Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 34

< Who to Use? >

Following his first shot with a header, Maguire continued to assert his presence.

A so-called hexagonal striker [a player proficient in multiple aspects of attacking]. Maguire embodied that perfectly.

Physicality.

Linkage [connecting plays between teammates].

Shooting.

Maguire spearheaded Tottenham’s attack with a diverse range of activity, covering the front line, dropping into the second line, and drifting to both the left and right flanks.

Maguire’s ability to influence the entire field as a striker was truly remarkable.

“He’s a good player, Maguire.”

“He’s a national team player.”

“I wonder how long he’ll stay at Tottenham.”

“I heard he’s moving to Man City soon.”

“He’s too good to stay at Tottenham.”

Even West Ham fans couldn’t deny his performance.

Of course, they couldn’t bring themselves to praise Tottenham directly, so most of them claimed he didn’t quite fit in with Tottenham’s style.

But that, in itself, was a significant compliment.

Certainly, having a striker like that makes the game considerably easier.

A striker with a diverse skillset.

A striker who significantly influences the entire game.

It was quite a contrast to Johan, who hadn’t even touched the ball yet.

“···”

After Maguire’s threatening shots went wide several times, despite not resulting in any goals, the eyes of the two managers in the technical area met briefly.

Manager Reyes wore a relaxed expression.

Manager Schmidt could almost feel the question in Reyes’ gaze.

‘Are you still planning to use Johan, Manager?’

Well, I don’t know if Manager Reyes was actually thinking that.

But, if he was thinking that, there’s an answer we can give too.

‘Maguire is definitely a good striker.’

Maguire.

He’s a good player.

But,

‘If those chances had fallen to Johan, it would already be 3-0, wouldn’t it?’

If the opportunities that went to Maguire had been Johan’s, he would have converted them all.

Just watch.

See if this is just me being biased towards my player, or if it’s an objective assessment.

“Nice defense! Keep it up!”

“Spacing! Maintain your spacing!”

“Focus!”

West Ham was holding on defensively.

They were conceding possession with a ratio of about 4 to 6, and the number of passes was almost three times as much, making it difficult to even get the ball, let alone launch an attack.

But, the priority was to avoid conceding a goal while the opponent was on the offensive.

Football, with its 90-minute duration, rarely sees one side dominate completely.

Surely, if they continued to hold on like this, there would be a shift in momentum, and if they capitalized on that shift, opportunities would arise.

And, around the 15th minute of the first half, it happened.

“Huerrichel!”

“?”

“Let’s try it once!”

During a West Ham goal kick, Huerrichel nodded at the suggestion from center back Lucas Simone to try out the patterns they had been practicing.

Instead of simply clearing the ball safely, they were going to attempt a controlled play.

The center backs positioned themselves wide on either side of the box.

Paah-!

Huerrichel made a short pass from the goal kick.

Tataht-!

Tottenham’s front pressing began immediately.

It was an intense pressure that pushed right up to the edge of the goal.

Evading the opponent’s pressure, West Ham defenders circulated the ball.

“Ugh, I wish we wouldn’t do things like that.”

“Can’t we just kick it away?”

“I’m nervous!”

West Ham fans watching the scene were anxious.

It was understandable.

It was a precarious tightrope walk.

If they lost possession there, or if they misplaced a pass, they could concede a crucial opportunity.

It would be one thing if the opponent was exceptionally skilled and created a chance, but it would be frustrating to risk a dangerous play for no reason.

But,

What was clear was that a play with risk always had the potential for a significant reward.

Paah-!

Tottenham’s defensive line had already pushed high as West Ham played the ball deep.

As mentioned before, front pressing must be executed in an organized manner.

Individual pressing would only waste stamina.

Therefore, once the decision to press was made, all players had to move in coordination.

Tottenham’s midfield raised their line to support the attackers who were pressing forward, and the defensive line also pushed up to maintain the formation.

A chain reaction.

And,

The moment they confirmed that movement.

Paah-!

Simone allowed the ball to roll back into a good kicking position.

Ppeoooeeeeoooong-!

Huerrichel’s right foot, having subtly checked Johan’s position, unleashed a powerful kick towards the front.

Shuuuuuuuuung-

A low, fast kick, known as a liner kick, instantly soared over the heads of the Tottenham players.

A long kick that bypassed the short build-up process and crossed the halfway line in one swift motion.

Huerrichel’s long kick, proving why he wore West Ham’s keeper gloves, was both fast and accurate.

And.

Paah-!

The moment Johan made his first touch of the game, a huge exclamation erupted from the audience.

“Wow···!”

Johan, leaping to win the aerial duel against Tottenham’s defender, Nkoudou, received Huerrichel’s powerful kick with his forehead, displaying an artistic touch.

He cushioned the ball so exquisitely that it floated vertically and beautifully.

But the subsequent action was even more impressive.

The moment the ball floated upwards, Johan quickly turned his body.

And,

Paah-!

He controlled the falling ball again with a backheel, flicking it over Nkoudou’s head.

Completely outmaneuvering the opponent’s defense with just two touches.

It was an amazing display of judgment and elegant ball control.

In addition,

He followed up even faster.

Tatatatat-!

Johan started running after playing the ball long.

Tottenham’s back space was wide open because they had pushed their defensive line high.

Besides, no one anticipated that Nkoudou, who was marking Johan, would be so easily and quickly outplayed.

There was no cover from fellow defenders.

“Keuk!”

Nkoudou reached out his hand to try and grab the hem of Johan’s uniform as he sped past.

But, he couldn’t reach.

How could he be so fast?

Johan was already far ahead.

“···””···”

The audience members stood up one by one.

The gazes of tens of thousands of people converged, and a breathless anticipation filled the London Stadium.

Receiving such attention, Johan approached the box.

Tottenham’s goalkeeper gritted his teeth and came out to narrow the angle.

But,

Thank you for coming out.

Because there was no need to dribble it in further.

Paah-!

Tuk.

Johan lightly chipped the bottom of the ball.

That shot,

Shuuuuuung-

Gracefully sailed over the goalkeeper’s head,

Cheol렁-!

Lightly rippled Tottenham’s goal net.

It was a lob shot that was unbelievable for a 16-year-old boy’s finish.

One shot, one kill.

The first goal of today’s game,

Scored by West Ham, not Tottenham, who had been dominating the game.

“Woo-hoo-hoo-!”

The London Stadium erupted in a frenzy.

The atmosphere of the London Stadium was electric.

But,

It wasn’t just the audience that was excited.

The most excited was Jeff Huerrichel.

“Wh, where is that guy going?”

“Why is he so scary?”

Dududududu-

The moment Johan’s goal went in,

Huerrichel was running somewhere, making a heavy thumping sound.

His face flushed red.

Huerrichel’s nickname, due to his pale skin and platinum blonde hair, was Cyborg.

When Huerrichel’s face turned red with excitement like that,

“Cyborg overheating···!”

“H, hey. Shouldn’t we pour in some coolant?”

He became an overheated cyborg.

“Uh-uh-uh···!”

“Wh, why is he running over there?”

“Ru, run away! If you collide with that, you’ll fly away!”

The players who ran to Johan were flustered when they saw the red cyborg running towards them from afar.

Huerrichel was running to Johan.

Usually,

Huerrichel didn’t express his emotions.

The nickname Cyborg was given not only because of his appearance but also because of his machine-like silence, even when a goal was scored.

But, Huerrichel was so excited like this.

It was because one of his dreams had just come true.

‘Assist!’

His kick accurately reached Johan,

And Johan converted it into a goal.

It was his assist.

According to PL [Premier League] regulations, the last player to pass the ball is credited with the assist, regardless of how many touches there are.

The dream he had been aiming for since he was young had come true.

This was something that even a cyborg couldn’t help but get excited about.

“Johan!”

“Keueok···!”

Huerrichel tackled Johan in a hug.

If it was another ordinary player, not Johan, he would have been sent flying backwards.

Huerrichel hugged him so tightly,

Thanks to that, Johan was a little embarrassed.

“Thankful!”

“Uh··· Yes.”

What’s with this guy?

Why are you coming all the way here and doing this?

“Wow!”

“Did you see it! Did you see it!”

“You arrogant punks! How dare you ignore my son!?”

The West Ham fans jumped up the moment Johan’s goal went in, and Ban Seok-ho, Rohan, and Kim Ra-hee were the same.

“Woo-ha-ha! Who are you going to use? Who are you going to use?”

“You said you’d know if you saw it? You said you’d know if you saw it?”

“Now that old man knows too!”

“If you still don’t know, you’re a soccer idiot!”

Ban Seok-ho and Rohan burst into laughter at the back of Manager Reyes’ head.

What? Mason Maguire?

I wouldn’t take him even if you gave him to me!

With Johan, who else do we need!

Those Tottenham guys are arrogant and don’t understand their place.

Good for you!

“As expected, he’s my son!”

“What are you talking about! I gave birth to him!”

“I gave birth to him with my seed!”

“I was pregnant for 10 months, why are you doing this!”

Anyone who heard it would think they were fighting, but Ban Seok-ho and Kim Ra-hee were hugging each other and rejoicing.

Really,

It felt like 10 years of indigestion had vanished.

It’s refreshing to give those noisy neighbors, who I don’t even want to see, a punch, and if that’s my son and brother,
how happy would I be.

“I won’t nag you even if you don’t brush your teeth today!”

“What? Who said you could? No matter what, that’s not allowed!”

“Hyung will brush them for you instead! Just say ah~!”

What’s amazing is that the main character of the goal is a sixteen-year-old boy who is still treated like a baby at home.

“Beep, beep-!”

The first half ended with West Ham leading 1-0 thanks to Johan’s goal.

It was a score that Tottenham could feel was unfair.

According to the statistics, Tottenham was overwhelmingly dominant with 64% to 36% possession in the first half.

The shots were also overwhelmingly in their favor at 8 to 2.

But the score was 1 to 0, with West Ham leading, so it was understandable that they felt aggrieved.

In the end, it came down to whether or not they could capitalize on their momentum.

Football is a sport where you have to score when you have the chance.

It’s a simple concept, but if you don’t produce results when you have the upper hand, you inevitably cede control to the opponent.

Tottenham had the upper hand for longer than West Ham, but they failed to convert that into goals.

On the other hand, West Ham scored even though they had less of the ball.

Thanks to that,

West Ham found it easier to defend after Johan’s goal.

The pattern of play didn’t change much in the second half.

“Those guys are in a hurry.”

“They’d be in a hurry. They should have scored enough goals, but they couldn’t score any.”

“Maguire is good at everything, but that’s a bit of a problem. His finishing ability isn’t very good.”

“Maguire is definitely fun to watch. But, our Johan is a player who makes us win the game.”

West Ham fans said happily, watching the Tottenham players making mistakes in the second half.

“How much is Maguire’s price? About 120 billion [Korean Won, approximately $90 million USD]?”

“It’ll be about that much.”

“Then, if you gave me that Maguire worth over 120 billion and asked me to exchange him for Johan, would you exchange him?”

At one fan’s question, another fan scoffed.

“Are you crazy? I wouldn’t exchange him.”

“Really? If you exchange him now, you’ll make a profit of about 40 billion [Korean Won, approximately $30 million USD]?”

“A profit of 40 billion? Hey. That’s now. Think about it in about 2 years. Then their prices will be reversed, right?”

“I guess.”

“And, imagine Johan playing for Tottenham. Can you handle it?”

“Then we’d be losing 0 to 3 by now.”

“0 to 3 is a relief. It wouldn’t be strange even if it was 0 to 5.”

If today’s game was played with the strikers of both teams switched, the game content might have been a little different, but the score would have been different too.

If it was Johan, he would never have missed the chances that Maguire missed.

“We have to thank Barney [Johan’s father]. Thanks to him, we got such a player for free, right?”

“That’s right. We have to be grateful to Korea. They’re in charge of our team’s striker for two generations.”

“If Barney played for Tottenham, ugh. That’s a terrible thought.”

All West Ham fans were already ready to confidently answer the question that Manager Reyes had posed.

England national team striker, Mason Maguire.

And Johan Ban, a 16-year-old boy who is three months into his debut.

If you had to choose one of the two,

Who would you use as the starting striker?

The answer was already decided.

But,

If there were still people hesitating to answer,
as if to give them confidence.