Lazy Genius Striker [EN]: Chapter 79

< 078. Going Together >

Before today’s game, Chelsea’s defenders huddled together for a serious discussion.

The topic was how to stop Johann.

Opinions were quite divided.

“Fouls are the only way. It’s the fastest,” one argued.

“But he always gets the ball inside the box, or at least near it. Fouling him means giving away a dangerous free kick.”

“Besides, fouling him isn’t easy. His strength and balance are insane, so he doesn’t go down easily.”

The idea of stopping him with fouls whenever he got the ball seemed reasonable at first, but it was quickly dismissed.

The problem was his position when he received the ball: always close to the goal.

Therefore, fouling him would at least result in a direct free kick, or at worst, a penalty kick.

Moreover, fouling him itself was a difficult task.

Everyone hesitated to admit it, but Niklas Ginter and Shay Bellamy were injured in the last game after colliding with him.

If they rushed in again this time, the same thing would likely happen.

“I think it’s better to play a waiting game on defense,” Matthias Gustavo, the brain and commander of Chelsea’s defense, suggested.

Rushing in wouldn’t suit a large, powerful striker, but Johann was also a good dribbler.

His instantaneous speed was fast, and his footwork was excellent.

Therefore, rushing in rashly would easily get them outplayed in an instant.

Gustavo thought it would be better to wait, block the angles as much as possible, and block shots with their bodies even if it meant giving up shooting space.

The other players nodded in agreement.

Thanks to that, a somewhat rare scene was unfolding.

Johann slowly dribbling the ball up, surrounded by Chelsea midfielders.

And behind them, Chelsea defenders forming a dense line.

All of them moving in unison, maintaining a certain distance.

So, it looked as if Johann was slowly pushing through the waves alone.

Tatatatat-!

“Left, I’m going!”

“I’m going inside!”

While Johann advanced slowly, Nathan and Barkley quickly moved down the sides.

At the same time,

“He’s behind you, too!”

“I’m here!”

Gordon and Capello shouted loudly to distract the defense’s attention.

However,

Chelsea’s defenders remained unmoved.

Their eyes were only on Johann’s feet.

The formation was not breaking down.

Everyone seemed to be focused on stopping only Johann.

In that case, Johann didn’t need to make it difficult for himself.

Tat-!

Johann glanced slightly to the right and cocked his right foot back as if to pass.

Then, the defensive line swayed greatly.

That motion alone made all the defenders step back.

But Johann didn’t pass into that space.

Instead,

Sreureuk-

He stepped back on the ball.

A short back pass to Capello behind him.

“Alright!”

Capello, who had been waiting for it, ran towards the ball and pulled back his left foot.

Bbeoeoeoeong-!

A shot that was curled in after a simple set of steps.

The shot drew a beautiful arc towards the far post, the corner of the left goal.

However,

Paah-!

Chelsea’s goalkeeper, Kamaru Gomis, leaped up like a spring and stretched out his hand, and the ball touched the very tip of it.

The shot was deflected outwards, narrowly missing the goal.

A sigh of disappointment erupted from the London Stadium.

But soon, applause broke out.

If it hadn’t been for Gomis’s animalistic save, the shot would have gone straight in.

The home fans applauded and cheered for creating the first effective shot.

Also,

“You bastards, you’re so scared!”

“Johann is untouchable! Why, are you afraid of breaking your necks again? Hahaha!”

“Strong against the weak, how pathetic!”

“Try body checking again, you morons!”

Taunts were also hurled towards the Chelsea players.

They were rushing in to kill just a moment ago, but when Johann got the ball, they suddenly became gentlemanly.

Literally strong against the weak.

The jeers of ridicule were clearly audible, but the Chelsea players gritted their teeth and pretended not to hear.

“Good. Keep the defense like this!” Gomis, the goalkeeper, clapped his hands and shouted to the defenders.

It was close, but the defense was successful anyway.

No matter what, the goal of today’s defense was to not give Johann a shot.

Of course, Johann is also excellent at passing, so in this case, the chances of other players getting opportunities were very high.

Like just now.

However, Gomis was the goalkeeper who said he would take responsibility for the other guys.

Gomis thought that if it wasn’t Johann, he could handle the other guys even if they had a 1-on-1 chance, and the defenders agreed.

This was the best.

However,

The problem was the corner kick.

A situation where Chelsea’s plans could all go wrong.

That was the corner kick situation.

First of all, Capello cannot be stopped with rough physical contact. He’s the corner kick taker.

Also,

Physical contact with Johann cannot be avoided either.

How can they stop his header without physical contact when he’s standing right in front of the goal?

In many ways, this corner kick situation is a checkmate for Chelsea.

That doesn’t mean they can just stand by and do nothing.

Chelsea places as many players as possible in the box.

Two players stand on either side of the goal, and the rest surround Johann as if to encircle him.

Gomis goalkeeper clenched his fists and prepared to jump out.

Niklas Ginter, who is top class in aerial duels, is there, but Johann’s aerial ability is better than Ginter’s.

The only one who can handle it if the kick comes high is himself, the goalkeeper.

The opponent will definitely handle the corner kick high.

Then it might be better.

It doesn’t make sense for a goalkeeper who can use his hands to lose in aerial duels.

“Beeeep-!”

The whistle blew, and amidst the chaotic players in the box.

Bbeoeoeoeong-!

Capello’s left-footed corner kick flew towards the goal in a crescent shape.

As expected, it was aimed at Johann’s head.

Tatatat-!

It is common to judge whether to go out and punch the ball or leave it to the defense by looking at the kick.

However, Gomis, who had already decided to punch the ball before it was kicked, was already jumping when the ball entered near the box.

But,

Gomis’s eyes wavered.

‘It’s high.’

The ball is higher than he thought.

No matter how much he stretches out his hand, it’s a height he can’t reach.

However, he has already jumped.

His body is in the air, so he can’t reverse his choice.

Syuuuuuung-

Gomis stretched out his hand with all his might, but Capello’s kick brushed past his hand.

Gomis’s clear misjudgment.

However,

Gomis had hope.

‘If it’s a height that even my hand can’t reach…’

If it’s a height that even the goalkeeper’s hand can’t reach, no one will be able to touch the ball.

In the end, the ball will flow out to the back, and if he lands quickly and returns to the goal, he will be able to handle the situation afterwards.

But,

Gomis’s expectations were shattered.

In Gomis’s gaze that followed the ball,

“···!”

There was Johann’s face.

Paah-!

Syuuuuuung-

Cheolseok-!

Johann’s header was sucked into the empty goal that Gomis had vacated.

Chelsea players looked at Gomis goalkeeper with reproachful eyes, and Gomis goalkeeper knelt down and lowered his head.

The reason why the last game was difficult was because they lost in the early stages.

But, they conceded the opening goal again.

Because of that,

“Waaaaaaa-!”

“Vanny! What are you doing jumping up to the second floor!”

“Good kick, Capello!”

“Hammers! Hammers! Hammers!”

The atmosphere of the London Stadium began to be filled with excitement.

It was a moment when Chelsea felt that today’s game would be difficult again.

Johann’s opening goal in the 11th minute of the first half was a big poison for Chelsea and a big gain for West Ham.

~Oh, oh! Dash like a Vanny!

~Bounce like a Vanny!

~Come on you hammers!

~Let’s Dash like a Vanny!

A cheering song that resonates in a loud voice.

There is a cheering song that has been sung as often as West Ham’s representative cheering song, ‘I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles,’ since recently.

The title is ‘Dash like a Vanny.’

It is a cheering song that changed the bunny in the original song ‘Dash like a bunny’ to Vanny, which refers to Johann.

In fact, this was a cheering song with a fairly long tradition. It was a cheering song that was made even before Johann started playing soccer.

“······.”

Ban Seok-ho, who was watching the game from the stands, seemed unable to control his emotions as goosebumps spread throughout his body.

‘Dash like a Vanny’ was a cheering song that was sung for Ban Seok-ho.

That cheering song is being sung to his son Johann as it is.

So,

It is natural that Ban Seok-ho’s emotions fluctuate as he shares that sight.

Every time he hears this cheering song, his heart swells and his eyes turn red.

How can he not love this team and these fans?

“I’m being a nuisance again.”

“Keup···”

“Still, you were crying completely last time, but you’re a little better today. They say that men have more female hormones as they get older.”

“It’s because I’m happy…”

“If you’re happy, laugh. Like me.”

Ban Seok-ho chuckled at Kim Ra-hee’s words.

Anyway, the cheering song that has now become Johann’s continued to echo throughout the stadium.

“Dash like a Vanny!”

Although it has disappeared now, there is a reason why the away goal system existed in the past in European competitions [a rule that gave more weight to goals scored away from home in the event of a tie].

Home and away are completely different.

It is not uncommon for a team that showed frustrating performance away to win overwhelmingly at home.

Moreover, West Ham had won even at Stamford Bridge [Chelsea’s home stadium].

In other words, Chelsea was able to create a score of 3 to 2 by following up to a 1-point difference because it was their home game.

However, the London Stadium was completely heated up in West Ham’s atmosphere, and the players who gained strength from the heat fought even more vigorously against Chelsea.

The content itself flowed evenly, but West Ham defended Johann’s opening goal well and was able to start the second half with a lead.

The atmosphere in the second half was not much different from the first half.

West Ham is clearly a team experiencing an overall decline in squad stamina.

However, Chelsea was not much different.

Chelsea’s squad is clearly thicker than West Ham’s.

The reserve resources sitting on the Chelsea bench are also competitive in mid-tier teams, or even top-tier teams.

However, it should not be overlooked that Chelsea is playing a larger number of games.

FA Cup, League Cup, and Champions League.

Chelsea players are playing in 4 competitions including the league.

It would have been better if they had been eliminated early, but there is no crime in winning.

Anyway, Chelsea, whose concentration is dispersed in several places, was unable to use their stamina as an advantage against West Ham, who were pouring all their concentration into the league.

Furthermore, the fact that they poured a lot of energy into the first half cannot be ignored.

Chelsea had set the point of today’s game on gaining the upper hand in the early stages.

Unless that worked, it was impossible to gain an advantage in stamina even if they entered the second half.

In the 36th minute of the second half, Johann’s additional goal was scored.

Usually, a goal that makes the score 2-0 is not expressed as a wedge goal [a goal that secures a victory], but this was a wedge goal.

Anyway, they were running hard enough to get a tie, but it was a goal that poured cold water on it.

Chelsea, who were completely exhausted.

In the end, that was it.

West Ham takes a double win against Chelsea with two wins.

With this, they have won their 19th league game and maintained a 3-point gap with first-place Manchester City.

Everyone expected it.

When they drew with Southampton in the 20th round and lost to Manchester City in the 21st round.