Chapter 2

2. The Price of Talent (2)

I had a dream.

I couldn’t remember the face or the voice, but I clearly remembered the one sentence left by some entity.

"Your talent was too great for your body to handle."

It was an absurd talent, an unparalleled talent.

This was a scam.

It was a talent that didn’t fit the standard.

It was a talent that surpassed all the legendary star players.

These were the praises I received when I entered the professional league. Indeed, my talent was too great. However, I never imagined that it would lead to the end of my career.

Therefore, when my career plummeted due to injury, people said this:

"It was the price of having such a great talent."

"Do not waste your life in frustration; you have endured well."

If there really was a God of Football, the tone was filled with affection and pity.

"I cannot give you a body to fully realize your talent, but I will give you another gift."

Thus, the Insight Eye entered my left eye. The problem was that I couldn’t control or use it properly.

"Ugh..."

As my left eye burned with pain, a short groan escaped my lips. The coach standing beside me looked at me with concern.

"Coach Kim. What’s wrong? Are you feeling very unwell?"

"No, it’s just that I suddenly have a headache..."

Pain was inflicted on my left eye. This was the signal.

I didn’t know the principle of activation or the method of control for the Insight Eye, but I knew the signal. When this pain started in my left eye, I could see things that were normally invisible in my field of vision.

I lifted my head and looked at the team’s intrasquad match. Above the heads of many players, certain words were floating.

Goalgetter, Cheetah, Iron Wall, Strong Heart, Commander, and so on.

Each player’s characteristics were displayed in a single word. And the player whose characteristic was brightly flashing was...

"He will make a difference in the official match this week. The practice match is just a bonus."

This was the part that explained why the God of Football in my dream called it a gift. If you could know the players’ conditions and form in advance in a perfectly prepared tactical situation, the probability of winning the match would significantly increase.

In other words, it would be a huge help when deciding the starting lineup and substitution timing.

"The problem is that even with such an ability, I can’t influence the starting lineup."

Selecting players and making substitutions are the absolute authority of the head coach. As a mere coach, I could only offer advice, which was very limited. Moreover, Coach Jeong In-woo was an extremely authoritarian figure who almost always ignored my advice.

"Unless his neck is on the line..."

It had been a month since the league started. After six matches, Seoul United’s record was three draws and three losses, placing them at the bottom of the K2 League with three points. Despite this miserable performance, it seemed that the parent company, K Construction, was not considering firing Coach Jeong In-woo.

"So, he’s being arrogant."

Considering that the regular season lasts 36 rounds, it was still early to give up, but in Europe, a coach who had relegated a team and was performing this poorly in the lower league would have been fired immediately.

"Right away, they would have given him the boot."

Anyway, I observed the players participating in the intrasquad match. I needed to check their conditions to prepare for the FA Cup 1st round match in two days.

Many players were sweating and giving their all in the intrasquad match, but one duo caught my eye.

In a split second, a through pass cut through the space.

And it was connected to a shot using quick off-the-ball movement.

Boom!

Moreover, the quality and accuracy of the shot were excellent. The goalkeeper, who was on the opposing team, tried to dive but couldn’t stop the goal.

Thud!

"Come on! Franco! Nice pass!"

"Good movement. Great goal. Song Ki."

The duo from the non-starter B team, who scored a goal against the starter A team, were beaming with joy.

"Jung Sang-gi and Franco Tramontana."

Above the heads of the two who created the goal, their characteristics were brightly flashing.

Above Jung Sang-gi’s head was "Goalgetter," and above Franco’s head was "Chance Maker." I couldn’t help but sigh.

Even though it was just a practice match, they showed much better movement and chemistry than the players Coach Jeong In-woo selected. With this duo, there would be no problem in immediately addressing the team’s lack of scoring.

"Coach Kim. Why are you sighing? Is the game not to your liking? I don’t like the movement of the A team players either."

Looking at the talkative coach beside me, I spoke.

"I should suggest to the head coach that these two be selected."

"Huh? Jung Sang-gi and Franco?"

"Yes. Since it’s the FA Cup 2nd round, there’s no pressure, right?"

"Hmm. That’s true. The club isn’t expecting much from the FA Cup anyway."

This season, the club’s goal for the coaching staff was only one: to return to the K1 League.

In other words, if we could get promoted, they wouldn’t care about an early exit from the FA Cup.

"There’s no need to waste talented resources. Besides, rotation is necessary for the starters to build up their stamina."

"You’re right. We’ll support you, so go ahead and suggest it."

However.

My slight hope was shattered.

"The decision on player selection is entirely mine! Don’t infringe on my authority! Are you saying that because you’ve been exposed to European football, you can play above the head coach?"

F*ck.

Then why don’t you select the right players and win a few games?

Who said I was going to infringe on the player selection authority? I was just suggesting to experiment with good resources since the club isn’t expecting much from this tournament.

I wanted to throw my resignation in the head coach’s face right then and there, but I held back. The Korean professional league is small, and the head coaches know each other well. If Coach Jeong In-woo harbored a grudge, I might never be able to return to professional football.

"Ha. How can he keep his job with such skills? I don’t understand why the club isn’t firing him."

I couldn’t say it out loud, so I swallowed it. With his skills, he should have been fired long ago.

And.

Soon, Coach Jeong In-woo was actually fired.

* * *

"Ha. If you’re going to report it, do it earlier. Now, with the team in such a mess and without a head coach, it might be for the best."

It’s not like it’s a national team or a youth league.

To be caught setting up the starting lineup with players who received bribes. What a disgrace. Currently, Seoul United’s performance is abysmal.

In the K2 League, after 8 rounds, they have 3 draws and 5 losses. They were eliminated from the FA Cup 2nd round, and that too against an amateur team.

In this situation, the head coach was criminally charged for illegal activities and was fired. The morale of the players was at rock bottom, but for me, it was actually a good thing.

"Whoever comes as the new head coach will be better than that guy, right?"

There are plenty of people who want to be head coaches in this industry. Can’t they find someone better than that guy? Moreover, our club is not a community club but one with a parent company. K Construction will surely find a good replacement.

The problem is...

"Ha... F*ck. How can it be that only I’m left as a coach?"

To be precise, among the coaches in the first team, the other three coaches were found to be involved in the same illegal activities as Coach Jeong In-woo and were criminally charged.

Since the league matches had to continue despite the club’s situation, I went to the front office first. I needed to know how the selection of the new head coach and coaches would proceed so I could prepare accordingly.

"Ah, Coach Kim, you’re here?"

A front office employee, with dark circles under his eyes, greeted me. The front office must have been overwhelmed with protest calls and various tasks.

I didn’t want to ask them about work, but with the situation I was in, I had no choice.

"Thank you for your hard work. I was wondering if you could tell me how the selection of the new head coach and coaches is progressing."

Seeing the employee’s expression darken even more, I awkwardly smiled.

"Ah, well... There’s nothing decided yet regarding the next head coach."

What?

Nothing decided? What kind of nonsense is this?

When a head coach is fired, shouldn’t the club’s CEO search for and decide on a candidate, and then inform the parent company about the cost?

"Isn’t that how it’s supposed to work? The league matches are just a few days away. I’m the only coach left in the first team. We can’t just bring up a coach from the second team or the youth team, can we?"

The second team was run by one dedicated coach and one goalkeeper coach, making it inappropriate to bring a coach from there.

"The infrastructure is a mess."

Moreover,

Seoul United’s youth team was run through agreements with middle and high school football teams in Seoul. Obviously, they couldn’t bring in a U-18 or U-23 coach as an interim head coach like in Europe.

"Yes, we understand that. But... The CEO isn’t answering the phone."

Seeing the employee mumble with a dazed expression, I was speechless. How could the CEO of a club not answer the phone at this critical time?

"Is he being dragged away by the parent company and being interrogated?"

That was a very real possibility. In Korean professional football, it was common for the CEO to be a representative from the parent company.

This incident must have damaged the image of the parent company, K Construction, and the CEO, who failed to manage the situation, must be in deep trouble.

"Ha..."

I sighed involuntarily. This was not the time to waste on administrative issues. We needed to boost the morale of the players and focus on training to improve our performance.

"I understand your concerns, Coach... But we’re in a tough spot too. How did this situation come to this?"

I understand.

What fault did they have? They were just employees receiving a salary from the club. The person to blame was the one who caused this mess at the beginning of the season.

"Hmm... I understand. If there’s any decision, please contact me."

"Sure, Coach. We’ll do that."

As I left the front office with these instructions, I received a call from them before even reaching the training ground.

Ring!

"Yes, this is Kim Ha-joon."

-Coach! The decision on the next head coach has been made!

Oh. Did they move faster than expected because I visited the front office?

"Ah, who’s the new head coach? Actually, before that, if they’re going to command the next match, they need to come here today, right?"

-Ah... That’s the thing.

The front office employee suddenly hesitated, and it felt off.

-The club decided not to hire a new head coach and to have you, Coach, serve as the interim head coach for this season.

Damn. What kind of slapdash management is this?

I was momentarily speechless.