100. Because It's There and Gone -3
Thwack-!
I place the ball I’d tucked under my arm down in the middle of the center circle.
And only then do I exchange high-fives with my teammates.
“Bene!”
“Nice!”
“Let’s do this, let’s do this!”
It’s a situation where every second counts, and though we did score a goal, it’s still not enough, so the time spent sharing joy is short.
All the teammates who exchanged high-fives with me quickly cross the halfway line and head to their positions.
07:42
FIO 1 : 0 MIL
Looking up at the scoreboard, the time was approaching the 8th minute.
For now, it’s good.
I managed to score at quite—no, a considerably early time, just as I’d aimed for.
“Phew.”
Honestly, it’s partly because of the situation, but... I feel slightly dazed.
...Just what was I thinking, trying to break through that defense?
When I try to recall that moment, no thoughts come to mind.
Well, of course—it’s because I charged in without thinking.
But it worked, and I got through all of the opponent’s defenders and even scored.
I’m surprised at myself for having done something so absurd.
That I didn’t pass there and instead thought to carry the ball up alone and finish it off.
Maybe because it’s the pitch I returned to after so long; I clearly wasn’t in my right mind, just like when I first debuted.
I suppose the opponent was probably so flabbergasted that their reaction was delayed.
If there was anyone who expected me to push in like that during build-up play rather than a counterattack, they shouldn’t have been a footballer but a prophet.
Because that isn’t the right way to attack a two-line defense.
But... I don’t know.
The fact that it worked precisely because it wasn’t the correct method feels a bit amusing.
I’m sure that normally, I wouldn’t have squeezed through the center like that.
It wasn’t as if I had a partner like Vlahović to jostle with the defenders and help with the link-up play, nor had the defensive line crumbled to make gaps visible to the eye.
Rather, the opponent’s defensive shape had perfect spacing, and the moment I faced it, it was so compact it felt suffocating.
So normally, I would have started by moving left and right to unsettle their lines through passing.
That would have been more... correct.
In other words, a safer method with a lower chance of failure.
The opponent isn’t some U-17 team; they’re league-leading AC Milan, so I would have approached it even more cautiously.
But... just now, I went for it first and thought later.
Of course, I had no confidence from the start that I could break through them all.
My head definitely tried to stop my feet.
But my feet spoke to me.
They told me to just go forward.
So I simply went forward.
How could I have been so reckless?
“Lee! Lee! Lee! Lee! Lee! Lee!”
While the opponent delays kickoff for a moment to exchange tactical signals, I look at the fans sending cheers my way.
Perhaps the reason I could be so reckless... even if I failed to break through the defense, even if I took a slightly wrong path.
...was because I had faith that they weren’t the kind of people to send jeers my way.
What on earth... who are those people, cheering me on like this?
“...!”
Overcome by a surging feeling, I end up doing something I’d never done in my life.
I wave my arms up over and over, telling the fans to cheer louder, loud enough to drown out the opponent.
“──!!!”
In response, the fans filling the stands reply by causing an earthquake at the Artemio Franchi.
My ears go numb, and vibrations travel up the soles of my feet to shake my heart.
I don’t know for sure, but... in this atmosphere, I thought that even a team like AC Milan couldn’t help but gulp nervously.
*
“Focus! Don’t get swept up in the atmosphere!”
Hearing the voice from behind on the left, I nod and look at the opponent.
The captain is indeed the captain, maintaining his composure even in this atmosphere and reminding me that we still have a long way to go.
On the pitch, he is that kind of captain—so why at the training ground does he fool around playing stupid pranks with the other seniors?
If that’s for the sake of team unity, it really makes me think being a captain isn’t something just anyone can do.
Swish-!
Swish-!
The opponent is circulating the ball with horizontal passes from a deep position.
I can sense Giroud and Leão making occasional movements, but forward passes toward them rarely come out.
I wonder if it’s thanks to our defense being that perfect, but I think it’s closer to them having no intention of pushing up at all.
If that weren’t the case, they couldn’t be so relaxed.
The center-back taps it to the fullback.
The fullback taps it back to the center-back.
The center-back taps it again to the fullback on the opposite side.
They pass the ball amongst themselves without even looking forward; anyone watching would think there were nearly 90 minutes left.
Trying to figure out the opponent’s intentions, I wonder if they too are thinking they shouldn’t get swept up in the atmosphere.
Though we scored an opening goal—no, an equalizer—early on, our weakness remains that we are playing this match at home.
That damn away goals rule.
Since today’s one goal of ours and one goal of the opponent’s hold different value, isn’t the opponent acting relaxed with the thought that they only need to score one?
Swish-!
I don’t think the opponent’s attitude is necessarily bad for us either.
It’s true that time flowing seemingly meaninglessly is regrettable, but the opponent is a team whose strength lies in attack.
There can’t be anything bad about them sealing away that strength themselves.
Moreover, since our defensive tactics aren’t based on pressing, when we don’t have the ball, the front three including me just wait in dropped positions.
This means we can save the stamina we need for attack.
It’s not a bad thing.
It’s not a bad thing, but... I can’t help the urge to get on the ball quickly.
A veteran like the captain may be able to maintain composure in this situation, but I can’t.
Listening to the fans’ roars that seem to have been waiting only for me, and thinking that among those voices are my dad’s and Jiu’s...
I don’t want to spend my time leisurely like this.
Tap-tap-tap-!
After glancing around, I make a slight movement to the left.
In front of me, the opponent’s midfielder Tonali was holding the ball and looking forward, while behind me, Kessié was holding his position.
If you drew a straight line between those two, I was standing right on that line.
I moved slightly away from there.
This was to bring Kessié into Tonali’s field of vision.
If he refrains from a forward pass here as well, I have no choice but to feel disappointed while acknowledging it.
But Tonali, too, seemed unable to resist this one.
Swish-!
The pass goes by my side and crosses the halfway line.
At the same time, I turn my body and chase that pass.
Then I see Kessié trapping the ball under his feet, and Bonaventura and Torreira rushing toward him.
Tap-tap-tap-!
I join in on their press alongside those two.
If the opponent succeeds in playing out of this pressure, it will become dangerous, but if we manage to steal the ball...
The opponent will have sent the ball into a dead end, nothing more.
Tap-tap-tap-!
I can see the opponent’s eyes waver at the tightening net closing in from all sides.
Honestly, I could see a way out of the press with my own eyes, so it was a bit chilling, but...
As long as it wasn’t visible to the opponent’s eyes, it didn’t matter.
Swish-!
The ball grazes the short leg of Torreira, who had leaned his upper body back and stretched out.
Because of that, the ball flows to the side, and Bonaventura picks it up as if he had been waiting for it.
And then...
Swoosh-
The ball is delivered to me.
Swish-!
I receive that ball with my right foot, and while my body is facing toward our own goal, I wait a moment.
I could turn around right away, but somehow I felt the defense would drop far back if I did.
I wanted the opposing players to swarm me, and the opponent, having lost the ball in a slightly dangerous position, had no choice but to do so even without me wishing for it.
Tap-tap-tap-!
In front, Kessié; behind, Tonali.
From left and right, the other midfielders close in on me.
Having lost the ball in an attacking situation, this is a situation that can lead to a counterattack.
In this situation, the best defensive method is to win the ball back right where it was lost.
Therefore, the opponent’s response wasn’t the wrong one; rather, it was the correct response, but...
Because of that, it becomes perfectly readable to me.
Tap-
Thwaaaaack-!
After nudging the ball to secure about one stride’s distance, I twist my body and strike the underside of the ball.
To the opponent, I might look reckless for playing a pass without checking my surroundings, but if you know your teammates’ tendencies, it’s not all that reckless.
Whooooosh-
The ball flies toward the right flank of the opponent’s half.
Taking in that pass and Romero running toward it, I too sprint forward.
Tap-tap-tap-!
The opponent’s left fullback, Theo Hernández, has quick feet, and because of that, he is a player who tends to position himself high up the pitch.
Thanks to his quick feet, his coverage is wide.
But right now, Romero has gotten a head start, and...
when it comes to speed, our Romero doesn’t easily fall behind.
Swish-!
Romero meets the bouncing ball with his foot. That his touch doesn’t kill the speed and the ball bounces forward makes it a good first touch.
However, that touch is a bit long.
Because of that, Romero and Hernández are in a footrace without the ball, and Romero running with short strides looks a bit desperate.
With his long legs, Hernández is definitely faster, and the gap between them was closing.
Tap-tap-tap-!
Keeping an eye on the situation on the right, I too run along the right half-space.
My destination is near the right side of the box.
But there are swarms of others heading to the same destination.
While running, I glance to the left, and Saponara charging in from the left looks incredibly out of place.
It meant that all the defenders were focused on me.
Swish-!
In that situation, Romero’s low cross begins to approach the box.
Because Hernández’s chase was fierce, it was a cross sent in immediately without time to trap the ball, and it was just as I was barely entering the box.
There are three defenders around me alone.
I cock my right foot as if to take a shot, then spread both legs wide as they were.
Swoosh-
The ball passes between those legs as if nothing happened.
Romero’s cross was an express train bound for Saponara, and I was not a stopping station.
“...!”
Turning my head, I see Saponara with a tense face looking at the ball coming toward him.
I shout something obvious, trying to ease the senior’s tension.
“Finish it!”
Tap-
Thwaaaaack-!
A shot struck right after trapping the ball slightly.
That shot...
Smack-!!
Once again shakes AC Milan’s goal net.
Waaaaaaah-!!!
The stadium shakes at the same time, and I wondered if the opponent could still pretend to be calm after this.
*
Even after conceding the opening goal, the opponent had expressed an attitude of “We’re still relaxed” by tapping the ball around, but after conceding a second time, they began to move as if their feet were on fire.
As expected, even in a tied situation, the opponent couldn’t pretend to be cool.
Thanks to that, the match caught fire.
Just like the atmosphere at the Artemio Franchi right now.
“Left!”
“Keep the line! Line!”
Against an opponent coming at us as if determined to score before halftime, we too move our feet busily.
The truly funny thing is that even after scoring two goals in quick succession, we are still the ones at a disadvantage.
That damn away goals rule.
It feels spiteful, but on the other hand, I can understand the reasoning.
Ahi ahi ahi-!
Magica Viola-!!
È triste il mio cuore lontano Da te-!
Magica Viola alè-!!
The cheering song the fans are singing strains my eardrums.
It was an atmosphere that made me think it’s a good thing I’m not the away team.
At this level, even if we gave the opponent a benefit, I don’t think they could complain.
There’s a saying in Korea that even lifting a blank sheet of paper is easier with two people.
It means that even for easy tasks, it’s better for two to combine their strength than one alone, so if tens of thousands combine their strength like now, couldn’t they accomplish just about anything?
...This is why I feel like I’m showing off my knowledge for no reason.
Still, I read a lot of books during my break, so I know quite a lot now.
“Great!”
“Get back in! Here!”
Anyway, that atmosphere made us run one step more and made things difficult for the opponent.
The opponent’s passes rarely created dangerous chances, and we showed the concentration to intercept passes that seemed impossible to cut off.
We seemed possessed by something, and the opponent seemed possessed by something too.
Beep, beeep-!
At the end of all that, the opponent ultimately had to greet the whistle announcing halftime without having gained anything.
45:00
FIO 2 : 0 MIL
Although there were still 45 minutes left, while heading to the locker room, I simply couldn’t imagine it.
An ending where we get eliminated in this atmosphere.