14 save. War of the Roses
‘This man is one of the goalkeepers regarded as the best in the world right now.’
A player who could be said to be single-handedly saving his current team.
That was David de Gea.
Even before preparing for this match against Man Utd, Sin Uison had been steadily watching videos of top-class goalkeepers, including de Gea.
The longing to become like them.
And the desire to surpass them.
He had always analyzed them with such thoughts in mind.
“Ow, what’s with you?”
At de Gea’s words, his face slightly scrunched up, Sin Uison let go of his hand. It seemed he had put too much strength into it without realizing.
“Sorry.”
“What for.”
De Gea shrugged his shoulders playfully and passed by Sin Uison.
Watching that retreating figure, Sin Uison quietly asked Voice.
‘What are de Gea’s stats like?’
[I don’t know. You’re the only one I can read.]
‘Hmm.’
After thinking for a moment, Sin Uison asked again.
‘Then, based only on the videos we’ve watched so far, can you show me?’
Voice had been with him when watching de Gea’s videos. He wanted to check if he could know at least the approximate values, even if not the exact stats.
[If so... it would be around this much.]
Soon, a screen popped up. Sin Uison’s eyes went wide as he checked it.
It was tremendous.
【Name: David de Gea】
【Nationality: Spain】
【Team: Manchester United】
【Reputation: The League's Best Goalkeeper】
【Reaction Speed – 103】
【Anticipation – 89】
【Handling – 87】
【Throwing – 80】
【Goalkeeper Diving – 95】
【Owned Traits - To check, you must unlock Insight.】
‘To this extent?’
He was tremendous in every aspect. Sin Uison didn’t know what other players were like, but at least compared to himself, the gap was clear.
Moreover, de Gea was a player who was just now entering his prime.
If one were to compare a player’s career to a flower.
Goalkeepers usually bloom most brilliantly in their late twenties.
If a player who had just turned twenty-three was already showing this kind of performance, it held immense meaning given the trend of players’ careers growing ever longer.
[Sigh... This isn’t even an exact figure, and how many times have I told you that stats aren’t everything?]
Voice roused Sin Uison’s sinking spirits.
[Besides, it’s a reality that even with these stats, one can fail to adapt.]
In fact, de Gea had gone through a difficult time adapting to the Premier League. So much so that he had received harsh criticism stating he wasn’t fit to be a starting goalkeeper for a big club.
[No matter how high your physical specs are, if you can’t put them to use, they’re ultimately meaningless.]
And.
Voice added one more thing.
[Even in today’s match, you could show a better performance than de Gea.]
‘Even so, that’s a bit much.’
Sin Uison smiled bitterly.
How could one compare a player who had finished adapting to the league and was evaluated as top-class with a player who had only just taken his first steps?
[It’s not mere comfort. It’s entirely possible. The term giant killing doesn’t exist for nothing.]
‘Right. That’s true too.’
After all, the saying that the ball is round didn’t come about for nothing.
Sin Uison, who had been rolling his shoulders, tilted his head.
There was an ability required to check de Gea’s traits.
‘What’s Insight?’
[It’s the ability to judge players.]
It was said that with Insight, one could grasp other players more accurately.
‘I don’t really need it.’
It was an ability usually demanded of managers, directors, and scouts.
For the current Sin Uison, it was an item he didn’t need to go through the trouble of obtaining.
After shaking hands with all the players.
Sin Uison, who had gathered with the players to take photos, walked toward the goal.
-Ah, in the stands?
-It’s Massimo Cellino.
At that moment, the camera caught someone. It was Massimo Cellino, who was heavily linked as Leeds’ new owner.
-It’s not certain yet, but if Massimo Cellino takes over, what do you think will happen?
-Well. I don’t imagine it’ll be good news for the manager.
-Haha. That’s true too.
-Well, he might bring in some promising youngsters on loan from Cagliari, where he still has connections. There would be pros and cons.
Whether the pros or the cons would be greater was still anyone’s guess.
While the commentators were having such a conversation, the players of both teams took their positions.
Shortly after.
Beep!
The whistle announcing the start of the match blew.
It was the signal announcing the beginning of the War of the Roses.
-Now, the kickoff goes to Man Utd.
-They’re calmly circulating the ball.
The player in charge of distribution in Manchester United’s midfield was Michael Carrick. Fellaini wasn’t particularly outstanding in that regard, so the task naturally fell heavily on Carrick.
-Leeds players are attempting strong pressure on Carrick.
Leeds hadn’t missed that point either.
Moreover, since Carrick had shown vulnerability to strong pressure, they had prepared to some extent.
“Carrick!”
“Hoo!”
Rooney shouted while raising his hand. At the same time, Carrick’s pass was stabbed in that direction.
Rooney, having received the ball, managed to hold his ground in the ensuing physical contest.
Though his form had dropped sharply with age, he was still tough, sharing Carrick’s burden and linking the ball to the flank.
The player who received it was Valencia.
Although his playstyle was so predictable that countermeasures had come out.
Against second-division players, his incredibly destructive dribble roamed the flank.
-Valencia goes deep into the flank! He’s fast! They can’t stop him at all!
-He sends in a cross just like that!
The cross Valencia sent in was low and fast. Leeds’ left fullback stretched his foot but couldn’t reach it, and it penetrated all the way to the penalty area.
It was when Leeds’ center back tried to clear the ball.
One step faster than him.
There was a man who had taken up position.
-Van Persieee!
Robin van Persie.
Creating space with a momentary movement, he made a turn and shot with his left foot.
It wasn’t powerful enough to tear the net.
But it was sharp.
That ball rolling toward the corner of the goal looked difficult to stop under ordinary circumstances.
Yes. Under ordinary circumstances.
-Aaah?!
-What?! He saved this!
-Sin Uison saving the team from crisis!
In that split second, there was a hand that stretched out before the ball crossed the goal line.
It was Sin Uison.
It was fortunate that the ball hadn’t been struck with great power.
Having barely knocked the ball away, he let out a deep breath.
“That was fucking close.”
Though it looked like a marvelous save to the spectators, for the man himself, it was a heart-dropping moment. Honestly speaking, he had lost track of Van Persie’s movement.
He had somehow barely stopped it, but if the timing had been even slightly later, he would have conceded a goal.
The level was certainly different from the Championship strikers he had faced until now.
‘Did I get too arrogant after gaining Intuition?’
Sin Uison, his mind now sharply alert, adjusted his gloves.
Even with Intuition, his reaction had been too late in a situation like that.
The warning not to overestimate stats might have been something that applied to Sin Uison himself.
“Prepare for the corner kick!”
“Where the hell are you going without marking him, dumbass!”
Soon the corner kick followed.
And Sin Uison saw a very large player.
Marouane Fellaini.
That bomb-headed giant.
[Is that hair against the rules?]
‘At times like this, I’m glad your voice can only be heard by me.’
[Oh my.]
‘That wasn’t a compliment.’
Sin Uison let out a sigh and looked at Fellaini.
He possessed a great height of 194cm. Moreover, if you added that bomb-head on top, the difference grew even greater.
And Fellaini was a player who made good use of his size.
Cleverly, at that.
[What do you mean?]
‘He’s got dirty habits.’
Fellaini was notorious in the Premier League for playing very dirty. So much so that he was mockingly called ‘Fell-elbow.’
-The cross goes up.
-Leeds United clears it away.
Leeds cleared away the cross Man Utd sent up without much trouble.
Then Leeds got a counterattack chance.
Today, Leeds maintained one clear concept: high work rate.
As one player ran, the other Leeds players immediately followed behind. If they lost the ball, they quickly ran back toward the defensive line.
It was a tactic with heavy stamina consumption, but until stamina ran out, the effect was certain.
And Sin Uison was there to control that tempo.
“Everyone run!”
The moment Sin Uison caught the ball, the Leeds players sprinted toward the front. After waiting briefly, Sin Uison successfully sent a pass ahead of them.
-Another long, stretching pass!
-It’s amazing. It reminds one of Bayern’s goalkeeper Neuer.
After that play succeeded several times, the commentators burst into admiration. As professionals who broadcast the Premier League, it was their first time seeing Sin Uison’s play today.
Neuer is a goalkeeper who has been evaluated as having fully blossomed as a sweeper keeper last season.
Of course, Sin Uison wasn’t rushing out like him.
But a goalkeeper who could execute such accurate, stretching passes was rather rare.
-Leeds United continues to pour on the attack!
-The flow of the match is turning out a bit differently from what people expected!
In the early stages, Man Utd had created threatening chances, and people had expected a comfortable victory for Man Utd.
But those shots were all blocked by Sin Uison.
Now, seeing Sin Uison revealing a strong presence from the very back.
People’s gazes changed as well.
-What the hell is he? It’s really Sin Ha-ji’s little brother, right?
-Budget Neuer lol
-What do you mean budget Neuer... There are more than one or two cases of players who did well in lower league teams and flopped at big clubs.
-Getting excited over one match is a bit much.
Those watching this match were largely divided into three categories.
Manchester United fans.
Leeds fans.
Or people hoping for Manchester United’s defeat.
But among them, few were expecting Leeds to put up a good fight. So much so that even the Leeds fans were largely the same.
No matter how transitional a period it was, there was bound to be a gap between a first-division team and a second-division team.
Therefore, people showed great interest in the goalkeeper who was bridging that gap.
-Man Utd’s foul. It’s a free kick.
-The Leeds players are preparing for a set piece.
A brief pause occurred due to the foul committed by Man Utd.
“Shin!”
Brian McDermott on the bench called out to Sin Uison.
Sin Uison tilted his head and hurriedly approached.
“What is it?”
“Looking at the current situation, you can move a bit more aggressively. It’s okay to go outside the penalty area.”
“Really?”
Sin Uison rinsed his mouth with water, spit it out, and blinked.
The goalkeeper coming out meant that much more burden would fall on the defense.
And Leeds’ defensive quality wasn’t in a position to be called good.
At the gaze asking if it was okay even if the risk of conceding increased, McDermott nodded.
“Give it a try.”
“Well, if it’s the manager’s order.”
It seemed more interesting than he had thought.
Sin Uison shrugged and returned to the front of the goal.
Leeds’ free kick was blocked by de Gea’s hand and flew away futilely.
-Both teams’ goalkeepers are showing outstanding saves today.
-Yes. It’s not for nothing that de Gea is called the league’s best goalkeeper.
De Gea waited until the Leeds players exited the penalty area, then rolled the ball to the left fullback, Evra.
Evra passed to Carrick.
Without delay, Carrick linked the ball to Van Persie.
It was a fantastic pass that dismantled the defensive line.
-Ah! This is dangerous!
-Carrick’s through pass has created a very good chance!
At this point, it was as good as a goal. Just as Van Persie was about to run toward the penalty area thinking that.
“What?”
He wondered if he had seen it wrong for a moment, but.
Swoosh!
Someone who had already run up in front of him succeeded in stealing the ball with a sliding tackle.
“Guess I should practice my tackling too, huh.”
The player getting up while saying that was not a center back.
One with a different uniform color.
A goalkeeper’s uniform.
Sin Uison raised himself up.