven more minutes, but they conceded the equalizer.

Hyeongmin had to admit it: that goal was impressive.

Throughout the second half, Darwin Nunez, Liverpool’s central striker, and Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz, on the right and left, constantly threatened the goal.

The three forwards drew the attention of Burnley’s defense, and Harvey Elliott, with his individual skills, dribbled to the center of Burnley’s penalty box.

The flustered Burnley defense blocked Elliott’s path, and the midfielders checked Liverpool’s forwards, while Elliott passed the ball back.

The ball went to Jude Bellingham, the England national team midfielder Liverpool acquired from Dortmund for 80 million pounds in this summer transfer market.

The young midfielder, showing mature skills for a 20-year-old, immediately swung his right foot and scored with a long-range shot.

Burnley’s new goalkeeper, Marco Carnesecchi, who had been making saves throughout the 88 minutes, desperately dove again, but it was an unstoppable shot.

The Waldstadion in Frankfurt exploded with cheers, and the momentum shifted to Liverpool.

***

“Uwaaaa!!!”

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson had a chance outside the penalty box.

Almost the same position and situation as Jude Bellingham’s equalizer.

Burnley’s defense, constantly harassed by Liverpool’s forwards, couldn’t prevent it.

The veteran midfielder, true to his role as Liverpool’s captain, seized the opportunity and scored the go-ahead goal with a long-range shot.

“Hoo… ha…” Lorenzo Lucca took a deep breath, watching the Liverpool players run to the corner flag.

Two weeks ago, he was preparing for the next season in Serie B [Italian second-division soccer league]’s Pisa. Now, he was starting in the UEFA Super Cup [annual match between the champions of the Champions League and the Europa League] and playing 115 minutes, including extra time.

Some might say he gained this position due to Burnley’s injury woes, but Lorenzo Lucca didn’t care.

A journeyman released at 13, he moved to seven teams over the next nine years.

He learned to utilize his physical advantages under good managers and coaches in Palermo, and gained experience in Pisa. His skills improved dramatically through his own hard work, practicing simple movements thousands of times to suit his physical condition.

On his first day at Burnley, the young manager, who had begun to make a name for himself across Europe, told him at their first meeting:

“I respect the journey you have taken.”

The manager alternated between “rispetto” and “stima” [Italian words for respect and esteem] in clumsy Italian. Lucca was overwhelmed by the manager’s words, respecting his path as a person more than his height and concerns about how to utilize it in the game.

Burnley was filled with promising players and young talents, but he liked the team’s atmosphere, where there were no prima donnas, no matter how hard he looked.

Lorenzo Lucca, gritting his teeth as he walked to the center circle for the kickoff, gestured to Jamal Lewis, who looked similarly determined.

“Jamal!”

“Yeah.”

Lorenzo Lucca said to the left winger:

“Do you believe in me?”

“What are you talking about?” Jamal Lewis retorted, but his expression was serious.

Emanuel Vignato, the right winger, saw them exchanging words. Then, midfielder Lucca Sukic and captain Nicholas Seiwald, and even Patrick De Paula, put their heads together outside the center circle.

“…Then like this…”

“No. I’ll do that, so you guys…”

“Okay. Then Patrick and I will take responsibility for the back.”

“Alright!”

Anselmo Garcia McNulty, the central defender, handed the ball to Lorenzo Lucca.

“I don’t know what you’re doing, but give them a shot. We’ll take responsibility for the defense.”

The defenders looked at them with firm expressions.

“Okay.” Lorenzo Lucca nodded and said, taking the ball. “Let’s definitely give them a shot.”