Field Commander - Chapter 44

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 44.

Chapter 44.

Chapter 44.

– Mexico beat Gabon.

News came in from the other group match that had started earlier.

Mexico had beaten Gabon 3-2, and the Swiss players’ faces were gradually filled with anxiety.

If they lost to Korea here, they would fall behind in goal difference and end up in 4th place in the group.

That would make even the playoff difficult.

The Swiss team manager, who had been sitting quietly on the bench, came near the line and started shouting.

‘They’re pushing up.’

I could see Switzerland’s line gradually moving up.

Not only did they raise their line, but their tempo also quickened.

However, as the tempo increased, their precision disappeared even more.

As the Swiss players pushed forward, our team players also seemed to get nervous and started making small mistakes.

Basically, these European kids don’t have particularly good ball-handling skills.

They make up for that deficiency with physicality, and they’re trying to get physical with me.

I get that they’re thick-bodied and have strong cores, but why does it have to be me?

Why me!

How wonderful!

– Thud.

The Swiss forward who came on as a substitute collided with me once while dribbling the ball.

He seemed to be testing me, so I relaxed my strength and gave the impression of being pushed back.

Then he gained confidence and pushed even more aggressively.

‘Right. In the end, the way to victory is deception.’

I also applied strength and momentarily pushed back the upper body of the guy who was pushing into me.

He showed a flustered expression, swayed greatly and lost his balance, and I swept my leg to steal his ball.

‘You should have listened to your teammates’ advice when you came on.’

This was the same style of physical battle that Jang Jin-woo had first fallen victim to against me in high school.

The Swiss players panicked and tried to back up after suddenly losing the ball while rushing forward on attack, but Jang Jin-woo at the front was a very fast forward.

Getting past one defender and penetrating was something he had shown countless times in the Bundesliga too.

When the opportunity arose, he shook off the defender marking him with just one upper body fake.

This is really not to my liking, but…

– Boom!

Before the guy who had lost his balance and fallen could even get up, I aimed for the space between the last defender and goalkeeper and sent a cross with my right foot.

Jang Jin-woo started accelerating and running, and although the goalkeeper was coming out, my crosses always slow down dramatically like cotton balls when they hit the ground.

The goalkeeper turned pale and tried to stop Jang Jin-woo, who had trapped the ball first in the penalty area, but Jang Jin-woo unhesitatingly took a lobbing shot over the goalkeeper’s head.

I was hoping he’d collide with the goalkeeper and get carried away.

– Thud.

Soon the goal exploded.

He drew his signature heart ceremony with his fingers and ran toward the Korean fans, and the biggest cheer of the day erupted from the stadium.

The female fans were screaming as if they were about to faint…

‘Disgusting to watch.’

I turned around and headed to where I needed to be.

* * *

Dortmund scout Michel was watching the Mexico-Gabon match.

She was watching Raúl Jiménez, a player of interest, who had scored two goals today and performed very well.

‘What’s with that player?’

But Gabon was no pushover either.

They developed their attacks based on individual skills utilizing Africa’s characteristic physical balance and rhythm.

Particularly, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who came on as a substitute in the second half, had incredible speed that the Mexican defenders couldn’t keep up with.

Aubameyang used his speed and goal-scoring ability to bring Gabon level with Mexico, but Mexico, superior in organization, eventually scored one more goal in the final moments to take the victory.

‘AS Saint-Étienne?’

He was a player from a team in the French league.

Although he had clear weaknesses in his footwork and poor link-up play, he was a perfect poacher-style player and possessed the abilities that team manager Jürgen Klopp wanted.

Michel instinctively thought she should be more interested in Aubameyang rather than Raúl Jiménez.

‘How did the Korea vs Switzerland match end?’

Michel’s eyes widened when she checked the result of that match played at the same time in another stadium.

She was sure it had ended 1-1 at halftime, but the final result was 5-1.

Korea’s overwhelming victory, scoring four goals in the second half.

“What happened?”

She checked the information on her phone and found out that Jang Jin-woo had bombarded Switzerland’s goal.

“Three goals… still the same.”

Jang Jin-woo, Schalke 04’s key striker, was a target of Dortmund’s vigilance.

“Hmm… but the MOM isn’t Jang Jin-woo?”

The player who scored three goals wasn’t the MOM…

And a name familiar to her was written as the match MOM.

Kim Sang-hyuk.

Looking at the record, it was 1 goal and 3 assists.

Michel, momentarily speechless, examined the record more carefully on her phone.

Kim Sang-hyuk was the player who was least noticeable but played the most decisive role in the Mexico match.

This player usually plays the role of circulating the ball without mistakes from the back like an invisible man, and stops opposing forwards with physical battles, so he’s rarely noticed by fans and cameras.

But very occasionally, he works magic with one long pass that comes at an impossible timing, collapsing the opponent’s defense, and it leads to goals with high probability.

Moreover, due to his superior physical size, physical battles, jumping power, and header ability, he’s truly the player that all teams must be most wary of in set piece situations.

People who watch football professionally can clearly tell who plays the most crucial role in that team.

The link between offense and defense.

The solidity that comes from that harmony.

Just as a commander in battle is not conspicuous but moves the entire army, Kim Sang-hyuk gave her that kind of feeling.

Switzerland had beaten Germany in the European qualifiers to advance.

It was incomprehensible that they would be beaten up like this by Korea.

“Let me write the content report first.”

* * *

– This is the first time I’ve seen this score in an international tournament.

– This score is possible against Southeast Asian teams.

– Switzerland doesn’t seem to be Southeast Asian though.

– Jang Jin-woo’s goal sense was completely insane today. 5 shots, 5 shots on target, 3 goals.

– What exactly is Kim Sang-hyuk who’s feeding Jang Jin-woo like that? Was he always this good?

– Good at defense, good at offense… Kim Sang-hyuk is totally amazing.

– I thought the Mexico match was a fluke, but Kim Sang-hyuk is really fucking solid.

– He plays football as well as he looks.

– Switzerland had higher possession in the second half, but is it real that they had zero shots on target?

– Except for crosses coming up from the sides, everything gets cut off at Kim Sang-hyuk’s line, so they need to have a chance to shoot.

– Is Kim Sang-hyuk’s 6 interceptions today real? In the second half?”

– A 100% ball contest success rate doesn’t make sense either.

…

Choi Do-hoon paused his commentary for a moment and read the comments.

– Even after resting for years due to injury, his class really hasn’t changed. If not for the injury, he would already be a core player on the national team.

– Not just the national team, but he would have played for places like Leverkusen. His defense was really solid.

– If he keeps playing like this, he’ll probably play for Leverkusen in the future.

– Can we have hope for the 2014 World Cup?

– Everyone seems too optimistic about a U-23 match.

Korea’s offensive power has always received good evaluations.

However, due to the Korean football background where systematic development of defenders is impossible because of parents wanting their children to be the protagonists, defense has always been a weakness.

There’s a story that’s considered absolute truth in the football world.

Championships are won by teams with the best defense.

Whenever Korea faces a team with even slightly high-level offense, Korea’s defense always crumbles.

Ki Sung-yueng is also an offensive player, but he’s always shown weaknesses in defense.

Today he made a mistake that led to Switzerland’s equalizing goal.

Switzerland’s attacking line?

It wasn’t particularly high-level in Europe.

They’re just a team with good defense and organization…

No one would have thought they’d crumble like this against Korea.

“Actually, many experts called Group B, where Korea belongs, the group of death. They said it was impossible to predict who would advance because all the teams were evenly matched. But Korea maintained first place in the group with record-breaking performance. With this level of play, it seems Korea will also win against Gabon…”

Choi Do-hoon briefly looked at the current rankings of the four groups.

“If Korea advances to the quarterfinals as group winners, they can avoid facing the strongest teams like England and Brazil. Perhaps we can even picture Korea reaching the finals.”

Choi Do-hoon wondered if his brain had ever been washed with such anticipation while doing live commentary for national team matches.

The monitor screen changed…

“Ah, we’ll soon have an interview with Kim Sang-hyuk, today’s most outstanding player.”

* * *

While feeling the joy of victory and providing fan service with my teammates before returning, Coach Lee Ho-nam called me.

“Sang-hyuk! Interview!”

“What?”

“An interview. Follow me.”

An interview?

I’ve never done such a thing in my life, and suddenly an interview?

“Is this your first time?”

I must have looked quite bewildered.

“Yes.”

“Just don’t say anything stupid.”

Ah, so I just need to not say anything stupid?

I followed Coach Lee Ho-nam to a location where over 30 journalists had gathered.

There were many Korean journalists, but about half were from other countries.

Camera flashes kept going off toward me, and my heart seemed to be beating faster than when playing football.

I stood at the designated spot and was handed a microphone.

Then one journalist said.

“Um… you can sit down.”

“Oh, really?”

I’ve imagined winning with my football team and winning as a national team player, but I’ve never once imagined doing interviews with journalists.

When I sat down, the journalists burst into laughter.

That laughter calmed me down a bit, and I realized that I was the one who should point to journalists to receive questions.

So I received my first question from the journalist who told me I could sit down.

“How do you feel about the match?”

A question asking how today’s match was, right?

“Um… it was easier than the Mexico match.”

The journalists’ reactions were mixed.

And Coach Lee Ho-nam was shaking his head beside me.

Ah, shouldn’t I say things like that?

“Ah, I see. Could you tell us the reason you came to think that way?”

At those words, I recalled that number 5 bastard who made racist remarks to me all day today.

If it had been a secluded place with no people around, I would have beaten him so he couldn’t open his mouth.

“There was one hole among Switzerland’s center backs, and when I targeted that hole, everything collapsed.”

“Ah, could you tell us who that hole is?”

Lee Ho-nam shook his head even more vigorously.

But why do I want to do it more when someone keeps telling me not to?

Am I still in my turbulent adolescent phase?

“That player should focus on having respect for football and competing players rather than worrying about strange hairstyles.”

All the journalists showed intrigued expressions.

And after saying this much, everyone knows who I’m talking about, right?

Lee Ho-nam, as if reading my mind, pointed to the next journalist.

“In the Mexico match, you showed amazing chemistry with Jung Joo-young, and in this match you helped Jang Jin-woo’s hat trick. Is this the result of countless clashes in tournaments since high school?”

I can answer this question clearly.

“Yes. I know all of Jang Jin-woo’s habits and quirks.”

The journalists’ expressions came alive.

“Are you saying you see through everything about Jang Jin-woo?”

“Of course. That bastard Jang Jin-woo… no, that player will never escape my sight.”

“Could you tell us the reason?”

“Because he’s the bastard who prevented me from playing football, which is the second most important thing after my life, for two years. Nevertheless, since the Olympics is a tournament that carries all citizens’ hopes, I’ve set aside my personal feelings.”

“Then if you were to face him as opposing teams…”

“He’d better watch out.”

The journalists’ typing sounds began to grow louder, and I turned my head to the side for a moment.

Lee Ho-nam made a bitter expression and shook his head as if he didn’t know what to do.

“Apart from football, Jang Jin-woo is a sports star with the highest stock value in Korea due to his appearance. Such a declaration of war could anger many female fans… would that be okay with you?”

Women…

In my entire life, there hasn’t been a woman who didn’t avoid me when she saw me.

Oh, there’s one.

Kang Su-yeon, who lives in the same dormitory.

But I don’t think I’d play football because of women.

My goal is very clear and unchangeable and unavoidable.

“I’ll gladly accept that anger.”

Then another journalist asked.

“Do you still consider Jang Jin-woo a rival?”

What, a rival?

“Hah… well. To make a comparison, I’m a fly swatter and Jang Jin-woo is about a fly.”

* * *

– Shocking!!! Jang Jin-woo Falls to Fly Status!!!!

– Fly Shocked! Jang Jin-woo Fans Enraged. Truck Protest Pushing for Kim Sang-hyuk’s Retirement!

– Philosophical Exploration of Flies and Fly Swatters.

– Fans Shocked by Fly Swatter’s Arrogance!

The journalists’ responses to Kim Sang-hyuk’s interview were almost identical to those headlines.

– Hahaha this is legendary. Comparing Jang Jinwoo to a fly…

– Wow… lol that’s shocking.

– Whoa… This is the first time in my life I’ve heard such a comparison.

– Look at the journalists pouring out articles. How are there more of these articles than actual soccer-related ones?

The comments went wild, filled with remarks about their rivalry.

Also, Manager Lee Sang-cheol’s press conference added fuel to the fire.

– What do you think about player Kim Sang-hyuk’s interview?

– Player Kim Sang-hyuk is an independent individual. I gave no specific instructions regarding the interview content.

Thousands of comments were posted below that.

– Oh no! Even the manager is cutting ties!

– Kim Sang-hyuk is hopeless!

– Even the manager is shaking his head.

– The coach behind Kim Sang-hyuk during the interview was also shaking his head.

– I’m shaking my head too.

– Still, how can he criticize Jang Jin-woo? He’s a Bundesliga top scorer candidate.

– Well, he succeeded. He got the world’s attention all at once.

– Kim Sang-hyuk is crazy.

…

* * *

Switzerland’s center back Number 5 Michel Morganella, whose chances of advancing to the main tournament became slim after drawing with Gabon and suffering a crushing defeat to Korea, suddenly felt disgusted when he heard about Kim Sang-hyuk’s interview.

Playing as a starting center back for Serie A’s prestigious team Palermo, he had suffered all kinds of humiliation from Kim Sang-hyuk today.

He had two bruises on his back, and dark bruises on his legs and feet.

During set piece situations, Kim deliberately bumped into him, and each time it felt like one or two places would break.

He fouled very cleverly, but the referees couldn’t catch it at all.

“What, respect for soccer and players? This trash bastard!”

Actually, he wanted to do the same back, but every time their eyes met, Kim would flash that creepy grin, which scared him too much to try.

It seemed like a psycho killer mafia bastard was playing soccer.

He couldn’t tell the manager he didn’t want to face him because his face was scary.

Angry, he started posting on his Twitter like a keyboard warrior.

Afraid that mentioning Kim Sang-hyuk’s name directly might bring retaliation, he slightly deflected the subject.

– I want to beat the hell out of those low-intelligence Koreans…

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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