Chapter 5: Award Ceremony

After I scored that one goal, the second half resumed.

Were Inha High shaken by the shock of conceding a goal to a goalkeeper?

Their performance began to drop significantly, unlike what they had shown in the first half.

Before long, possession had even reversed to Pungwol High 64%, Inha High 36%.

Of course, it was still 1-0.

[Ah, 30th minute of the second half, that’s unfortunate for Lee Tae-yang! He attempted a surprise long-range shot, but it narrowly misses the goalpost.]

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. Let’s just keep going like this.”

Of course, there were some players on Inha High’s team who were performing even better than in the first half.

Yu Hui-seong, in particular, threatened our defense several times.

Against his sharp dribbling, our defenders often stood rooted to the spot like scarecrows.

Yu Hui-seong completely broke through our defensive line and had several one-on-one chances.

But each time…

“Cr-crazy! He blocked it again!”

“I love you, Tae-woo!”

I stood as Inha High’s wall, not allowing a single goal.

Whether it was Yu Hui-seong’s powerful shot or a clever chip shot, none could get past my fingertips and into the goal.

Truthfully, a goalkeeper…

Cannot lead the team to victory, but if I don’t concede any goals, we don’t lose either.

But what if the goalkeeper doesn’t concede and also scores?

“Well then… we win, I guess.”

***

“Ah…”

A sigh escaped me unknowingly.

Just now, in a one-on-one situation, I had confidently aimed for the left corner with a strong kick, but Jeong Tae-woo reacted instantly, as if reading my mind, and blocked it.

‘He’s on a completely different level than in middle school.’

Jeong Tae-woo’s skills had improved to an unbelievable extent, but I couldn’t just stand by either.

‘Still, I can’t give up. An opportunity will definitely come.’

Before long, an opportunity did arrive.

Our team’s Hyeon-su sunbae quickly intercepted the ball from an opponent’s midfielder and immediately sent a sharp pass to me.

I instantly assessed my surroundings.

‘One defender right in front, and two behind. I can do this.’

I ran towards the first defender at full speed.

Catching my breath, I attempted a rainbow flick.

The moment the ball rose behind my back, my heart pounded.

Thankfully, the ball drew a perfect arc over the defender.

The surprised expression of the defender flashed past.

As the second defender rushed in, I pushed the ball to the left with my right foot, then instantly pulled it back to the right.

I heard the sound of the defender’s feet tangling.

Using that gap, I sprinted towards the goal.

I was out of breath, but I only looked ahead and ran.

“Ha~ Ha~”

Just then, I saw Kim Jun-ho sunbae, a third-year, keeping up beside me, and I made a quick decision.

Pretending to shoot, I pulled my foot back, and as soon as I spotted Jeong Tae-woo’s body flinch slightly, I quickly attempted a no-look pass.

The ball flew accurately to Kim Jun-ho sunbae’s feet, and he shot powerfully without hesitation.

“This one’s in!”

I shouted, clenching my fist.

My heart felt like it would explode as I watched the ball’s trajectory.

But Jeong Tae-woo’s reaction was lightning fast.

Confirming it was a pass, Jeong Tae-woo immediately turned his body and leaped towards the goal.

“Screeeech-”

The ball grazed Jeong Tae-woo’s fingertips and changed direction.

“No way…”

“Peeeeep!”

***

“Hey, you lovely b*stard!”

I saw Kim Min-woo sunbae running towards me at an incredible speed from a distance.

‘Huh? But why isn’t he stopping?’

“Ugh!”

Kim Min-woo sunbae’s body collided with mine.

His arm wrapped around my neck, making it hard to breathe.

“The defenders were a real mess today, but you saved us, seriously.”

“Keok… I get it, so first…”

“Kuaaaah, I love you, Tae-woo!”

“Aaack- I get it, so please get off me for a bit!”

“Hahahahaha!”

Amidst the laughter of our Pungwol High students, someone walked over.

“Congratulations on the win, Jeong Tae-woo.”

It was Inha High’s Yu Hui-seong.

His expression looked complicated.

I barely managed to escape Kim Min-woo sunbae’s arm, caught my breath, and looked at Yu Hui-seong.

During the match, we were rivals, checking and competing against each other, but now, everything was over.

‘Given Jeong Tae-woo’s personality, he would have teased Yu Hui-seong, whom he’d been touting as his rival, with a triumphant look…’

“Hey, you played well too.”

‘But there’s no need for me to do that.’

Yu Hui-seong hesitated for a moment.

“Why, is there something you want to say?”

‘Is he going to ask when I practiced my individual skills so much? Since we were called rivals since middle school, he must be curious-’

“You should come to Manchester United with me too.”

For a moment, I was stunned, then a chuckle escaped me.

Ah, right.

This guy was a die-hard Manchester United fan.

“Hey, Yu Hui-seong. Are you teasing me right now?”

“No, I’m serious!”

“So what? You want me to wear a Man Utd uniform at Old Trafford and run around singing ‘Glory Glory Man United’?”

“That sounds great! Let’s sing it together!”

Yu Hui-seong’s eyes sparkled.

It was even funnier remembering how, in the novel, even when Yu Hui-seong was called the best striker, he would send Man Utd videos to promising young players via messenger.

“Don’t you happen to have videos like ‘The History of Man Utd’ or ’10 Reasons Why Man Utd is Great’?”

“Huh? How did you know? I made those videos!”

“So you were a Man Utd fan too. To think you’ve seen those videos… How were they? Well-made, right?”

“But you know, I’m a Manchester City fan.”

“Wh-what did you say?”

“I said I’m a Man City fan.”

“B-but, even knowing about those videos…”

“Well, I just prefer blue. The 6-1 win in the Manchester Derby was truly legendary.”

Yu Hui-seong’s face contorted.

“Man Utd is superior now.”

He was right.

Just as the novel’s title was ‘The Resurgence of Man Utd,’ Manchester United, which had grown rapidly stronger since 2030, even recruited Yu Hui-seong, and was evaluated to have returned to the level of Ferguson’s golden era Man Utd.

In contrast, Manchester City had sharply declined due to financial problems, successive injuries to key players, and several unfortunate management decisions.

Now, they were barely holding onto a mid-table position, and the glory days of the Sky Blues had long since become a dream.

“Hui-seong, what are you doing there? Hurry up and come.”

“Yes, I’m coming.”

“See you later. I’ll properly teach you about the greatness of Man Utd then.”

I shook my head as I watched his retreating figure.

“Is Jeong Tae-woo going to be the villain again this time?”

As a hardcore fan who had shared the glory as Manchester City’s starting striker during my Kim Chan-ki days, I couldn’t tolerate Manchester City being below Manchester United, even in a different world.

In my heart, Manchester City was still the best.

“Tae-woo, stop it and let’s go to the locker room.”

“Yeah, I’m coming.”

***

As I entered the locker room, the coach walked towards me with a complicated expression.

‘As expected, even if I scored a goal, unauthorized departure is enough to make him angry.’

“Well done, Tae-woo.”

“Yes?”

‘What is this? This is so different from the reaction I expected.’

“I said well done, you punk. Did you think I was going to scold you?”

“Uh… well, since I didn’t follow your instructions and went out…”

The coach chuckled and lightly tapped my head.

“The kid knows.”

“Sweepers were also criticized by many people at first, but one player completely changed that image.”

“You too, try to convince others with your play.”

Even European club managers would have exploded in anger, claiming their authority was being ignored…

Knowing the outcome, it was true that I thought this was the only way.

Still, the coach’s reaction was truly unexpected.

No, honestly, I was very moved.

To think there was a coach who understood his player like this.

“I’m sorry. Next time, I’ll discuss it with you.”

“You’re not saying you won’t do it, though.”

“Hahaha.”

“Right, you shouldn’t let such individual skills go to waste. But then, how about just changing your position to striker-”

“Uh, that’s absolutely not happening!”

I didn’t know what ‘deletion’ meant, but I didn’t have the courage to find out directly, so I firmly refused.

At that moment, as if a saving grace, a voice came from outside the door.

“Coach, the preparations for the awards ceremony are complete!”

“Well, if you don’t want to, I can’t help it. Your saving ability is too good to waste anyway. Alright, let’s go. You have to lift the trophy.”

As we stepped out onto the field, a podium and the trophy were prepared.

As I went up onto the podium and waited, the surrounding noise subsided.

The moment everyone held their breath, waiting for the results.

“Now, this tournament’s winning team is…”

The tension reached its peak.

“Pungwol High!”

“Waaaaaaah!”

Explosive cheers erupted from the stands.

The captain raised the trophy high and roared, and the other students also cheered, hugging each other.

Honestly, I didn’t think I would be that happy.

What interest would I, who had received numerous trophies and individual awards in the Premier League, find in a high school trophy?

I was just preparing to put on a formal smile.

But perhaps because it was my first championship as a goalkeeper?

Contrary to my expectations, I felt a warmth spreading in a corner of my chest.

“Huh?”

Before I could answer, a cold stream of water hit my face.

“Ah, cold!”

“What the, he’s damn handsome even when soaked in water.”

“Puhahahaha!”

‘Hmm, first, let’s not think about anything else and get this punk.’

“Lee Tae-yang, you’re dead if I catch you!”

“Nope~ You won’t catch me~”

As Lee Tae-yang grinned slyly and ran away, I immediately chased after him.

“Hey! Today, I’m really gonna…!”

I barely caught up to Lee Tae-yang and grabbed his shoulder.

“Hey Tae-woo, calm down. Your expression is really strange right now.”

“Hehehe, you’re dead.”

“Tae-woo, I brought this with good sense~”

Min-woo hyung winked, handing me a huge water bottle.

“No, Min-woo hyung, that th- glub-”

Without hesitation, I lifted the water bottle and poured it over Lee Tae-yang.

In an instant, Lee Tae-yang was drenched.

“Puhahaha, Tae-woo actually looks handsome when wet, but our Tae-yang is…”

Lee Tae-yang, dazed from the water, retorted indignantly.

“Sunbae, what’s wrong with me? I’m popular with girls too, you know!”

“Yes, our Tae-yang is also very handsome.”

“Ah, really, I’m serious!”

“Ah, I get it, I said you’re handsome!”

The seniors around us burst into laughter.

As we all looked at each other, unable to stop laughing, the announcer’s voice echoed through the stadium.

“Now, we will announce this tournament’s Most Valuable Player award.”