Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 182

< Episode 181 – Defend >

For any professional athlete, whether it’s the Champions League final or a friendly match in an exhibition tournament,

it’s natural to strive to win every game and to focus on victory, giving their best effort.

However, professionals are still human.

Reality is a bit different.

It can’t always be the same.

How can one approach a Champions League final and a friendly with the same intensity?

The stakes are worlds apart.

Today’s game was definitely important.

It would determine whether West Ham would secure the championship immediately or have to wait.

It was a crucial game that could decide the fate of this season’s league trophy.

That was undeniable.

But, that was West Ham’s story.

No matter where the league trophy ended up, it wouldn’t be going to Man City.

Even if Man City won all four of their remaining games, including today’s, they couldn’t surpass West Ham’s points.

Frankly, that’s why Ernesto’s dedication didn’t entirely make sense.

That Ernesto was preparing for today’s game, burning the midnight oil.

Of course, Man City players also wanted to end their losing streak against West Ham and settle their rivalry.

But there was no reason to go this far.

In the end, there was only one real explanation.

The players were all aware that Ernesto coveted Johan.

You could tell just by how Granagh was constantly getting scolded at the training ground.

Ernesto even told Granagh to study by watching Johan’s videos.

Ernesto had wanted to sign Johan every summer and winter transfer window.

In other words, Ernesto wanted to prevent Johan’s retirement at all costs.

To do that, even if they couldn’t win the championship themselves, they wanted to prevent West Ham from winning it.

Even if it meant seeing their rival team, Man U [Manchester United], win the title.

But, in reality, whether West Ham won the championship or not wasn’t that important to Man City players.

Rather, it was much better for West Ham to win than to see Man U win.

The thought of how arrogant Man U and their fans would be if they won the championship was already giving them a headache.

Above all,

If West Ham won the championship, Johan would retire.

That meant they wouldn’t have to face that monster from next season.

It was a welcome prospect.

If it weren’t for West Ham, if it weren’t for Johan, Man City could be confident of winning the championship next season.

So, what reason was there to risk their lives to win today’s game?

Ending the rivalry with West Ham?

Unnecessary. Without Johan, there’s no reason to be rivals.

Preventing West Ham from winning the championship?

Even if they prevented it today, the chances of West Ham missing out on the championship were slim, and even if they did, Man U would take the title.

So, perhaps Ernesto was the only one in this stadium who desperately didn’t want West Ham to win the championship.

Soccer is played by the players.

No matter how much the manager shouts, it’s useless if the players’ desires don’t align with him.

When Granagh missed a perfect chance, Ernesto was the only one who lamented, pounding the ground.

West Ham bypasses the midfield and launches direct attacks.

Thwack-!

Johan heads down Hurichel’s goal kick,

Tata tat-!

Which Barkley quickly snatches up.

Thwack-!

Barkley passes it back and penetrates.

Jenkins on the right receives the ball.

When defending, Man City drops their left and right wingers to the midfield, forming a 4-4-2 formation.

But even if they drop to the midfield, they are attackers by nature.

They aren’t of much help in defense.

The pressure from left winger Araujo, pressing Jenkins, was poor,

Thwack-

Thwack-!

Jenkins easily broke free by exchanging a one-two pass with Capello.

As Jenkins continued to dribble and penetrate the right side, West Ham naturally gained a numerical advantage.

Man City’s left-back was marking Barkley.

The rest were busy checking Johan, who had already positioned himself in front of the goal.

It meant Jenkins had a free chance to cross.

Whoosh-!

Jenkins sends in an early cross.

In the past, Jenkins wouldn’t have easily attempted a cross in this situation, but not anymore.

Jenkins’ cross, which he had diligently honed since last season, was at a level comparable to Petrovic.

The reason Jenkins’ cross could grow so quickly was, of course, thanks to confidence.

And the source of that confidence was Johan.

Knowing that Johan would take care of it even if he just put it up decently, there was no reason to hesitate to cross.

Whoosh-!

A cross that curves inward.

Because it was raised from the right with his right foot, it drew a trajectory that curved backward.

Johan jumped towards that trajectory.

Did Ernesto say he thought today’s game was basketball?

If so,

This is a fadeaway shot [a basketball move where a player jumps away from the basket while shooting].

Thwaaack-!

Like the wrist snap of basketball players, Johan’s neck snapped quickly at the moment of impact.

His neck strength was so good that even though he jumped backward, the power in his header was considerable, and the shot soaring towards the goal was more like a shot than a header.

Whoosh-!

Man City’s goalkeeper, Eduardo, reaches his hand back.

That meant his timing was late.

Thud-!

The net ripples once again.

People could finally understand why Ernesto was so furious.

<2 shots, 2 goals! Johan Ban! Is it because it's a game with the championship on the line! His finishing is shining even brighter today! Terrifying concentration!>

Today’s game has the championship on the line.

It meant that Johan had no choice but to concentrate more than ever.

Therefore, Man City couldn’t afford to miss a single chance.

But Granagh unbelievably blew such an easy chance.

It was only natural that Ernesto was so furious.

On the other hand.

“Let’s concentrate more.”

“Okay.”

The Man City players were more composed than expected.

*

In fact, would anything have changed?

Even if the Man City players had approached the game with as much motivation as Ernesto or Hauer.

The opponent is Johan.

Moreover, Johan, who can secure his retirement if he wins today’s game.

Johan is hard to stop even if he plays casually.

But today, you can feel that his eyes are different.

Although Ban Seok-ho and Rohan had watched every one of Johan’s games without missing a single one.

There had never been a day when they felt such determination as today.

“Let’s go!”

“Destroy them!”

That’s why they wanted to cheer him on even more.

They wanted to see him achieve what he had truly wanted on his own.

And,

Johan was doing well on his own.

*

When the first half ended, the score was 3-1.

West Ham, or rather Johan, showed focused play every time they attacked, but Man City missed many opportunities, showing a 2 percent lack of finishing.

It was only natural that Ernesto turned the locker room upside down during halftime.

“Don’t say a word, any of you! Just listen to me! You don’t deserve to offer opinions!”

It was a hellish halftime for the Man City players.

Throughout halftime, the players had to endure Ernesto’s scolding and were criticized for every mistake they made in the first half.

However, most of the players didn’t feel the sting of the scolding that much.

There’s nothing to lose even if we lose.

But there’s something to gain.

From next year, we won’t have to face Johan.

We can reclaim our throne in the Premier League.

Well, it’s not like I’m suggesting match-fixing.

That’s ridiculous.

Isn’t match-fixing something you do when you can throw a game you could win if you wanted to?

I don’t think we could beat Johan today even if we wanted to.

The Man City players were more afraid of Johan than Ernesto’s scolding.

Therefore,

Man City’s situation didn’t improve much in the second half either.

Minute 12 of the second half.

Johan’s fourth goal exploded.

Capello earned a free kick right in front of the arc, and Johan shook the net with a shot that exquisitely cleared the wall.

The score is now 4-1.

With the score widening, the crowd was already preparing to pop the champagne.

However,

as if it wouldn’t be dramatic enough to end like this.

In the 18th minute of the second half, Javier Araujo scored a goal,

Ten minutes later, in the 28th minute of the second half, Granach pushed the ball in during a scramble in front of the goal following a corner kick, and Man City closed the gap by another point.

The atmosphere in the stadium naturally became strange.

A sense of unease began to creep in, and the strange energy was transferred to the players as well.

West Ham is a young and strong team.

But, if there’s one weakness, it’s experience.

A team where everyone from the coach to the players has no experience winning the league.

As a team challenging for their first-ever title, their motivation is great, but they are a team with the potential for a lack of experience to cause problems at crucial moments.

“Slow down!”

“Let’s stay calm! Pass the ball around!”

It seemed necessary to calm the atmosphere first.

There were about 15 minutes left.

It’s a long time if you think about it, but it’s not an impossible time to protect a one-point lead if you spend it wisely.

West Ham passes the ball around in the back, and Man City brings the front press.

In the process, some 불안한 모습 [uneasy moments] are exposed.

Scenes where, if a pass had been cut off or the ball had been stolen, it would have led to a crisis situation.

“This is driving me crazy, really…”

“Did it have to be like this at the end?”

“Hey, this isn’t fun, guys. It’s not like winning dramatically is the only way to be thrilling!”

“Why is time going so slowly?”

The spectators watch anxiously.

Everyone puts their hands together and just hopes that time will pass without incident and the whistle will blow.

The players are just as anxious.

Time is passing so slowly.

5 minutes feels like 50 minutes.

It feels like they’ve kept the ball for quite a while, but there’s still a lot of time left.

In the meantime, the Man City players who came in as substitutes are pressing even harder.

“Not this way!”

“Don’t give it to me! No space!”

Capello, who has the ball, gritted his teeth as he looked for a place to pass.

These idiots are avoiding the ball.

As if the ball is some kind of bomb.

He curses inwardly, but it’s not like Capello wants to hold the ball for long either.

In the end,

Capello naturally looked for the guy he could rely on the most.

Thump-!

“Protect me!”

Capello passes the ball to Johan.

In the end, Johan is the only one to trust.

Still, Johan will be able to keep the ball for a long time.

If he puts his mind to it, even for 5 minutes!

Whirr-!

Johan grabs the ball on the right.

The Man City players rush towards Johan.

Johan puts the ball down and blocks their challenges with his body.

Three or four people rush at him, but they can’t easily take it away.

The Man City players are pushed back instead.

“Yeah! Protect it!”

“It’s okay! Just protect it! Buy time!”

Watching that, the spectators and teammates.

They could relax a little.

But,

Johan had no intention of stopping there.

‘What are you guys doing?’

Perhaps Johan, the youngest, was the only one who hadn’t lost his judgment in the last moment of anxiety and was maintaining his composure.

To protect a one-point lead, what West Ham had to do wasn’t to pass the ball around and waste time.

What we do best.

The reason we were able to come this far.

We had to do that.

If the goal is to stall for time, it’s right not to attack even if you can.

If you have the ball, you won’t give the opponent a chance to attack, but if you fail to attack, you’ll naturally give them a chance to attack.

But,

That’s why you just have to not fail.

Right in front of the arc.

Johan, who broke through the pressure of three or four people, put the ball on the instep of his foot.

And,

He kept it.

The story he told in an interview two years ago.

That promise to win the championship at West Ham.

*

3:42···

2:37···

1:59···

0:47···

0:01···

90:00

WHU 5 : 3 MCI

Perhaps it was the slowest minute for everyone at London Stadium.

As well as for all the Hammers [West Ham fans] watching this broadcast.

It was an eternity of a minute, as if time had stopped.

But,

time flows.

Hurrichel clears the goal kick high into the sky.

And,

That kick became a 祝砲 [celebratory cannon fire] celebrating the victory.

“Beep, beep, beeeeeeeeeep-!”

The referee’s whistle, signaling the end of the game, rang out clearly.

And,

“Waaaaaaaaaaaaah-!”

A huge roar that soon covers everything.

Thud-!

Johan knelt down, and his teammates began to pounce on him.