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Episode 8. Like a Ghost (2)
“Hmm.”
Coach Ham Gwang-chun was still watching the field with a deeply contemplative expression.
“Is something troubling you?”
The situation was that the equalizing goal had just been scored.
But the coach’s expression seemed somewhat dissatisfied.
Head Coach Yoo Hae-wan couldn’t help but cautiously gauge Ham Gwang-chun’s mood.
‘Was his movement not that good? No. It was amazing, though?’
Seo Jae-woo had been fantastic.
Didn’t he show a changed appearance immediately after the instruction was given?
It was a movement that clearly proved his worth.
It showed he could do it if he wanted.
“The proof is still insufficient.”
“Huh?”
“That kid Seo Jae-woo needs to show something else.”
Yoo Hae-wan didn’t answer further.
Working here, moments like this came occasionally.
When the coach would say things hard to understand, not paying attention to his surroundings.
‘He’s really latched onto something again.’
Even if asked more, the probability of getting the desired answer was almost zero.
“Alright– Focus! Don’t play loosely just because we equalized and end up handing over momentum for no reason!”
At times like this, it was best to just focus on his assigned role.
The data accumulated over years of working with Coach Ham Gwang-chun said so.
‘It’s not about that goal.’
As Yoo Haewan expected, Coach Ham Gwang-chun wasn’t watching the match.
Only one person.
He was concentrating solely on observing Seo Jae-woo’s movements.
‘That’s not all. There must be something more.’
The practice match before his release. The subsequent conversation.
Though they were short clues, Coach Ham Gwang-chun clearly saw through Seo Jae-woo’s changed tendencies.
‘He deliberately kept quiet in the first half.’
What had he been planning to do?
That question wouldn’t leave his mind.
It was the same even after the goal.
Clearly, that shot was possible thanks to his low presence. Because everyone overlooked Seo Jae-woo.
But it required the premise that the striker would attempt a mid-range shot at that precise moment, and the second ball would fall towards where Seo Jae-woo was positioned.
‘He builds up like that expecting such a lucky situation? That’s nonsense.’
Therefore.
He had to watch.
What play Seo Jae-woo had intended to create.
“Right. I need to see him take the lead to get a clearer picture.”
The perceptive head coach moved close to the sideline again.
And shouted.
“Take the lead! You guys! Move with the intent to take the lead!”
It was a pleasing sound to hear.
Even at that moment, Coach Ham Gwang-chun was staring intently only at Seo Jae-woo.
‘I think that kid just smiled.’
He wasn’t sure.
Although he was the closest among the staff, with Coach Ham’s eyesight, he couldn’t clearly see the expression.
But a change appeared immediately in his play. Seo Jae-woo’s footsteps became noticeably lighter.
Pah-pah-pah-pah—
In Coach Ham Gwang-chun’s thinking,
Seo Jae-woo induced the opponent’s carelessness and used it to score a goal.
In a way, it was a situation where he could be seen as having achieved his purpose.
‘He definitely had a play he originally planned. I want to see that…’
It didn’t look easy.
Wasn’t he the player who just scored a goal?
The opponent wouldn’t carelessly let their guard down now.
Building up patiently from scratch again was also impossible.
There wasn’t enough time, and the label ‘the player who scored’ was too strong.
Coach Ham Gwang-chun called Head Coach Yoo Haewan.
“Coach Yoo.”
“Yes?”
“How will this match end?”
“Well– I think we’ll either draw or come back to win. I don’t get the feeling we’ll lose.”
“Reason?”
Only about 15 minutes of match time remained.
The opponent needed a win by at least 2 goals but was currently tied.
“The Yeongdeok High kids’ stamina has dropped a lot. The players brought on as substitutes also seem a bit lacking in ability.”
A judgment based on reasonable grounds.
Just moments ago, Yeongdeok High attempted an attack, but the shot went wide and ended fruitlessly.
During the time preparing for the goal kick,
Seo Jae-woo approached the team’s striker, Kim Jinwoo, and whispered something in his ear.
‘Good. Show me. Show me what you prepared.’
Fight!
The match resumed with a goal kick.
Yeongdeok High won the aerial duel.
Possessing the ball in the central area, Yeongdeok attempted a bold forward pass.
Defender Park Jae-hyuk intercepted it, and a counterattack began.
But the distance to cover was long.
The area where striker Kim Jinwoo received the ball was near the halfway line.
Thump!
At that moment, Kim Jinwoo unexpectedly sprayed a pass diagonally.
‘He’s not the type to pass at that moment originally?’
He’s a player good at dribbling and fast on his feet.
It was a situation where he only needed to beat two defenders. There was no reason to choose a pass.
He is this team’s ace, after all.
But.
Pah-pah-pah-—!
Seeing Seo Jae-woo sprinting to receive that pass, he couldn’t help but nod.
“What the?”
Coach Yoo Hae-wan also seemed to grasp the situation belatedly, his eyes widening.
“He’s fast?”
Literally so.
Seo Jae-woo was fast.
Contrasted with the tired Yeongdeok High players, he looked even faster than usual.
In an instant, it became a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. Though there was still some distance to the goal.
The goalkeeper rushing out.
Swish—
Seo Jae-woo lightly nudged the ball sideways with his left foot, as if intending to push it to the right for a pass.
At that very moment, Kim Jinwoo, who had made the pass, was sprinting at full speed to receive the return pass.
The goalkeeper’s center of gravity inevitably became divided.
‘A fake?’
That move was a feint. He immediately stopped the ball with his right foot and dribbled to the left.
The goalkeeper was bypassed in an instant.
Now, between the goal and Seo Jae-woo, there was nothing but the soccer ball.
Seo Jae-woo pushed the ball accurately into the center of the goal with the inside of his left foot.
The second goal was scored.
“Nice!”
“Whoa– What was that just now? Is that Seo Jae-woo?”
“Doesn’t seem like Seo Jae-woo.”
“Agreed.”
“So good, right?”
It was a play that drew admiration not only from the coaching staff but also from the players.
Simultaneously, the sound of frustration from the opposing bench could also be heard.
“What the hell is that kid?”
“Suwon had a player like that?”
Coach Ham Gwang-chun also nodded.
‘Definitely better than Gwang-jae. More potential to develop too.’
Lee Gwang-jae?
From a coach’s perspective, he wasn’t an unusable player.
At the youth level, he was sufficiently utilizable.
A player with a defined, predictable usage.
However, he had zero growth potential. He was absolutely not a player who could adapt to the professional stage.
Just an average youth player.
‘Then there’s no reason to use Gwang-jae.’
A player with higher potential.
And currently superior skill had appeared.
But that was the problem.
“Coach! Isn’t Jaewoo something? When did his skills improve like that? And he doesn’t even get nervous in a real match. Haha.”
Unlike the first goal, Seo Jae-woo took a long celebration for the second goal.
With a refreshed expression, he leisurely circled the field once, enjoying the cool air.
However, Coach Ham Gwang-chun couldn’t simply rejoice.
“Well. Not bad. He probably deserves to get more opportunities now.”
Seo Jae-woo’s growth was clearly good news.
A player from his own team had improved, after all.
But the problem was that the player being pushed out was Lee Gwang-jae.
The picture wasn’t good.
‘The higher-ups are going to make a fuss again.’
Coach Ham Gwang-chun grabbed his aching head.
Wow.
This is crazy.
My heart is still pounding.
“Nice! Seo Jae-woo!”
Even amidst the congratulations from teammates, I couldn’t collect myself.
I realized through that goal just now.
The reason why players miss decisive chances.
I knew it in my head.
I’d heard many times that when a chance is right in front of you, it’s hard to keep your composure.
It was true that the pressure seemed considerable at a glance.
But I didn’t know it would be to this extent.
It’s very bad for the heart.
My heart was already pounding madly from the full sprint. And then when tension was added on top, it almost felt like it would explode, going into overdrive.
But.
Anyway.
It succeeded.
‘Just as planned.’
The Yeongdeok High players completely lost track of me.
By this point, I must have felt like a real ghost to them.
They probably sensed a presence but couldn’t quite see it.
When I received the through pass, I clearly saw the player chasing me start a step too late.
That’s how defense is.
No matter how well you guard, if you lose focus for a moment, it’s fatal.
Anyway.
Miraculously, I was able to execute the play I had envisioned.
It was all thanks to the training done over the past couple of days.
“Hey– You received that?”
“Haha. The pass was good.”
Kim Jinwoo’s pass was rough. It was unavoidable. It was a difficult pass made from a tough angle in a tough situation.
A structure where it only becomes a good pass if the receiver handles it well. I succeeded in receiving it properly. In fact, that was half the success right there.
“Making me do the dirty work. But if you prove yourself, you have to acknowledge it. Well done.”
“Thank you.”
I had given Kim Jinwoo a heads-up beforehand.
To play a through pass to me.
And to sprint at full speed into the penalty area right after the pass.
‘I have to be able to trust myself.’
I needed insurance.
Frankly, without the insurance named Kim Jinwoo, the probability of wasting that chance would have been quite high.
My skills are still lacking.
Especially shooting is in a miserable state. It’s not for nothing that I gently pushed it in with the inside for the goal.
My kicking power is good, but I can’t control it yet.
Through training over the past couple of days, trapping or light passes have become somewhat decent, but other techniques are inevitably severely lacking.
‘In this aspect, it’s the same for both coach and player.’
A coach must accurately know the team’s capabilities.
Only then can they find the right answer and prepare for matches.
It was the same for players.
If you don’t know your own limits?
You’re bound to make repeated mistakes.
‘Alright. The next step is—’
Also.
I have no intention of stopping.
I approached Kim Jinwoo and asked.
“Are we continuing the same way?”
“No way. Wait and see. Coach Yoo will definitely…—”
“Chwichwit!”
Right at that moment, a signal came from the bench.
“You guys! Well done! Now lock it down defensively!”
They didn’t seem to intend to hide their tactics at all.
Right.
This is the taste of soccer.
Yeongdeok High needs to score 3 goals.
We don’t even need to win; a draw is fine. But we’ve taken the lead.
Now we can play defensively.
Even if someone on the team gets a bit complacent, it’s not a problem. There’s simply not enough physical time left to concede 3 goals.
I moved faithfully in line with the team.
‘I need to blend into the team.’
It’s a youth team.
A place where the roster must be overhauled every year.
I, too, will likely leave this place soon.
But I need to know how to synchronize with the comrades here. I need that experience to be able to adapt when I move up later.
“Jaehyeok, that interception was awesome?”
“Thanks.”
During my time as a coach.
I treated players in various ways.
Sometimes amicably.
Other times strictly.
The reasons were also diverse.
For example, in situations where team unity was weak, using strong medicine by playing the villain to foster team cohesion.
Or to help a newly transferred star player adapt by boosting their morale.
I employed all sorts of methods.
If I leverage that experience, blending into this team should be a trivial matter.
Peep! Peep! Peep!
The match concluded without further incident.
[Yeongdeok High 1 : 2 Suwon F C]
Well, having done this much, I probably won’t be kicked off the roster now, right?
It was a satisfying day.
