LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 262
***
The content has been added in ‘Extra Chapter 11: After Winning the Euro’ (1500 characters).
I accidentally moved to the 17/18 season after the 16/17 season started.
I apologize for the confusion.
***
[Title: 2018 Russia World Cup Group Draw Results. jpg]
Group A: Russia, Uruguay, Sweden, Iran
Group B: Portugal, Mexico, Denmark, Tunisia.
Group C: Poland, Colombia, Senegal, Japan.
Group D: Germany, England, South Korea, Panama.
.
.
.
.
Group H: France, Switzerland, Egypt, Australia.
Is Group D for real? Hahahahahahahahahaha
Meanwhile, Japan sure got lucky, damn it;;
└ Wow. Poland, Colombia, Senegal, huh.
└ Honestly, I’m so jealous of Japan, lol.
└ For real, they’re lucky to be in Pot 4;;
└ To be honest, Poland and Portugal are not to be taken lightly either…
└ Yep, haha, our opponents are England and Germany, hahahahahaha.
└ Ahh, hahahahahahahahaha
[Title: Haha, Korean football totally sucks, hahahahahaha .gif]
(Chairman of the Football Association Choi Gi-hyun’s reaction .gif)
(Head coach of the South Korean national team De Zerbi’s reaction. Gif)
└ Their expressions freezing at the same time is hilarious, lol.
└ Are you laughing? I think it’s crap.
└ Honestly, it’s funny when you see it in a meme, lol.
└ They just walked right into their own doom, lol.
└ To be honest, they didn’t even walk; that bald guy who picked Korea just shoved them in.
└ The way he smiles so brightly is hella creepy, lol.
└ For real, haha, showing off that smile like, “Korea, huh?” lol
[Title: ???: Did you say Group D is the hell group?]
(Coaches of England and Germany smiling as South Korea drops to Pot 3 .gif)
What do you mean by that? It’s a sweet group!
└ Damn, isn’t that Nam-moon (the English coach) smiling too brightly?
└ For real, it looks like he hasn’t smiled this much since being appointed as England’s coach.
└ Honestly, I would probably laugh too if I had to face England and Germany.
└ South Korea in Pot 3 and Panama in Pot 4? This practically seals their fate~
└ Hah. Damn it, if only Jinho-hyung were here to could have helped us.
└ For real, lol.
└ Huh? Guys, what’s this all about?
└ (Overwhelming number of comments on Son Jinho’s SNS. jpg)
└ Is this Jinho-hyung’s SNS? Are the comment counts for real?
└ Are these crazy people going to leave hate comments again?
└ No, no, our hyung went over to his SNS and was begging for mercy, lol.
└ The thought of getting revenge on Korea has Son Jinho smiling like there’s no tomorrow, so lit, lol.
└ For real, so lit, lol.
***
Once the World Cup group draw was confirmed, silence fell over the family group chat.
– Han Gyeouri: We just need to win against Panama and draw with Germany to get through, right?
Starting with Han Gyeouri, who had lost her mind and was spinning her happiness circuits, the chat came alive.
– Cheolmo: Have you already calculated the scenarios?
– Cheolmo: I’m just going to comfortably root for England.
I pulled my eyes away from the raucous chat and fell into thought.
South Korea.
What a love-hate country it is.
When I chose naturalization, my desire for revenge burned fiercely.
But honestly, I’m closer to liking it than disliking it now. I hoped South Korean football would continue to grow.
‘Well… I guess this is a story possible after quite some time.’
Memories and feelings naturally fade and become romanticized over time.
And those who had caused trouble back then, the association officials, journalists, and haters, had all received their comeuppance.
– Football revolutionary? It’s me!
Anyhow, due to Gi-hyun Choi’s reforms, a lot has changed in South Korean football.
The biggest change is that the current head coach of the South Korean national team is no longer a famous Korean coach like Trick-jo, but an Italian foreign coach.
Currently, perceptions about Asian football are still very peripheral.
It’s not called the graveyard of careers among coaches for nothing.
As a result, to hire a European coach from an Asian country, one has to present rigorous conditions along with astronomical salaries to attract the coach.
But after my appearance, the situation changed drastically.
It’s a little embarrassing to say, but the status of South Korean football rose significantly after the birth of its football emperor, Son Jinho.
Just like how Jesus’ birth divided BC and AD, my birth divided South Korean football’s before and after.
After my arrival, young and promising coaches, who had received favorable evaluations in Europe, began to apply for the position of South Korea’s head coach.
Of course, they aren’t tier-1 coaches.
They had no need to gamble their careers.
In any case, the reason young and promising coaches wanted to take charge of the national team was for career advancement.
In the original history, promising young coaches, including Seji Machida, aimed to take charge of the Golden Generation of the South Korean national team for the same reason.
Leading a peripheral Asian team to the quarterfinals would earn them recognition for their abilities.
Regardless, taking various factors (domestic presence, salary, contract duration, etc.) into consideration,
Gi-hyun Choi decided to hire Roberto De Zerbi.
And naturally, due to De Zerbi’s excessively young age and lack of experience, there was quite a bit of backlash from Korean football fans.
Although he had been recognized for his abilities after leading a team in Serie C to the playoffs and received offers from Serie A,
he still hadn’t proven himself in Serie A yet.
[South Korea National Team Hires Roberto De Zerbi.]
But our steadfast Gi-hyun Choi hired Roberto De Zerbi.
As a result, he was ridiculed nationally.
The media showered Gi-hyun Choi with suspicions of receiving kickbacks.
Even though Gi-hyun Choi explained why he hired De Zerbi during a press conference, public opinion didn’t turn around easily.
In the end, a political hearing regarding Gi-hyun Choi was held in Korea, and around dawn, a message arrived.
– Gi-hyun Choi: Jinho.
– Ho-woo: ?
– Gi-hyun Choi: If… I get kicked out of Korea, do you have a spot for me?
After that, he often messaged me whining, but Gi-hyun Choi backed De Zerbi even after losses and trusted him to the end.
[South Korean National Team, the First in Asia to Reach the Knockout Stage in Three Consecutive Tournaments! The Taegeuk Warriors Achieve the Best Results in History!]
De Zerbi led the South Korean football team to success in the final qualifiers, achieving the best results in South Korean football history.
If De Zerbi had flopped, separate from Gi-hyun Choi’s faith and South Korea had failed to qualify for the World Cup…
‘Hmm. I really don’t want to imagine that.’
Well, wouldn’t I have had to emigrate?
‘By the way, this guy really does make reckless decisions.’
I shook my head at Gi-hyun Choi’s way of causing chaos and then fixing it.
I felt like I saw my reflection in him, but I tried to ignore it.
‘Life is pretty much revolutions when successful, and betrayals when failed.’
Quietly, I adapted my stance and praised his national salvation decision.
***
As the Russia World Cup draw came to an end, time flew by.
[Is Manchester City racing ahead at the top of the league?]
The 17/18 season, much like the 16/17 season, saw Manchester City dominate the league.
However, they were eliminated in the round of 16 of the Champions League after facing FC Barcelona.
For reference, Manchester City passed the group stage in first place, but the disaster happened when Barcelona came in second and advanced to the knockout stages.
If you’ve remembered the harsh history of the original Champions League, you might not be surprised.
But for a Manchester City fan unaware of the original history, it must be a supremely frustrating situation.
In any case, while Manchester City fans were fuming over facing Barcelona, the matches continued.
[Consecutive Injuries to Key Players, Manchester United Falls to Fifth in the League.]
Manchester United, who were competing with Manchester City for the league title, saw their league ranking plummet.
As the second half of the season began, the injury list suddenly grew.
Due to injuries to key players, the physical burden on Manchester United’s players was beyond imagination, and at this moment, they desperately needed the manager’s decisive measures.
[Carlo Ancelotti Offers Rest to Key Players.]
After a long period of deliberation, Carlo Ancelotti decided to go all in for the Champions League and granted rest to his key players.
Had the strategy of selection and concentration failed, he would have faced blame, but fortunately, Carlo Ancelotti’s all-in strategy worked magnificently.
[Manchester United Crushes Paris Saint-Germain with an Aggregate Score of 6-1.]
Beginning with Manchester United commanding Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16,
[Manchester United Decimates AS Roma 5-0.]
They achieved a crushing victory against AS Roma in the quarterfinals.
[Manchester United Overcomes Barcelona with an Aggregate Score of 3-1 Thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo’s Multiple Goals.]
In the semifinals, they leisurely defeated the fading golden age of FC Barcelona.
And then came the long-awaited final.
[Real Madrid 1 : 2 Manchester United.]
[Manchester United Triumphs in Champions League for Two Consecutive Years.]
Manchester United defeated Real Madrid, known as the kings of Europe, after a fierce battle, achieving back-to-back Champions League victories after the 16/17 season.
“Come On!!! We are the champions!!”
I was even more intensely joyful than when we won last season’s Champions League.
As the New Trafford project was well underway, pouring in astronomical finances, if they had failed to win the Champions League and miss out on qualification, a financial crisis could have loomed, so the joy of this Champions League victory was doubled.
When we conceded the first goal in the final against Real Madrid, it felt like my lifespan shortened.
‘Wow…. Is this what dopamine feels like?’
Well, in any case, we pulled it off, so it was no problem.