Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 162

162. Preparing for the Future

PL Round 28 standings (as of the end of all matches):

1st: West Ham, 26 wins, 2 draws, 0 losses, 80 points

2nd: Manchester Utd, 23 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses, 71 points

3rd: Manchester City, 21 wins, 4 draws, 3 losses, 67 points

4th: Liverpool FC, 19 wins, 5 draws, 4 losses, 62 points

5th: Arsenal FC, 16 wins, 7 draws, 5 losses, 55 points

6th: Chelsea FC, 15 wins, 5 draws, 8 losses, 50 points

7th: Tottenham Hotspur, 14 wins, 7 draws, 7 losses, 49 points

West Ham’s victory over Manchester United widened the point gap between the two teams to a significant 9 points.

Now, West Ham is in a favorable position to win the championship, provided they win all but three of their remaining games, regardless of Manchester United’s results.

Even if they lose three games, resulting in a tie in points with Manchester United…

West Ham still has the advantage due to their superior goal difference.

In the event of a tie in points, the team with the better goal difference is declared the winner.

On the other hand, Manchester United can no longer take their second-place position for granted.

After failing to earn any points in Round 28, their lead over Manchester City is a mere 4 points.

Moreover, the two teams still have a head-to-head match remaining.

And Manchester City also has a match against West Ham left.

So, Manchester City’s chances of winning the championship are not entirely gone.

Although they are in a difficult situation where they must win both games against the top two teams and not drop any points in other matches.

In any case, the strength of a team with a history of winning the league like Manchester City tends to show in the second half of the season.

Didn’t that become evident last season?

Last season, the point difference wasn’t as significant as it is this season, but West Ham had maintained the top spot since the beginning of the season, only to lose it to Manchester City in the second half, along with the championship.

In football, anything can happen.

It’s quite peculiar that both tournaments and leagues are full of variables.

Tournaments, being short-term competitions, are prone to upsets where weaker teams defeat stronger ones.

On the other hand, leagues, with their numerous matches, are bound to have upsets at least once.

Even strong teams can’t win every game.

Anyway, as of now, it’s a three-way battle.

West Ham, Manchester United, and Manchester City.

If we’re being generous, we could include Liverpool, but their numerous losses against the top three teams make it practically impossible for them to catch up.

Considering the upcoming schedule alone, Manchester United might have the most advantageous position.

Both West Ham and Manchester City have advanced to the Champions League quarterfinals.

And their opponents are Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, respectively, the toughest matchups in the quarterfinals.

In contrast, Manchester United can focus solely on the league.

Currently, West Ham is competing in a total of three competitions:

The Premier League, the Champions League, and the FA Cup.

Manager Schmidt and the club prioritize these three competitions in that order.

The league is followed by the Champions League, and then the FA Cup.

West Ham used youth players even in the FA Cup’s 64th round, so it’s practically a discarded competition for them.

They will do their best in the Champions League, but being eliminated at any point wouldn’t be surprising due to the high level of competition.

On the other hand, the league is currently the competition where the trophy is most attainable.

It’s only natural to prioritize the highest probability.

Well, the league having the highest probability isn’t just because they’re currently in first place.

It’s because of Johan.

Johan considers the league the most important.

With Johan determined to win the championship this time, the league title is the most likely outcome.

Anyway, the league has passed the two-thirds mark and has only 10 games remaining.

These remaining 10 games may or may not be Johan’s last 10 league games.

In any case, nothing has changed.

Win every game.

That was all.

—

“It’s been a while. Our academy’s greatest pride.”

“Yes, it has been a while. Here.”

After the game against Manchester United.

West Ham’s next match is the FA Cup 32nd round.

In this game, reserve players and youth players will make up the roster.

Therefore, most of the starting players were given a rest, and Johan was no exception.

Schmidt made a request to Johan.

He asked Johan to take a day off from training whenever he wanted and hold a one-day masterclass at the academy.

With the league title within reach.

Johan can retire whenever he wants, but those who have to lead West Ham next season have many concerns.

If Johan leaves the current West Ham team, how will the team move forward?

The team’s reliance on Johan is immeasurable.

From the squad itself, which can be seen as a squad created for Johan, to the tactics, the team’s wage structure, and so on.

It’s no exaggeration to say that everything in the team is tailored to Johan.

Not to mention the proportion of Johan’s contribution to the team’s strength.

Therefore, it was time to think about the future.

In the end, the conclusion was to exploit Johan as much as possible while he’s still around.

That expression might sound a bit harsh, but it’s true.

To take full advantage of the benefits of having Johan and prepare for the future.

Today’s masterclass was part of that future preparation.

Tuition directly from the best striker in the world.

What youth player wouldn’t want that privilege?

It was sure to be more helpful than any other experience.

“What should we start with?”

“First, warm up a bit and play a few mini-games with the kids. Just take it easy.”

“Yes.”

“Good. Beep-! Everyone, gather around!”

As the youth academy’s coach, Brian Maxwell, called the players together, they quickly assembled.

There are quite a few people.

West Ham’s youth academy has always been crowded, but it has been an unprecedented boom in the past year.

Even more so than after producing the golden generation in the past.

Of course, that’s only natural, since Johan, who came from here, is showing great performance on the adult stage.

Now, not only in England but also across the sea, many promising players come to learn football.

Some of these players are said to have been scouted by good youth teams such as Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

Anyway, those kids all looked at Johan with sparkling eyes.

In fact, the ages are all similar.

With Johan.

There are many children who are noticeably younger than Johan, but there are also children who are older than Johan.

But, does age matter?

He’s a Ballon d’Or [Best Football Player in the world] winner.

“We’re going to play a mini-game with Johan. How is everyone? Are you excited?”

“Yes-!” “Oh, shhh-!”

Maxwell chuckled at the explosive reaction of the children.

The children put on their vests according to their assigned teams with expectant expressions, and Maxwell handed Johan a green vest.

Half of the children wore red vests, and half wore blue vests.

Johan in the green vest does not belong to any team.

No, to be precise, he belongs to both teams.

The so-called ‘Comodin’ role.

Comodin translates to ‘Joker’ in English [A player who can play on either team].

During the mini-game, you can play on the team that is constantly attacking.

Of course, this role is played by the ace.

That way, the training will be effective for both sides.

The children looked at Johan in the green vest and prepared for training with excited faces.

“Just play moderately. It’ll be a disaster if anyone gets hurt.”

“Yes.”

Maxwell patted Johan on the shoulder, and Johan nodded.

The coach told me to do it moderately, so I have to do it moderately.

I can’t let the kids get hurt.

Ah, of course, Maxwell was referring to Johan when he said not to get hurt.

“Huff, huff···!”

“Hoo-”

The mini-game had 7 players on each side.

Several groups rotated and played the game.

Meanwhile, Johan continued to participate in the game.

Without resting even once.

Is it because Johan’s stamina is monstrous? No, the only ordinary thing among Johan’s stats is stamina.

However, there was no reason to get tired in the first place.

Johan was just standing in the middle, taking it easy and jogging lightly like a Taoist.

Is that to say he was doing it carelessly? That’s not true either.

Rather than doing it carelessly, he was literally doing it lightly.

And that was enough to elicit admiration or curses from the youth players.

“I’m the first one. Everyone, watch closely. I’m going to steal the ball from the Ballon d’Or winner.”

Many children had one goal.

To steal the ball from Johan.

It was sure to be a lifelong boast.

Therefore, the children all rushed at Johan with determination.

However,

“Agh! Damn it!”

“Yeah, everyone has a plausible plan, right? Until they get hit.”

No child succeeded in that ambitious plan.

Even though he was just moving around lightly, it was impossible to steal the ball from Johan.

In that respect, it was much easier for the children in the attacking position to achieve their goals.

Thwack-

Boom-!

Slam-!

“Uwaaa! I did it! Johan assisted me!”

The children who received Johan’s pass and scored a goal were as happy as if they had scored in the Champions League final.

Honestly, it’s understandable.

To pass the ball back and forth with the Ballon d’Or winner and score a goal.

This is a boast that can be used for a lifetime.

“Seriously, his class is amazing···”

“The wall of the Premier League is high···”

“Hey, does that just look like the Premier League level to you?”

“No, I mean, the players who face such monsters. I used to think they were really stupid, but those people were real monsters too. They even stop Johan, who gives 100 percent in the game.”

The children couldn’t take their eyes off Johan even while resting.

Everyone widened their eyes to capture every single movement of Johan.

For the youth players, this was a dreamlike moment.

After the mini-game training, there was a simple individual coaching session.

The children lined up to ask Johan what they were curious about or what they wanted to learn.

Johan looked after the children – or brothers – one by one.

“My name is Theo. Um, what I’m curious about is, how do you do shooting training during individual training time, other than team training?”

“···Sorry. I don’t do separate training.”

“Please tell me some tips on how to kick a knuckleball well!”

“Kick here with the instep like this.”

“···That’s all?”

“When you want to break through an opponent who is defending and waiting, what is the best way to do it?”

“If the opponent is waiting, break through first.”

“I’m curious about how to have a wide field of vision.”

“Look at the field widely.”

Honestly, it wasn’t a very helpful time.

One thing that could be confirmed was that Johan didn’t seem to have the talent to be a good coach.

Well, it’s a common story.

A genius is not good at teaching.

There’s nothing you can do.

I just do it because I was born with it, so how can I teach you how to do it?

It wasn’t a Q&A session that was very helpful to the children, but it was a meaningful time anyway.

This is because the opportunity to talk to a superstar like Johan is rare.

After that, Johan spent time talking to the children about how he felt during the Euro final, what was the most thrilling goal, and how he felt during the first Champions League game.

“But, are you really going to retire if you win the championship?”

“Yes.”

“It’s too bad. Can’t you play a little longer? If I had that skill, I would play until I was 50 years old.”

“Didn’t you say you were a striker?”

“That’s right.”

“Then, I think you’ll have a chance if I retire?”

“Gasp. I hope you win the championship.”

Anyway, the one-day masterclass ended with taking a group photo together.

Considering that the children’s faces were full of excitement and joy until the end, wouldn’t it have been a fairly successful class?

“Thanks for coming. Was there anyone who stood out?”

“Stood out? Um···”

At Maxwell’s question, Johan looked around at the children preparing to go home.