The Little Prince of the Field - Chapter 9

Chapter 9

At the start of the second half, I entered the field with the players. 

As I entered the field, fans cheered with applause and cheers. 

The sun was setting and the yellow light of sunset fell over the stadium. 

It is a good day to run around in low humidity under a clear sky without clouds. 

The second half begins with the kick of Fuenlabrada. 

“Hazloque quieras!” 

(Do whatever you want)

Chief coach Rios didn’t put any pressure on me. 

Pecardt, who was diagnosed with minor injuries, was replaced with Castro, and Inigo was replaced with Kirian Rodriguez, to save his strength since there were no more replacement cards available. 

Las Palmas sank the defensive line deep back for an offensive that would start in the 70th minute. 

Las Palmas’ tactics prepared in the locker room hit the mark from the beginning. 

Fuenlabrada’s attackers were quite confused by Las Palmas’s downed defense. 

Mickel and Antonio, both fullbacks of the opponent, did not cross the half-line and did not participate in the attack, while Liera, the striker, lost the ball to Srnich’s defense. 

Srnich’s simple grounder pass reaches Castro’s feet just over the centerline. 

“Castro! Ball!” 

Castro’s skill in protecting the ball was an ability recognized by everyone on the team. 

He is not pushed by the pressure of the central defender who has lost his mark, and turns his head and makes eye contact with me. 

I competed with the opposing full-back, approaching Castro for a pass from the end of the right sideline. 

I hit the hand holding the jersey, put my shoulder in front of the incoming shoulder, and did not give up my position.

The harsh breathing of the opponent’s fullback can be heard. 

It wasn’t far, but it wasn’t close. 

This distance was just about that much, and you can say he had the upper hand. 

I tried to remember all the information I heard from the manager, including Fuenlabrada’s left fullback Antonio’s left-footedness. 

First, I changed the position slightly to Antonio’s right and created an angle that cannot be immediately rushed. 

As soon as Castro takes over the ball, he slaps it by Antonio’s leg, which is about to take over the defensive position, causing it to get stuck in a dynamic motion, and then jumps back into the sideline. 

I can’t believe the stadium is this big. 

In a hurry, the central defender moved to fill Antonio’s vacancy, but the response and speed were slow. 

The space on the right was empty. 

As I drove the ball to the right side, I suddenly thought the game was easy. 

Unlike in previous games, I didn’t feel any pressure from the opposing defenders. 

Is it simply that I’m in good condition? 

Or maybe Cedris was playing in an easy position. 

If not, maybe, a small chance – my skills have improved. 

“El príncipe de las Canarias! Muéstrame más!” 

(Prince of Canary!! Show us more)

“Ttch! Destryyanla!” 

“Tiradla!” 

There are cheers from the audience that was not heard before. 

It’s not that I can’t concentrate, but I can’t relax. 

After narrowing the space, there was Fuenlabrada’s central defender, who wore the captain’s armband on his forearm. 

When I didn’t give him the distance to tackle, he gave up space and stepped back little by little. 

Diagonally, I went further in. 

I could feel the pressure on him. 

Feels good. 

The Center defender’s receding space was the penalty box and I could see the corner where the line meets. 

I had to choose whether to go into the left line and make a shot kick from the center, or put in a feint and go straight along the right line of the penalty box. 

Castro needs time to enter the penalty box. 

Srnich is also coming in the middle, but was too far away. 

Should I choose the direction where I can make an angle to shoot? 

I don’t want the ball to be taken away again. 

The defender in front of me probably thinks I’m going in. 

Oh, he is very indecisive. 

My biggest drawback as a soccer player is that I don’t make the right choices. 

So I decided to let things slide. 

The ball touched with the back of the foot slips forward. 

One-touch dims my advantage. 

From here, if the defender’s left foot comes out, I can go left, and if the right foot comes out, I can go to the right. 

It suddenly occurred to me that the Korean chess that I played with my grandfather when I was young was similar to soccer. 

If an opponent rushes in without thinking then the fight is already half won. 

That’s what happened now. 

As soon as I saw the left-footed thigh and upper body of the central defender of Fuenlabrada shake, I scraped the ball with the sole of my left foot to regain the upper hand. 

The opponent’s left foot steps on the grass instead of the ball, and I can exit to the right where the defender’s stepping foot is located. 

I didn’t need a flashy talent to do that. 

As I pass through the opponent using my main strength, I feel open. 

Castro had reached near the penalty box before I knew it. 

The left central defender, who was checking him, hurriedly approaches me after confirming that the shot angle was open. 

Therefore, Castro was completely free.

“Eyee-!” 

“Gol! Gol! Gol!” 

Castro hit the ball that I had pushed and fired a shot with terrifying intensity.

Fuenlabrada’s goalkeeper also knew that he was aiming for the direction on the left side of the net, but it was too fast for him to stop. 

“Gracias, Kim!”

“Yes, good job.” 

51 minutes into the second half. 

1-2. 

I exchanged light greetings with Castro, who had picked up the ball right away without an after-party. 

Las Palmas fans love the fire of hope that has risen again, and screamed. 

Many people were dancing while shaking their bodies to the sound of music playing from the speakers. 

Before the game resumed, Aitami delivered the bench’s instructions with praise. 

“Kim, that was a good pass. Rios wants you to drive the ball.” 

“Good choice. Give it to me.” 

“Make a tie goal, too. I think you’re in good shape.” 

Before answering anything, the attack by Fuenlabrada begins with Whistle. 

Aitami hurried back to his position. 

Fuenlabrada acted as if the cause of their loss was fair play. 

They seemed to think that they would not have let us score a goal if they had played rougher. 

The referee whistles again. 

The main character of the foul was No. 16, Bayeho, who had a warning in the first half. 

He protested against the second yellow card, as if there was no elbow contact, but the referee refused to accept it. 

He’s a jerk. 

Kirian Rodriguez, who was hit by Bayeho’s elbow on the forehead, was checked by the doctors. 

To be exact, it was to find out whether he was mentally stable enough to continue to play. 

“It’s alright. It’s nothing.” 

“How many?” 

“Three.” 

Team Doctors go towards the bench, and in the distance, chief coach Rios was greatly relieved. 

57 minutes into the second half. 

Now the game is an 11Vs10 fight. 

Fuenlabrada replaces striker Riera and Nteka with defensive players. 

It meant they would play defense openly. 

In the 63rd minute of the second half, Kirian Rodriguez, returned to the field after throwing the ball from outside due to the opponent midfielder’s touch mistake, bringing back the lost attack flow. 

The ball delivered to attacking midfielder Viera is directed to right-wingback Alvaro. 

Then it’s my turn to receive the ball. 

Fuenlabrada’s fullback, winger, and central midfielder are pressing me like one body, but they have already established their position. 

The point at which the ball was received was the right end of the half-line. 

At the same time as receiving the ball, I turned my body in the front direction and waited to rush in. 

It’s a short moment, but I can predict how the wingback and central midfielder will behave. 

I don’t have to pay attention to the opposing winger running from behind. 

Just as the ball’s right path is blocked by the touchline, it’s enough to think that I can’t go back. 

‘Damn it!’ 

I rotate the ball and send it between the Fuenlabrada players. 

The problem is that my body cannot pass the path that the ball was passed. 

If I follow it there, my uniform will be torn to pieces like a hyena snout. 

In that case, I just have to go out of the line and run, to the place where the ball can’t go but the person can go. 

I turned towards the three who had been chasing like idiots and pushed them all away. 

Once again, there was a hole in the right space. 

Before the defense repairs, I took half a step and ran with full force. 

I went deep into the side of the penalty box 

As I came in, I could see the crowd behind the net rising from their seats, holding their breath. 

There are Castro and Viera in the penalty box. 

I want to kick a cross but the pushed-back Fuenlabrada’s central defenders don’t give me space. 

So this time, I took a step to the right by taking advantage of the speed

It’s not a tap, it’s a squeak. 

With my right foot, I took a step forward, pushed the ball over the line, and turned 90 degrees with the back of my foot towards the goalkeeper. 

To keep the body from straying behind the goal post, I put my weight on the right foot.

I left the line slightly, but it was not enough to lose the ball. 

Castro and Viera rushed to the front of the net to receive the pass. 

“Stick! No. 21!” 

The keeper’s left shoulder, wary of Cross, stood out exceptionally. 

But I was greedy for goals. 

It was impossible to use the right foot now. 

Would it be wise for me to use my left foot to shoot when I just started training? 

As Manager Pepe said I did what I wanted to do. 

“Eyeeee–!” 

“Aye-!” 

There are times when you know the result before you kick it, whether you made a mistake or you made the best shot.

Fans roared and shouted to the tune of the song. 

“Hay unpríncipeen Canarias~ El príncipe vino de Corea! “

( Prince of Canaries! prince from Korea.) 

“Ledaré el Honor a Canario~ préncipe de la corona deoro!! 

(He will give the Honor to Canary~ prince with the golden crown) 

Don’t..

Don’t sing weird songs…