Chapter 7

Lazy Genius Striker - Chapter 7 (7/202)

< Chapter 006 – How to Train a Lazy Person >

Everyone's eyes widened.

It was because a deafening explosion of the ball echoed across the field.

Boom-!

It was an incredible impact.

A well-placed shot from the instep.

Johan's mid-range shot began to fly swiftly toward the goal, emitting a deafening roar.

Whoosh-

Almost 30 meters.

It was quite a distance, giving the goalkeeper plenty of time to react.

The children watching the defense were spread out, so there was no obstruction to the view.

However,

'Hmm...?'

The goalkeeper of Team A seemed frozen, not even thinking about diving.

But it was harsh to blame him.

Considering the speed of the shot and the clothesline-like trajectory as it shot precisely into the corner of the goal.

This shot was one that even a professional goalkeeper would find hard to react to.

Even if the goalkeeper had just stood there dumbfounded, who could blame him?

Whoosh-

Thud-!

"Wow..."

"What, what is this? That shot..."

"Crazy. It just went in, right now...?"

After the sound of the net being torn.

The field fell silent as if time had stopped.

Both Team A and Team B had dumbfounded expressions.

And,

"...Wow."

"Didn't I just see that wrong?"

The coaches on the sidelines felt the same way.

"Crazy..."

"Really crazy."

The coaches shook their heads.

It was an incredible shot.

The coaches were already captivated by Johan, just from his first-half performance.

The only regret was that they hadn't seen his shooting yet, but they were so impressed with Johan that they thought even an average or slightly below-average shot would be fine.

But, what a surprise.

"Amazing ankle strength."

"From that distance, did he take two steps to run up?"

"Great confidence."

The shot was of super quality.

It was hard to understand why such a monster had only appeared now.

That kid wasn't meant to play in a practice match like this.

He was ready to play in a league match right away.

"I need to focus on the other kids, but I keep getting distracted."

"Exactly. What are they all doing, just staring at that kid? They need to look around."

"Let's get to work, let's get to work. No more just watching."

The coaches, pulling their jaws back into place, regained their composure.

Considering that this practice match was to select qualified players, all the coaches should have been observing all the players, not just one.

Since the 61st player was already qualified, they should have been more focused on the other players.

However,

As the game resumed.

"Hey, that's great."

"Nice play."

"Wow, no one can touch him."

The coaches, who had intended to focus, found their eyes drawn back to the 61st player.

It was a performance that couldn't be ignored.

*

The game ended 5-4.

In favor of Team B.

However,

The result of the game wasn't the important part.

The important part was who the star of the game was, and that star was undoubtedly Johan.

"Really well done!"

"You showed them! You really showed them!"

Ban Seok-ho and Rohan were jumping around as if they could fly.

At this moment, their pride and the opinions of others didn't matter.

They were truly overjoyed.

This was the moment they had dreamed of for the past few years, or for Ban Seok-ho, the past few decades.

Seeing his proud bloodline shine on the field.

It was no wonder they were so happy, as this dream was now a reality.

"What are they talking about?"

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it? They're probably telling him to start working tomorrow. I should start preparing the contract."

After the game.

Johan was having a long conversation with the coaches who had gathered around him.

The reason was obvious.

They were discussing his immediate signing.

The talent Johan showed today wasn't just enough to pass the tryout; it was the kind of talent that would have scouts flocking even if it were a casual game in a neighborhood park.

"Johan!"

"Right here!"

After a while.

Johan, having finished his conversation with the coaches, walked toward the stands.

Ban Seok-ho and Rohan welcomed him warmly.

"Johan, what did the coaches say?"

"What did they say? That you should start tomorrow?"

In response to their urgent questions,

Johan nodded.

Indeed!

They clapped their hands.

However,

The good news didn't end there.

"My brother can come too."

"Huh? What? Me? Why me?"

"I insisted that my brother be accepted too. They agreed, right?"

"Really? Is that true?"

Rohan's expression was bewildered.

He could come too?

The club had agreed to accept his brother after he insisted?

"Is that true?"

"Yes."

Ban Seok-ho also found it hard to believe.

If he could have recommended his son for the club, why wouldn't he have done it long ago?

He himself was already a legend at West Ham.

But the West Ham Academy didn't accept players that way.

Yet, the club had agreed to it because of Johan's words?

But Johan's words were true.

"If I can't come with my brother, I won't join. So, please allow it."

It was a bold demand.

Between the tryout participant and the club officials who organized the tryout.

Clearly, the club was the dominant party, and the participant was the subordinate.

Normally, a participant would be grateful just to be accepted.

This wasn't even a scouting offer.

For a participant who had just been accepted, to make demands to the club was unheard of.

Especially, to ask for another participant who had already been rejected to be accepted as well.

It was an unreasonable request.

"Of course, if that's what you want, it's not a problem."

However,

The unreasonableness of the request depended on who made it.

Dominant and subordinate?

Considering the attitude of the club toward Johan, the dominant party was clearly Johan.

The club was in a subordinate position, determined to get Johan at any cost.

They were ready to accept any demands Johan made.

It was only natural.

The talent Johan showed today was something they didn't want to lose.

Finding such talent was the reason the academy scouted across the entire country, not just London.

And now, such shining talent had come to them on its own.

Could they refuse any demands Johan made?

"So, my brother, you should focus on recovering your ankle. I saw you couldn't perform well because of your ankle."

"Johan..."

At the unexpected news, Rohan's face was on the verge of tears.

Ban Seok-ho felt the same way.

"These kids... Today, Dad will make a lot of delicious food!"

Today was a day the father and son would never forget.

...

-What? Is that true?

"Yes, Dad. You see, Johan completely outshone the players who were two years older than him..."

Ban Seok-ho was talking on the phone with someone, a big smile on his face.

The person on the other end was his father, and Johan's grandfather, Ban Gil-yong.

A father who had sent his beloved son and daughter-in-law, and his adored grandchildren, to far-off England for the greater good.

Ban Seok-ho often called his father to update him on the grandchildren.

Most of their conversations were about Rohan.

What training Rohan had done today, how he had improved, how hard he had worked, and so on.

But Ban Seok-ho couldn't talk much about Johan.

His father would get angry just hearing Johan's name.

But today was different.

Ban Seok-ho excitedly told the story of how Johan had dominated the tryout.

Like a child boasting to his father about getting a perfect score on a test.

-After hearing the story, the kid sounds even more annoying. If he could do that, why didn't he do it before?

"Better late than never. It's not too late, Dad."

Despite the good news, his father still seemed to have a negative view of Johan.

His father was a strict man, and Ban Seok-ho understood.

Especially when it came to football, his standards were even higher than his own.

Ban Seok-ho remembered being scolded a lot when he learned football from his father.

But,

Ban Seok-ho was confident.

If his father had seen Johan today, he would have been impressed.

So, soon.

When Johan becomes a great player.

His father would recognize Johan too.

'So, Johan. Try your best from now on.'

Johan's football career was just beginning.

...

"Brother."

"Yeah?"

"Are you that excited?"

"Of course, I'm excited. It feels like a dream. We're going to the academy together. How can I not be excited?"

"Man..."

On the way to their first day at the West Ham Academy.

Rohan's expression was brighter than ever.

The path to the training ground had never felt so refreshing.

It was a dream he had pursued for the past few years.

Walking this path to the West Ham Academy training ground.

"Why did you wear the uniform from home? You can change when you get there."

"Hey, I even slept in this. I wanted to wear it so badly."

"Wow, you like it that much?"

Usually, they would wear training clothes and change into the uniform at the training ground.

But Rohan had worn the uniform from home.

Actually, he had been wearing it since he went to bed last night.

He had worked so hard to wear this uniform.

Wearing the West Ham uniform and heading to the training ground, Rohan looked incredibly happy.

"But, I probably wouldn't be this happy if I went alone. It's because I'm going with you."

But,

The most exciting thing was going with his younger brother, Johan.

Although he had a hard time waking Johan up in the morning and had to drag him out, it was still exciting to go to the training ground with his brother.

This was more than what Rohan had dreamed of.

This was the best morning of his life, and it was all thanks to his brother.

Rohan wanted to give Johan a kiss.

"Haahh..."

On the other hand.

Johan's eyes were almost half-closed.

It had been a long time since he had woken up so early on a weekend.

He had been dragged out by his brother,

But he wanted to go back to bed and sleep.

Ah.

He had gone through all this trouble to get his brother accepted.

If he had known this would happen, he wouldn't have put himself out there.

But.

"Have a good day!"

Thinking about his father's bright face when they left home, Johan couldn't help but smile.

On the day of the tryout, Johan had seen his father so happy for the first time.

Not only that, but he had received such treatment at home for the first time.

His father even gave him a massage, which he usually only gave to his brother.

Although he had complained about the pain, Johan had secretly enjoyed it.

Johan didn't like being scolded by his father all the time.

He wanted to make his father happy.

He wanted to be a source of pride for his family.

And now, it seemed he was achieving that, which made him feel good.

"We're here! Training at the West Ham training ground. Is this a dream or reality? Let's go, Johan!"

"A, uh..."

Seeing his brother so happy because of him.

And thinking about his father.

Although it might still be faint.

Little by little, very little by little.

It seemed that even the lazy Johan was starting to feel a spark of motivation.