2024. 4. 16
─Manchester City crush Bayern Munich 6–2 on aggregate, advance to the semi-finals!
─PSG vs Manchester City, Real Madrid vs Dortmund semi-final fixtures confirmed
24. 4. 17
─‘Ballon d’Or three-way battle’ One of Bellingham, Mbappe, and Lee Ji-an will reach the Champions League final… The semi-finals are the watershed
─‘Kane Coin crash’ Harry Kane’s Ballon d’Or odds plummet following UCL quarter-final exit… Overtaken by Phil Foden
24. 4. 20
─[PL Round 33] Manchester City 2:1 Crystal Palace, Phil Foden and Lee Ji-an score one each
─[PL Round 33] Liverpool caught by Everton in the Merseyside derby… Painful dropped points
─[PL Round 33] Arsenal defeat Tottenham in the North London derby… Remain two points behind league leaders Man City
24. 4. 23
─‘Mbappe brace’ Paris Saint-Germain overpower Stade Rennais… League title secured early with five games remaining
─Seventh league title in his ninth year since debut, ‘Next Emperor’ Kylian Mbappe, will a coronation be held?… PSG challenge for the Treble having reached the UCL semi-finals and Coupe de France final
24. 4. 24
─Real Madrid overpower Las Palmas 3–0… 84 points, 12 points clear of second-place Barcelona… Just one match until title confirmation
─‘17th league goal’ Jude Bellingham, “Are you sure he’s a midfielder?” Tied for second in league scoring
24. 4. 25
─[PL Round 34] Arsenal 2:1 Fulham, Arsenal top by a point!
─[PL Round 34] Manchester City 1:0 Brentford, Man City reclaim first place!
24. 4. 29
─Real Madrid, 36th league title in club history! Real Madrid 2:0 Rayo Vallecano
24. 4. 30
─[PL Round 35] Man City 2:0 Nottingham Forest, five points clear of Arsenal
─[PL Round 35] Arsenal 3:2 Chelsea, back to a two-point gap with Man City!
24. 5. 3
─‘Virtual title decider’ Man City vs Arsenal D-2… Both teams announce head-to-head clash
─Kai Havertz, “I’ll pour everything out” Vow for the title
─“The opponent is the best team, but we believe we will win.” Arsenal captain Odegaard reveals team mood is ‘at its peak’
─Mikel Arteta, “What we must be most wary of is Lee… We have a plan to contain him.”
…
Saturday, May 4, 2024.
Inside the press conference room at the Etihad Campus.
“……What do you think about these remarks?”
At the third row from the front, before taking the microphone at a question from a reporter with glasses and disheveled hair, he falls into thought for a moment.
“Hmm…”
He had only just sat down after finishing training, so he hadn’t even caught his breath properly yet.
Thanks to that, he chews over what the question was from the beginning once more.
So, the opponent revealed that they had a secret plan to contain me.
Was the question what I thought about that?
Well.
Feeling there wasn’t much to think about, he shrugs and brings his mouth to the mic.
“Isn’t it obvious? Everyone comes prepared with ways to stop the opponent and break through them. Of course they’d have a plan… right?”
Every team comes prepared with a plan.
How to break through the opponent’s defense, how to stop their attack, how to dominate the midfield.
There’s no team that steps onto the pitch without such things, and there’s also no team without at least one secret strategy unknown to others.
But the important thing is simply whether it works on the pitch or not.
Thinking even to himself that he’d said something so deflatingly obvious, he starts to pull away but continues.
“They’ll definitely come prepared with a way to stop us, but we’ll also come prepared with a way to overcome and break through. The important thing is whose plan will work, right?”
But perhaps that wasn’t enough to whet the reporter’s appetite.
The reporter, seeming bothered by his disheveled hair, naturally tacks on another question.
“So their secret plan won’t work? You’re confident?”
Hmm.
If the manager weren’t sitting beside him, and if his team’s logo weren’t on his chest.
He would have shaken his head and answered.
That he wasn’t confident, but precisely because of that, he would do his best.
But right now, he is sitting here as a representative of the Manchester City squad.
He can’t present his personal thoughts as if they were the thoughts of the entire squad.
…Come to think of it, why.
He doesn’t know why his teammates keep pushing him forward as their representative.
Is handling all the annoying stuff everywhere the youngest’s lot in life?
At times like this, it’s a bit heartbreaking.
“…I’m confident. Because I think we’ll win tomorrow.”
Now seemingly satisfied, the reporter nods as if he’s done his part and begins tapping the keyboard of his laptop.
Those hands are so fast they’re like the talons of an eagle snatching prey.
Perhaps that prey is him.
Without giving him a moment to rest, another eagle thrusts its talons forward.
“City is definitely in an advantageous position. You’re ahead by two points. A draw alone makes the title possible through your own efforts. Arsenal can’t do that. Do these factors help the team atmosphere?”
Quite a fresh question.
The situation is advantageous because they’re ahead in points.
He tilts his head and answers.
“Tomorrow’s match starts from 0–0. I don’t think anyone is at an advantage. Thinking that a draw is good enough is rather a dangerous thought. If you have that mindset, you might not even manage a draw.”
He doesn’t like how they talk as if drawing is an easy thing to begin with.
Looking back, he knows.
How steep and rugged a path they’ve crawled up.
If he turns his head slightly he can see the cliff’s edge, and the starting point down below is obscured by clouds to the point of being invisible.
They’ve come this far after stumbling countless times and overcoming crises of falling.
Thanks to that, he knows well.
How difficult it is to accumulate this many points.
But tomorrow’s opponent is one that has accumulated almost the same points they have.
It means they too have climbed this rugged uphill path without falling, just like them.
He can’t help but respect the opponent.
“I think Arsenal is a really strong team. So other than winning, there’s no other goal. Because only then might we have a shot at winning.”
Watching the reporter nod with a bitter expression, he concludes his answer quite satisfactorily.
It’s been quite a long time since he’s dealt with reporters, despite appearances.
In the past, his mind would go blank the moment he stood before a camera, and he’d smoothly rattle off the answers reporters pulled out of him, but not now.
Now he can at least tell.
Setting it up like that, and if they lose and fail to win the title, they’re trying to make them look like fools who lost despite everything being in their favor—who does he think he’s fooling.
“I have a question.”
Pursing his lips and turning his gaze, once again a reporter with unkempt hair raises his hand.
They all seem so busy they don’t even have time to fix their hair.
“Having secured victory in the last Champions League quarter-finals, you’ve taken a huge step closer to back-to-back Trebles. If you win tomorrow, the league title becomes highly likely too. The FA Cup final is also well within reach. You’ve come to a situation where the Treble is within arm’s reach.”
…Why does this sound like the perfect moment to twist an ankle.
“As someone achieving back-to-back Trebles and proving your own worth, there must be something you want to say to those who made a fuss about your transfer fee. May we hear your resolution?”
Resolution.
Of course he wants to—one word would be enough.
With a foreboding feeling that he somehow shouldn’t say such things, he swallows hard and answers.
“That’s not my goal, so I’m not sure.”
He’s not the planning type by nature.
Grandiose goals don’t suit him well.
“My goal is always just to win tomorrow’s match. If it’s a resolution for that, I’ll say I won’t disappoint the fans.”
If you walk while looking too far ahead, you’re bound to trip over a stone.
He felt that now was the time to just look straight ahead and go.
…
May 5, 2024.
Etihad Stadium.
“How many is it? Yeah, about 53,000. But that’s not all. There are fans watching on TV too. Counting worldwide, wouldn’t it be in the millions? It must be.”
In the center, with the emblem symbolizing their team between them.
Players, coaches, and even staff gathered in a circle without distinction, listening to the manager’s speech.
It’s the final minute before heading onto the pitch.
“But that’s not everything either. Arsenal fans will be watching today’s match too. No. Fans of other teams, people who just love football—they’ll all be watching. That’s right. Today’s match will be one watched by millions.”
Today of all days, the manager’s intonation is even more passionate.
Even if he couldn’t understand the meaning, his heart would be pounding; now his body has reached a state where the manager’s English clicks clearly in his ears.
Thanks to that, his heart is thumping, almost bursting out of his chest.
“So.”
The manager, who had been speaking, stops and soon looks around at them.
And then looks into each and every one’s eyes, one by one.
At this everyone swallows hard, and after making a full circle, the manager speaks.
“Show them. Who deserves to be champion.”
The moment those words end, the locker room becomes as loud as the stands filled with fans.
“Let’s go!”
“Show them! Who is the champion!”
“Go, go, go!”
“Let’s do it!”
As if betting on who can be louder.
They noisily exit the locker room.
Even while walking through the corridor, the beast-like roars of his teammates don’t stop.
“It’s ours!”
“Don’t hand it over! We’re the champions!”
“Let’s show them!”
Of course, at times like this, he can only listen.
Because his teammates have the right to say such things, but he doesn’t.
Since he’s never become a champion wearing this uniform he has on now.
So he only thinks.
And suddenly wonders, is this what brainwashing is?
He’s definitely never been a champion before.
Because people keep saying here and there that they’re the champions or whatnot, his brain is causing illusions without him realizing.
Show them who has the right to be champion.
“…”
Nodding and walking down the corridor, bright light heading toward the pitch could be seen before he knew it.
\*
When he first came to this team, his first official match that wasn’t a pre-season game was against Arsenal.
The single-match tournament called the Community Shield.
And what he felt facing Arsenal back then was that he needed to pull himself together even more going forward.
Peeeeep—!
With a clear whistle befitting the clear sky, the match begins.
Starting with their kickoff, the ball goes backward, and as he turns his body, opposing players quickly brush past on both sides.
Strong pressure from the start.
Paaang—!
Paaang—!
If there was one thing the manager emphasized most before the match, it was ball retention.
Passes, dribbles, whatever.
Never give the ball to the opponent meaninglessly.
The manager emphasized that obvious point again and again.
Because Arsenal was a team you shouldn’t think about stopping reactively.
Instead of giving the opponent chances and thinking about stopping them, you shouldn’t give them chances in the first place.
He said against Arsenal you have to prevent, not try to react.
Tatatat—!
Looking around quickly while dropping to a low position.
The opponent’s pressure is fierce from the start.
The midfielders have pushed their line up to join the press to the extent that if he doesn’t drop down, they can’t win the numbers game.
At a glance, they have the ball and the opponent is trying to steal it, so it seems like they’re attacking and the opponent is defending, but actually it’s the opposite.
Not giving the ball to the opponent is the best defense for them.
So what he’s doing now is also defense.
And the most important thing in defense is never making mistakes.
It means he must concentrate.
Paaang—!
By his standards, he takes his first touch between Rodri in the center and Walker on the left.
Rodri, harried by the press, passes to him, and he one-touches it to Walker.
Paaang—!
Even after that, there’s no time to stop his feet.
There’s no teammate without a man-to-man marker attached.
He has to secure space through momentary movement, and to do that, he mustn’t stop his feet.
Paaang—!
Paaang—!
Several passes brush past the opponent’s sides.
At a glance, doing this in a dangerous area might look uneasy.
…Honestly, it actually is.
The press is so tight that the urge to just clear it far away surges.
But he can’t.
Leaving aside tactics and such, it’s because they are champions, not challengers.
The opponent is the challenger and they are the ones receiving that challenge.
So they need to act like champions.
No matter what, they must not be the first to back down.
Paaang—!
Again while standing in the space between Walker and Rodri, a pass comes to him.
The moment he turns his head to look around, the situation isn’t great.
Tatatat—!
Pressure comes from behind, and nearby teammates are all being marked.
There’s no place to circulate the pass to.
It looks like clearing it is the right call.
But the brainwashing suffered in the locker room and corridor rejects that.
Seems the effect was quite strong.
They’re the champions.
The thought that comes first is why he should run away.
Paaang—!
He traps the ball under his feet.
And gauges the distance and speed of the opponent rushing from behind.
What he sees with his eyes, the opponent will see too.
Seeing him rush so fiercely, the opponent also knows it’s checkmate.
But sometimes conviction can become poison.
Tat—!
Taking steps as if turning left, he shifts his body’s center of gravity onto his left leg.
At this, he can hear the opponent shuffling their feet.
It means they reacted to his movement.
Tat—!
Pushing off the ground with his left foot, he turns to the right.
The shifted center of gravity becomes propulsion, launching him forward rapidly in just one step.
Tat—!
The opponent’s grasp brushes past his shirt.
They seemed to instinctively try to grab him, but he doesn’t allow himself to be caught.
Tatatat—!
Of course, it’s one mountain after another.
Though he turned well, the pressing line backing it up is right before his eyes.
It was tight enough as is, but two, three opponents instantly narrow the gap and rush at him.
They seem determined to steal the ball no matter what.
But he has no intention of giving it up.
The ball attached to his feet isn’t just a ball.
It’s a trophy.
If they want to take it, he thought, let them try.