LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 231
The Emirates Stadium, filled with Arsenal fans, is echoing with mixed jeers.
“Booooooo─!”
“Go to hell!”
Due to the provocation of Robin van Persie, who sprinted from the Manchester United bench, the match against Arsenal intensified.
BEEP!
With little time left until the end of the match, fortunately, the players managed to finish without major injuries.
Towards the end of the match, the referee committed the outrage of simply ending the attack chance for Arsenal.
But… personally, I didn’t think it significantly affected the outcome of the match.
The Manchester United defenders had already returned to the defensive line by then.
“No way, he blew the whistle! Was he in a hurry to leave work?”
Anyway, the match against Arsenal ended in a victory for Manchester United.
“Jinho, you worked hard.”
“You too, Mesut.”
Contrary to the expectation that the players of both teams would clash, just when it seemed everything would pass without incident, a player conflict broke out.
“You bastard! Respect your former team!”
A few extremely agitated Arsenal players rushed at Robin van Persie in the tunnel, seemingly ready to eat him alive.
We had no choice but to block the Arsenal players to protect Robin van Persie.
And the entrance tunnel was instantly thrown into chaos with Arsenal and Manchester United players tangled together.
Honestly, I wanted to throw Robin van Persie to the wolves and slip away.
But still, he was our comrade.
“No matter how much of a jerk he is, he’s our jerk!”
If we left like this, van Persie could literally become ‘half-folded’ van Persie!
Anyway, it hadn’t escalated into a physical confrontation yet, but it was a tense situation where it could explode at any moment.
The only relief was that the fans in the stadium couldn’t see this scene.
If they saw the players clashing after already losing the match, it could have easily turned into a fistfight.
As we calmed the agitated Arsenal players,
“What the hell is going on…!”
Alex Ferguson entered the tunnel.
The moment I saw the old man’s face, the Manchester United players realized the situation would soon come to an end.
The rising tension began to ease a little, and in my eyes, a pizza was seen flying freely in the air.
I quickly ducked to avoid the pizza.
SLAP─!
And the pizza that flew away from me landed perfectly on the old man’s face as if it was a magnet.
The cheerful sound echoed through the tunnel, and a silence began to fall as if time had stopped.
Robin van Persie and Olivier Giroud froze, holding each other by the collar.
Cold sweat started to flow down my back.
“Who did that?”
The old man’s voice rang in my ears, searching for the culprit.
SWISH─.
I raised my finger in the direction the pizza came from, following my survival instinct.
Then, like the Red Sea parting, the entrance tunnel split in two.
“SIU?”
At the end of this overwhelming scene, reminiscent of Moses’s miracle, stood Cristiano Ronaldo, who failed to grasp the situation.
***
[Manchester United advance to the FA Cup finals.]
[Manchester United cruising towards the treble, next match is the away game against Dortmund!]
[Immediately after the match, a second Pizza Gate outbreak?]
[Alex Ferguson, again hit by pizza in the entrance tunnel, sets out to find the culprit.]
[FA imposes a three-game suspension on Robin van Persie and Olivier Giroud for causing the clash.]
[Arsenal fans protest FA’s sanction: “It’s unfair.”]
[Arsène Wenger harshly criticizes the referee for ending the match during Arsenal’s attacking chance… “Did it really have to end at that timing? Manchester United has been granted excessively favorable decisions by the referee.”]
[Alex Ferguson smirks at Arsène Wenger’s words. “The initial warning against Koscielny was a wrong decision to begin with. Koscielny should have been sent off early in the match.”]
[FA fines Arsène Wenger for undermining the referee’s authority….]
***
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Wow. Is the referee crazy?
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Why did he end the match there!!
– Gyeouri: Hahahaha
– Gyeouri: Arsenal fans whining about the referee after getting played, right?
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Honestly, does it make sense to end it at that timing?
– Cheolmo: Right? It wouldn’t have changed anything even if they were granted a chance to attack.
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: ….
– Gyeouri: Hahahaha
– Gyeouri: Uncle.
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: What?
– Gyeouri: Still, your team lifted the League Cup.
– Gyeouri: Chelsea has nothing to show for it.
– Gyeouri: Hahaha
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Hahaha
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Wow. Why is there no reaction?
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Have you accepted that Arsenal >> Chelsea? Hahaha
– Gyeouri: @Haeun’s dad, help! Help!
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: ???
– Chairman Hwang Geum-soon: Jinho is in the middle of an interview right now?
– Gyeouri: Kyaaaah─!
– Cheolmo: Han Gyeouri, open the door quietly.
***
The day after the FA Cup semi-final match ended.
Although the controversy surrounding the FA Cup semi-final decision continues, we quickly forgot the past and began preparing for the next match against Dortmund.
I finished a brief recovery training at Carrington in the morning and returned home to rest.
For the record, resting is just as important as training, not an excuse.
“Appa! Let’s play!”
Anyway, when Dad returned home early, Haeun was so excited that she wouldn’t leave my dad’s side all day.
From previous experiences, I realized that if I got swept up into Haeun’s energy, I would end up taking a two-hour trip on the ‘Playing House’ Express, so I quickly changed the subject.
“Haeun, are you happy that your little sibling is coming?”
“Yeah! I’m happy to become a big sister!”
“Can you take good care of your younger sibling?”
“Yes! I will give snacks to my little sibling, play house with them, and be nice!”
“But what if it’s a boy and doesn’t like playing house?”
“Hmmm… Then Haeun will suggest it!”
At Haeun’s continued words, I secretly clenched my fist.
“Then, should we play soccer today?”
I carefully asked what she wanted to play.
But Haeun’s answer was playing house.
“No! She says she wants to play house!”
That day, I had no choice but to be trapped by Haeun and play house for three hours.
And the next day.
Was it because I had played with Haeun all day yesterday?
“Waaaaaah─! No! Dad, don’t go!”
Haeun burst into tears, hanging onto my legs as I was leaving for the away match in the Champions League quarter-finals against Dortmund.
“Haeun, Dad will bring you a gift from Germany.”
“Really? I’ll wait! Please come back safely!”
Seeing Haeun tearfully sad made my heart ache, so I promised to bring her a gift when I returned from Germany, and Haeun quickly let go of my legs, fearing I might change my mind.
“Ugh, how did that happen…”
While the self-proclaimed ‘Haeun Master’ Gyeouri watched with a look of helplessness.
Well, what can I do? If she’s showing that level of acting, I have to give in.
“Hehe─ Have a good trip, Dad!”
Haeun smiled brightly while reminding me not to forget to buy gifts, and she was cute enough that I didn’t feel bad at all.
‘Hmm. Should I train her to be an actress? She might be a genius in acting!’
While I was daydreaming about Haeun’s future,
“SIUUUU─!”
“Jinho, you said you were going to sleep. Say it right, you jerk, Cris!”
“If you don’t want to die, stop being a fool, Robin.”
The Manchester United players began boarding their private jet heading to Dortmund, one by one.
***
[Jinho Son returns to Signal Iduna Park.]
[Dortmund fans ready to welcome Jinho.]
[The magical man, Jinho Son’s secret to captivating Dortmund fans?]
└ Isn’t that obvious? Jinho has done so much!
└ For real lol, joining on a zero transfer fee and achieving league championship, cup victory, and Champions League win, and then handing over over 100 billion in transfer fees, solving financial problems. LOL
└ Moreover, he could have gone to Man U with a zero transfer fee and received higher wages, but he wanted to give transfer fees to Dortmund and even signed a renewal. WOW
└ Doesn’t that mean the club should build a statue for him?
└ Ah haha, tell them to use some of the 100 billion transfer fee to build a statue!
***
On the day of the second leg match of the Champions League quarter-finals.
A light aircraft, with a message inviting Jinho to return at any time, flew over Dortmund’s home ground, Signal Iduna Park.
“Leuchte auf mein Stern Borussia.”
In the south stand, known as the Südkurve, the scene of Jinho Son lifting the Big Ear trophy while wearing a Dortmund jersey was displayed through a card section.
“Leuchte auf, zeig mir den Weg.”
Dortmund fans welcomed Jinho back with thunderous applause.
“Ganz egal wohin er uns auch führt, ich werd immer bei dir sein.”
Among them was an elderly fan wearing Jinho Son’s debut season jersey.
Jinho bowed his head in gratitude for the unchanging love from the Dortmund fans.
His eyes had become red without him noticing.
***
As the Dortmund fans showcased a romantic scene, touching football fans worldwide,
With the referee’s whistle, the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals officially began.
The match, which had begun warmly, became increasingly intense given the stakes of the Champions League semifinals.
Then, in the 8th minute of the first half,
Due to Dortmund’s intense high pressing, Sami Khedira lost the ball to Kevin De Bruyne.
Kevin De Bruyne, upon stealing the ball, delivered a through pass to a penetrating Robert Lewandowski.
[GOOOAL─! The problem solver for Dortmund, Roberto Lewandowski!!]
Receiving the ball, Lewandowski calmly deceived David De Gea and scored.
“Eat this, you pirate fools! We are Dortmund!”
As Manchester United’s net shook, Dortmund’s specialty, flares, erupted.
“Olé, jetzt kommt Der BVB!”
As if it had been upgraded, the smoke from the flares quickly enveloped the pitch.
In a scene reminiscent of hell, Jinho, who was moved before the match, nodded in satisfaction.
‘Dortmund feels alive again.’
It was the moment Dortmund was revitalizing.