Became The Premier League’S Youngest Manager [EN]: Chapter 56

56: Great Victory and Great Bloody Battle

Although the score was tied at 3-3, the home team, having conceded three goals in a row after initially leading by three, was in a somber mood.

The away team, having erased the initial three-goal deficit and leveled the score, was riding a wave of momentum.

Amidst these contrasting atmospheres, both teams concluded their halftime break and returned from the tunnel for the second half.

However, the impassioned speeches delivered by both coaches during halftime, along with the players’ renewed resolutions and commitments, ultimately proved futile.

The two teams, who had engaged in a fierce, high-scoring battle, each netting three goals in the first half,

were visibly exhausted in the second half.

Uncharacteristic passing errors became frequent, but the opposing teams lacked the energy to capitalize on them.

The spectators, who would normally have voiced their displeasure with boos, remained silent, both home and away fans, their voices hoarse from cheering.

The enthusiastic chants that had echoed from both teams’ fans throughout the first half dwindled significantly, becoming almost inaudible even upon close listening.

Later that evening, a sports critic on BCC News [likely a fictional news outlet] assessed the day’s game as one that would be etched in Premier League history.

The first half showcased, in a condensed 45 minutes, why the Premier League is considered the best in the world, with a flurry of goals amidst a clash of tactics and player skill.

The second half, however, served as a cautionary tale, demonstrating to aspiring soccer players how *not* to play a game.

Hyungmin and coach Antonio Conte utilized all three of their substitution opportunities, primarily focusing on midfielders and forwards who were visibly drained. As the second half progressed, there were several unusual instances of professional soccer players collapsing on the field due to leg cramps.

“Ugh! I’m dying!”

Karim Adeyemi suddenly began to limp, clutching his leg in pain, and collapsed while chasing the ball.

Without any prompting from the referee, the players kicked the ball out of bounds, and emergency treatment commenced.

“Hey, hey! Stretch your leg out!”

Tottenham’s right wing-back, Matt Doherty, swiftly approached, placed Karim Adeyemi’s foot against his stomach, and pulled and pressed his leg to alleviate the cramp.

“Oh, you guys have different drinks?”

Tottemham’s center-back, Cristian Romero, helped himself to Burnley’s drinks, provided by the opposing team’s doctor and medical staff, as he couldn’t be bothered to walk to his own sideline.

“Really? What’s yours like?”

“I’ll give you one next time one of our guys collapses. Anyway, the taste is a bit different.”

“Is that so?”

Burnley’s central striker, Jay Rodriguez, continued his casual conversation while sipping a drink next to Cristian Romero.

While both coaches watched helplessly from their respective technical areas, the exhausted players from both teams engaged in lighthearted banter, lacking the energy to reignite their competitive fire.

“Oh, I think you can let go now.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Matt Doherty, who had been stretching Karim Adeyemi’s foot, released it at the direction of Burnley’s team doctor, Simon.

“Ugh…”

“So, run a little slower.”

Matt Doherty shook his head and advised Karim Adeyemi, who was still feeling the aftereffects of the cramp.

“You’re on the opposing team!”

“Old man? You’ll be an old man soon too, you little brat.”

Burnley’s young prospect and Tottenham’s veteran wing-back exchanged playful insults over the head of the team doctor, who was diligently examining the player’s leg for any further muscle damage.

“In my 60 years…”

Arthur muttered as he observed the scene unfolding on the field.

“…this is the first time I’ve witnessed such a relaxed and sluggish Premier League game.”

***

Immediately following the chaotic battle that had both coaches on edge and neutral fans entertained,

Tottenham’s Antonio Conte entered the home team’s locker room and presented a box.

“What is this?”

Conte smiled at Hyungmin, who wore a bewildered expression.

“It’s wine from my hometown. Let’s share it after the next game.”

“Sounds good. But if I win the next game, you won’t be in the mood to drink wine, will you?”

“Why do you assume you’re going to win the next game?”

Hyungmin shook his head at Conte, who looked incredulous.

“The first game was a loss. This game was a draw. So, it’s only logical that I win the next game, isn’t it?”

“What are you talking about? We already split one win and one loss in the first half of the season!”

“Oh, that’s right. There was the Carabao Cup…” [A domestic English cup competition]

Antonio Conte chuckled and extended his hand at the absurd remark from the young junior coach, who had eliminated them from another cup competition and completely forgotten about it.

“I don’t know when we’ll play next, but take care until then.”

“Wow! That sounds like you’re threatening to beat me up next time we meet?”

The two coaches exchanged farewells with chuckles and parted ways in front of Burnley’s locker room.

Neither of them could have imagined what their next encounter would be like.

***

Two days after the game against Tottenham.

After completing recovery training the day after the game and enjoying a day off, eight young players from Burnley’s first team, affectionately known as ‘the kids’ by Burnley’s veterans, gathered in the (temporary) living room of the Burnley loan players’ accommodation in Padiham.

Following Karim Adeyemi, Nicolas Seiwald, Jacob Ramsey, and Hannibal Mejbri, who were already residents, Nico Gonzalez and Oscar Mingueza joined, bringing the total number of residents to six. A soccer video game tournament, spontaneously organized during the recovery training the day before, was underway in the living room.

Dwight McNeil (22 years old, nicknamed ‘Dwighty’), a promising young talent from Burnley’s youth academy who is beloved by the club’s fans, and Nathan Collins (21 years old), a promising defender who joined from Stoke in the summer transfer market and has spent roughly the same amount of time in Burnley as the loan players, comprised the so-called ‘Lancashire faction’.

Karim Adeyemi (20 years old) and Nicolas Seiwald (20 years old, nicknamed ‘Niki’), a duo of the same age from Austria’s RB Salzburg who joined as loan players in the summer transfer market but are likely to be permanently transferred, formed the so-called ‘Austrian faction’.

Jacob Ramsey (20 years old) from Aston Villa and Hannibal Mejbri (19 years old) from Manchester United, who were loaned from other Premier League teams and are unlikely to be permanently transferred, represented the so-called ‘British faction’.

And Oscar Mingueza (23 years old) and Nico Gonzalez (20 years old), loan players from the prestigious Barcelona youth academy [La Masia] in the Spanish Primera Liga [Spanish First Division], who quickly bonded with the other loan players after the attempted poisoning incident on the first night was revealed to be a misunderstanding, made up the so-called ‘Spanish faction’.

After finishing a mini-league in the morning that was as fiercely contested as the power struggles between the European powers during the great upheaval of Europe in the 19th and early 20th centuries, befitting each team’s name,

The losers, trembling with humiliation (unfortunately, mirroring actual history, the Austrian faction ultimately lost cumulatively), secretly ventured into Burnley town and indulged in McDonald’s, purchased with the war reparations they had paid.

Of course, the eight solemnly swore to fitness coach Paolo Morao that they would risk their lives to keep the secret.

Nicolas Seiwald and Jacob Ramsey, who had initially been hesitant, ate heartily once they actually had the food in front of them.

After a satisfying lunch, the eight were engaged in a 1v1 tournament in the drowsy afternoon.

Meanwhile, Hannibal Mejbri, awaiting his turn, sat in a corner of the living room, staring blankly at the wall.

“Hey, snap out of it.”

Karim Adeyemi, who was also waiting for his turn, said with frustration to his friend, who looked miserable beside him.

“Just leave him alone. He has to snap out of it on his own.”

Nicolas Seiwald, who had given up after countless attempts, controlled the game controller without taking his eyes off the action unfolding on the TV screen, while also trying to dissuade his close friend.

Oscar Mingueza, who was sitting next to Jacob Ramsey, who was watching Hannibal Mejbri listlessly sprawled on the sofa, stopped him from getting up.

“Hey, don’t go.”

“Why?”

“It’ll backfire if you go, you idiot.”

While Dwight McNeil and Nathan Collins, who were sitting at the table waiting for their turn, cast curious glances, Oscar Mingueza, who had surprisingly formed a strong bond with Jacob Ramsey despite their contrasting personalities, stopped his well-intentioned friend.

“He has to overcome this on his own. That’s why the coach and head coach aren’t getting involved or talking to him about it separately.”

“But…”

“There’s no ‘but’. We’re all professionals. If you’re good enough, you play, and if you’re not good enough, you don’t play. From what I’ve heard, he didn’t really look out for you when you were on the bench in the first half of the season, did he? Moreover, he’s only missed league games for two consecutive games.”

Jacob Ramsey flinched at Oscar Mingueza’s blunt words, and Dwight McNeil, who had grown up in Burnley’s first team since he was young, navigating all sorts of competition and challenges, nodded slightly in agreement.

“Look at him.”

Oscar Mingueza pointed to Nico Gonzalez, who was sitting on the sofa, playing the game with an indifferent expression.

“He debuted in the first team at 17, you know? Do you know how many players in Barcelona’s history have debuted in the first team at 17? Messi and Ansu Fati debuted at 16, so 17 is almost the same level. Pedri also debuted at 16, but that was for Las Palmas in the second division. Honestly, Ansu was a bit crazy.”

“So?”

“But Nico then went back and forth between the first team and the reserve team for two seasons, and now he’s even on loan to Burnley. Not that Burnley is bad, but anyway, his career isn’t really taking off compared to the expectations that were placed on him when he made his debut at 17.”

“Hmm…”

Oscar Mingueza continued, observing Jacob Ramsey’s face, which was lost in thought.

“But have you ever seen Nico frown or complain to the coach because he couldn’t start here?”

“Hannibal hasn’t said anything to the coach either.”

“No. No, but it’s all over his face. And honestly, you or Nico did really well when you played instead.”

Jacob Ramsey scored 2 goals and 2 assists in the last game against West Ham, which he started, and the team won.

Nico Gonzalez started in the great bloody battle against Tottenham and contributed 1 goal and 2 assists, although they drew, and he completely changed the momentum of the game when he was substituted for Hannibal Mejbri at the start of the second half against Wolverhampton.

If the team performs well after a player is left out, it becomes difficult for that player to voice complaints to the coach.

Jacob Ramsey tilted his head ambiguously to the side, neither nodding nor shaking it.

“If you get back on your feet here, you’ll become a true professional, and if you don’t, you’ll just become a mediocre player. Honestly, unless you’re Messi, everyone faces challenges. And even the great Messi is struggling at PSG right now.”

Oscar Mingueza shrugged his shoulders, mentioning the name of the legendary senior from La Masia, who dominated the Primera Liga and an entire era, whom everyone admired.

“In my opinion, our coach is a good person, but he’s not going to tolerate this behavior if he’s being so visibly affected by playing time.”

“Then?”

“If he was going to call him in and say something, he would have done it already…”

“…would have said?”

“If he keeps sulking like that, he won’t get any playing time in the future.”

Oscar Mingueza smiled wryly at the embarrassed expression on his British friend’s face, having personally experienced the depth of talent stacked above him while navigating between Barcelona’s first team and reserve team for a considerable period.

*In my eyes, you guys are all blessed. You talent-filled guys…*