Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 133

It’s a truly strange thing.

That so many people could fall silent all at once, as if they had made a promise.

“···.”

However, paradoxically, their mouths were wide open.

Their mouths were agape, yet they were speechless.

Johan’s stunning overhead kick plunged Camp Nou into a silence born of astonishment.

It’s natural for the fans of the losing team to fall silent the moment they concede a goal.

However, right now, literally everyone was silent.

Including the West Ham away fans, the West Ham players, and even the bench.

A goal that left everyone speechless, clutching their heads in their hands.

That kind of goal came from Johan’s foot.

“That kid is not human!”

Johan’s equalizing goal was so shocking that Barkley blurted out standard Korean.

*

The atmosphere at Camp Nou became strange.

Just like after Barcelona scored the first goal, now West Ham, having scored the equalizer, was fiercely pressing.

The problem was that Barcelona’s first goal came 10 minutes after they seized the momentum, but West Ham’s equalizer came at the same time as they seized the momentum.

In other words, Barcelona only had 10 more minutes to capitalize on their scoring momentum, but West Ham had 20 more minutes to press.

Could Barcelona smoothly overcome those 20 minutes?

Of course, Barcelona didn’t have to worry about losing focus due to the atmosphere of the stadium, as West Ham had.

However, there was another problem.

Johan’s goal was just too impactful.

From a defender’s perspective, it was enough to make them feel a sense of futility.

No, if you score goals like that, what are the defenders supposed to do?

How can they possibly stop it?

A sense of futility arises, confidence drops, and that leads to a decrease in concentration.

Consequently, Barcelona’s defense began to falter.

Barcelona had already conceded a goal to Johan even before they started to falter.

It was difficult for Barcelona to withstand this flow without any problems.

33 minutes into the first half.

Capello played a through pass into the box for Bailey, who was making a big run in from the left, but Barcelona’s center-back, Palermo Vidal, cut off the pass with a sliding tackle.

That was fine, but when Bailey quickly rushed in again, Vidal hastily cleared the ball while lying down.

However, a ball kicked while lying down couldn’t possibly travel far or accurately.

The ball went exactly where it shouldn’t have, right to Johan’s feet.

Paang-

It was a sudden ball, but Johan was calm.

Still, there was a defender blocking the front.

But Johan,

Sreureuk-

Slightly pushed the ball to the side with the outside of his right foot,

Ppeoeoeoeoeong-!

Shot with that right foot as it was.

A shot a half-beat faster.

Chwaaaaaaa-

The shot pierced through the legs of the defender standing in front.

It was a shot that the goalkeeper couldn’t do anything about.

The timing of the shot was fast, and the defender was blocking the view, so it was nearly impossible to block it.

The fact that he belatedly dove was just proof that Barcelona had a pretty good goalkeeper.

Cheolseok-!

In the end, Johan’s second goal exploded, and that’s where the difference was made.

Barcelona scored one goal in their flow.

And West Ham scored two goals.

That was the difference between the two teams.

*

It was truly devastating for Barcelona to concede the first half.

No matter how much the heat of Camp Nou feels like hellfire to the away team, humans are creatures of adaptation.

Even this atmosphere is bound to be adapted to.

Moreover, during halftime, the West Ham players talked about Johan’s first goal, completely relieved their tension, and entered the second half.

In the second half, West Ham did not make the same mistakes as in the beginning of the first half and began to show the performance they had shown at the London Stadium.

Paang-

Paang-!

With Capello as the starting point, Barkley and Nathan constantly move and exchange passes.

Continuously creating triangular formations and exchanging one-two passes, Barcelona cannot easily steal the ball.

It’s as if they’re saying, “We also practice rondo [a training drill focusing on possession] training hard.”

As a result, Barcelona players also feel their pride hurt.

Barcelona presses.

Narrowing the distance between each other, increasing the intensity of the pressure, and pushing the West Ham players, who are turning the ball around, into a narrow area.

However, that’s what West Ham wanted.

They deliberately lured them in.

Ppeoeoeoeoeong-!

The pass that Capello suddenly fired soared out of the narrow space crowded with players.

The pass is heading to the opposite side, of course, to Johan.

1-on-1 with the opposing defender on the right side of the box.

Johan tapped and dribbled inside, looking for an angle,

Tatatat-!

Quickly dribbled towards the goal line.

The defender follows a step late.

In that gap, Johan pulls back his right foot greatly.

The angle is small, but Johan is in a position where he can shoot as much as he wants.

Therefore, the defender, judging that he was a step late, slid and stretched out his foot.

But as if to laugh at him, Johan didn’t shoot and folded back.

And,

Paang-

After kicking the ball once towards the center,

Ppeoeoeoeoeong-!

He shot with the outside of his right foot towards the far post.

An unconventional shot.

He cut it with the outside of his right foot at an angle where it was natural to kick with his left foot.

Really, it was an ordeal for the goalkeeper today.

None of Johan’s shots were predictable.

Shuuuuuuuuung-

The out-front kick curved in like a banana and was sucked into a place where the goalkeeper’s hand could not reach.

Cheolseok-!

Johan gave Barcelona two hat tricks.

It was a really humiliating thing for Barcelona fans.

Someone scored a hat trick at Camp Nou, but it wasn’t a Barcelona player.

The moment Johan’s hat trick exploded, Camp Nou was no longer the loudest place in Europe.

It was just the biggest library in Europe.

*

As I’ve said many times, soccer is a sport of momentum.

The situation was desperate, but Barcelona also had a few chances to gain momentum afterwards.

It was around the time when West Ham’s overall energy level began to drop.

Barcelona was the same, but West Ham was on a tighter schedule.

As they entered the 30-minute mark of the second half, Iago Quientes once again showed his presence.

Quientes’ goal revived the atmosphere of Camp Nou, which had been drooping.

Barcelona would be satisfied if they could somehow eke out a draw now.

Because West Ham just needs to beat Paris.

Barcelona was ready to be happy even if they advanced to the tournament in second place.

But, unfortunately, that was only for a moment.

41 minutes into the second half.

5 minutes after Quientes’ goal.

This time, Joshua Bailey made a big play.

While all of Barcelona’s attention was focused on Johan, Bailey calmly succeeded in scoring from a free chance.

It was a game-clinching goal that ended the game.

“Bbiik, bbiik, bbiiiik-!”

4 to 2.

It was a difficult game to start, but West Ham, centered around Johan, showed their potential.

It was a valuable victory.

-15 goals in the group stage alone, Johan Ban’s crazy scoring pace! Aiming for the most goals in a single Champions League season!

-90,000 cheers were useless… Angry Cules [Barcelona fans], violence broke out around the stadium!

-Hammers’ safety worried about violence

-‘Hooligans as expected?’ Hammers, rather, hit back

-West Ham also beat Barcelona with fists… How is the local reaction in London? “It’s better than getting beaten up. It’s the Hammer Corps after all!”

-Schmidt’s manager on a reporter’s question about violence, “It’s common in the Premier League.” What kind of place is England?

ㆍㆍㆍ

After the Barcelona game.

The West Ham players took a day off locally and then boarded a plane back to London.

“Hey, Johan.”

“?”

“Before you go to sleep, can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

Petrovic, who was sitting next to Johan, spoke to him as soon as he sat down in his seat and took a posture to take a nap.

Petrovic scratches his head.

“Actually, I’m not asking you expecting a detailed answer, but I’m really curious. How can you not be nervous at all?”

Petrovic was sincerely curious.

How can you not be nervous at all?

Fortunately, they won the game, but Petrovic himself knew best that he almost ruined the game because of his own mistakes.

But, honestly, anyone would have been nervous yesterday.

How can this guy be so indifferent?

“Well. I don’t know.”

“What do you think about before you go to the stadium?”

“Um. I want to go home?”

“···Then what about during the game?”

“I don’t think about anything.”

Petrovic nods at Johan’s answer.

Yeah, I didn’t expect it in the first place.

I didn’t think I could get a useful answer.

I don’t think about anything.

What a comfortable guy.

“Okay, thank you. Now sleep···”

“Snoring-”

He sleeps as soon as his head touches the back.

He really lives according to his instincts.

ㆍㆍㆍ

Champions League Group E

1st place West Ham Utd 4 wins 0 draws 0 losses 12 points

2nd place Paris Saint-Germain 2 wins 1 draw 1 loss 7 points

3rd place FC Barcelona 1 win 1 draw 2 losses 4 points

4th place Malmö FF 0 wins 0 draws 4 losses 0 points

By taking 3 points from the Camp Nou expedition, West Ham confirmed their advancement to the tournament early.

Even if they lose both of their remaining two games, they cannot fall below 2nd place.

Thanks to this, West Ham had a lot of leeway.

There is a reason why Premier League teams risk their lives in the early stages of the group stage.

The group stage schedule runs from September to December.

If they fail to confirm their advancement to the tournament even with two games left, they will have to spend a hellish December.

You might say that it’s not that hard to play one or two more games, but you don’t know.

Depending on the case, they may have to play three games a week because of that one game.

Even if they have confirmed their advancement to the tournament, the schedule is still burdensome.

But what if the advancement is uncertain and they have to do their best?

It’s hell.

So, there is a reason why everyone wants to confirm their advancement early.

Just like West Ham operated their best eleven for 90 minutes in the Barcelona expedition.

It was a game worth pouring everything into.

However, that could make the weekend league game a burden.

Moreover, West Ham’s opponent in the league’s 10th round was Liverpool.

That too is an away game.

West Ham will play the most difficult away games in Europe 1 and 2 in a row.

With a 4-day interval.

Moreover, there is another difficulty.

Liverpool saved their stamina by rotating players in the midweek Champions League game.

Champions League Group H

1st place Liverpool FC 4 wins 0 draws 0 losses 12 points

2nd place Sporting CP 2 wins 1 draw 1 loss 7 points

3rd place AC Milan 1 win 1 draw 2 losses 4 points

4th place Olympiacos 0 wins 0 draws 4 losses 0 points

Liverpool is in a favorable group compared to West Ham.

Liverpool and West Ham are both marking overwhelming first place in their groups.

The difference is that West Ham did their best, and Liverpool is in first place even after taking some of their strength out.

Furthermore, Liverpool is sharpening their swords to avenge their defeat at Anfield last season.

In many ways, it won’t be an easy game.

-Liverpool manager Alain Nunes, “Why rotate against Sporting? Preparing for the West Ham game.”

-Liverpool DF Derek De Clain, “I’m still growing… I’m different from last season.”

-Liverpool captain Steve Duncan, “There will be no two defeats at Anfield.” Vow to avenge

-Jacob Buckley, “Anfield? No worries. I’m already deaf at Camp Nou, so I won’t hear anything.”

-Petrovic, who showed anxiety at Camp Nou, “I was taught the secret by Johan.”

-Harry Kane’s possibility of playing against Liverpool? “I’ll win even if I go out. But Liverpool fans will want to see the Ballon d’Or winner.”

-Johan Ban, comparing Anfield and Camp Nou? “Compared to Camp Nou, Anfield is quiet… I might fall asleep during the game.”

-Barcelona President Thales on Johan’s remarks that Camp Nou was hotter than Anfield, “Johan is the best in the world, I can’t help but admit it. Camp Nou will always welcome him.”