Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 150

< The Brazilian Way of Introduction >

“Happy New Year!”

“Happy이고 나발이고 [Korean slang for ‘Happy my foot’], I’m dying from exhaustion.”

“The harder it is, the more you should enjoy it. It means we’ve become a big club.”

“Even if it’s enjoyable, hard is still hard.”

“The FA Cup will start soon too.”

“And there’s the World Cup qualifier.”

Outside, the atmosphere is full of New Year’s joy, but the New Year wasn’t a welcome event for West Ham players.

Because a more difficult January than ever was scheduled.

Just looking at the numbers was enough to make one nauseous.

First, they had to play 3 league games, one FA Cup game was scheduled, and the 2030 World Cup European Qualifiers also began.

The squad had already accumulated considerable fatigue from the opening until December.

The aftermath of last summer’s Euro [European Championship], the Champions League they were playing in for the first time, and the stress from wanting to continue their winning streak.

It would be strange if they weren’t exhausted.

“Anyway, the manager spoke well because he was worried about you guys. Let’s look forward to it and hang in there a little longer.”

Jamie, the coach, said to the players who looked tired today.

Everyone is in a mood to welcome the words.

Because the situation is so difficult, West Ham had no choice but to have small expectations for this winter transfer market.

Last winter was just as difficult as now.

When it was so difficult, Capello and Kane’s joining gave them tremendous strength.

Backup resources are good, but the addition of players who can contribute immediately is literally a blood transfusion.

If even one more oarsman is added to the boat called a team, the other oarsmen will inevitably become much more comfortable.

That’s what Jamie, the coach, was talking about.

Manager Schmidt had already held frequent meetings with club front office officials before winter came, and from mid-December, they exchanged opinions every day.

“With the current squad depth, we can never win two trophies. If you’re only going to be satisfied with one, you don’t need it. Because there are many youth players. But if you want to win two, you need investment.”

In fact, West Ham was not a team that had relied on external recruitment.

Because they have a reliable treasure trove called England’s best youth academy.

However, the problem is that it takes a considerable amount of time to develop youth players into immediate forces that go beyond the team’s firm starters.

Cases like some players in the past – who are not currently affiliated with West Ham – or Bailey, who quickly played in the first team, are special cases that come out once every few years, and cases like Johan are unprecedented.

Expecting these cases is impossible.

In other words, if they aim to achieve good results in the league, Champions League, and FA Cup, winter recruitment was essential.

Like last summer, winter, and this summer.

West Ham’s motto for this winter transfer market was Win-Now.

Win-Now means looking at the present rather than the future.

It meant they were going to bet everything on this season.

West Ham is not a team like Man City [Manchester City].

It’s not a team like Man U [Manchester United], and it’s not a team like Liverpool.

There aren’t many seasons where they can aim for the championship.

No, it’s too positive to say there aren’t many.

It would be more accurate to describe it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

In other words, you don’t know when an opportunity like now will come again, and it may be 10 years or 50 years later.

No, maybe it will never come.

Because a player who scores more than 50 goals in the league at the age of 17 and receives the Ballon d’Or [prestigious individual award given to the best football player in the world] has to come out of the youth system.

Of course, Johan is now only 17 years old, so if they can keep him on the team, there would be no problem in setting up a long-term plan centered on Johan for 10 or 15 years.

But Johan is no ordinary player.

He is now being held in place through the motivation of winning.

What if they fail to win consecutively?

In fact, his talent is overwhelmingly outstanding, but even now, his training attitude is no different from sabotage.

You never know when his skills will drop sharply. Or he might leave for another team.

So now is not the time to look to the future, but to look to the present.

And that was also preparing for the future.

Because if you accumulate one championship trophy at a time, the club’s status will change a lot.

Anyway, what Manager Schmidt wanted through this winter was to strengthen the center back line.

Among the current best eleven, the position with the smallest gap between the starting and non-starting players is the central center back [center defender].

Bellamy’s partner position.

Currently, Lucas Simone and Lozano Antonio are taking turns playing in that position.

Simone was closer to the starting lineup.

Simone is not from the youth academy, but he is now a veteran who has played for the team for so long that he can be regarded as a West Ham native.

Simone is a smart player, so he was showing a more stable appearance than last season, creating good synergy with Bellamy.

However, the problem is age and stamina.

This was a problem that Simone himself was complaining about.

“It’s not like before. It’s not like before.”

“There’s nothing you can’t say in front of this old man.”

“How old did the manager retire?”

“Thirty-three.”

“I’m thirty-five this year.”

“Is it the same as my time?”

“It’s all the same when it’s hard.”

It’s not just physical strength that’s the problem.

The biggest thing you feel as you get older is that your body’s recovery speed slows down.

Even if you play one game with the same 100 stamina, if a young player like Bailey recharges his stamina to 95 a week later, Simone only recharges to about 80.

In addition, even minor injuries do not heal easily.

Even if the injury is not enough to prevent him from playing in the game, there is no place on his body that is intact.

Again, it meant he couldn’t perform at his best.

“I used to be fine even if I took two days off.”

“Don’t be pathetic, I’m going to bring in a guy who will take away your starting spot, so don’t say anything else when you get there.”

“You’re welcome anytime. Have I been eating club house meals here? Instead, you have to bring in a guy who pays for his meals.”

The conclusion is one.

Bringing in a central defender whose skills have peaked at the current point.

-West Ham approaches Valencia CF’s Brazilian defender Dani Guimarães··· Transfer fee approximately €45m

-Guimarães, has personal agreement already been completed? Only club agreement remains

Brazilian center back, Dani Guimarães.

He is twenty-nine years old, the age right in the middle of his prime as a defender, and his skills are also being evaluated as peaking this season.

Guimarães was the core of Valencia.

However, as Valencia’s finances deteriorated, Valencia, blocked by La Liga’s [Spanish top division football league] salary cap regulations, reluctantly put Guimarães on the market.

It’s not a bad asset to be sold off, but a tearful clearance sale.

There was no better honey product for West Ham.

“If that friend comes, he’ll be the only South American in our team?”

“Fortunately, we don’t have to worry about factions.”

Whether the transfer will be successful is still unknown, but if he comes, it seemed clear that he would be a good resource for the team.

ㆍㆍㆍ

West Ham’s first opponent in 2029 was the bottom of the league, Huddersfield.

A meeting between the 1st place in the league and the bottom.

Unless there was a major upset, it seemed like West Ham could easily win, and the actual game flowed in a flow that was not much different from expectations.

The starting lineup for West Ham, which rotated again in this game to conserve stamina, but Johan started.

Today’s game, multi-goal, and multi-assist! Johan records his 49th attack point of the season!

Johan scored multiple goals in the 24th minute of the first half that day, recorded one assist each in the 41st and 62nd minutes, accumulated 4 attack points, and was substituted out of the ground in the 71st minute.

As a result, Johan increased his attack points to 49, recording 40 goals and 9 assists in the league alone up to the 22nd round of the season.

‘Is there one left?’

The Golden Cross [referring to reaching 50 goal contributions] was just around the corner.

Because the number of attack points recorded up to the 22nd round last season was exactly 50.

I felt a little more comfortable now.

Anyway, what attracted the Hammers’ [West Ham’s nickname] attention more than the result of the game that day was the SNS [Social Networking Service] of the club’s internal reporters.

This was because news related to Guimarães was being updated one after another on the SNS of those who deliver club-related news the fastest.

@Anthony_Taylor

[BREAKING] Dani Guimarães arrives in London for medical test. Personal and club agreements completed.

@HAMcCarthy

The official transfer announcement of Valencia’s 29-year-old center back Dani Guimarães dos Santos will be announced within this week.

Guimarães’ recruitment seemed to be a foregone conclusion, and fans cheered.

Hammers were already flocking to Guimarães’ personal SNS to send welcome messages.

But, in fact.

Guimarães’ expression was not very bright when he arrived in London.

*

“I ask for a wonderful performance.”

“I’ll do my best.”

At Guimarães’ first greeting, Manager Schmidt felt a slight sense of foreboding.

Not ‘I’ll do my best’, but ‘I’ll do my best’.

Even if the meanings are the same, the nuance is very different.

What should I say.

It sounds like he’s saying he doesn’t want to, but he’ll still do it.

Moreover, I knew he had a unique South American cheerful personality.

He didn’t seem to want to talk much now.

In fact, I could understand.

Guimarães was a player who didn’t want to leave Valencia.

He was a de facto one-club man who had only played for Valencia throughout his career, except for his childhood in Brazil.

He was a player who had a good relationship with the club until just before leaving.

However, Guimarães had to leave Valencia due to unavoidable financial circumstances.

In a word, he was ‘sold’ to West Ham.

So, the fact that his weekly wage has risen quite a bit compared to Valencia, that he has joined the league’s top team, and that he can play in the Champions League may not be very important to Guimarães.

His only comfort may have been the transfer fee he gave Valencia.

“Gordon. Help that friend adapt.”

“Yes, I understand.”

It’s a professional world, but soccer players are also people.

There are many cases where they cannot perform at their best due to non-soccer reasons.

A type that can be found a lot, especially among players belonging to the South American region.

Homesickness.

That was Manager Schmidt’s biggest concern.

First of all, it was important to make Guimarães quickly forget his former team and find a reason to do his best in this team.

For this reason, he also asked the captain, Gordon, and called existing players to ask them separately.

So that Guimarães can adapt well to the team.

But, in fact, that’s not easy.

No matter how much people around you help, if you don’t have the will to do it.

“Ma, your name is very unique. What should I call you? Guimarães is too difficult.”

“If it’s difficult, don’t call me.”

“This color··· not. Guimarães! Is that okay?”

“Hey, Buckley. You just go do your job. It’s no help.”

The first training session after Guimarães joined.

Gordon scratched his head and sighed.

Guimarães’ training attitude itself was not a problem.

West Ham’s training process would be unfamiliar, but he followed it well and didn’t complain much.

However, he didn’t seem to be willing to open his heart easily.

Usually, when you come to a new team, you start by trying to figure out the faces and names of your teammates.

He didn’t seem interested at all.

How can you get close without introducing yourself?

“I can’t do that. I need to introduce myself properly first. Hey, maknae [Korean word for the youngest member].”

“Yes?”

“Come here with a ball.”

Gordon called Bailey.

When Bailey came with the ball, Gordon called Guimarães to stop.

“Hey, newbie. Introduce yourself to this kid. Brazilian style.”

“···Brazilian style?”

“Yes. Isn’t that how you greet people in Brazil? With a ball.”

Gordon said, pushing Bailey’s back.

“Shake that guy up. Let’s see what level Valencia’s starting center back is at.”

Then, Guimarães frowned and changed his eyes.