"Higo! When I heard about your arrival here, I knew I should be coming to watch as well!" Higo was greeted with a familiar boisterous laughter. "Oh, man... This is going to be good! Come on, let me introduce you to the one in charge here!"
It was the day after he arrived at Gelsenkirchen and the day of the trial as well, and the moment Higo stepped inside the Berger Field, the place where the youth team trained, he was greeted by that familiar figure. It was Marius Draxler, the team’s head scout and the one who introduced Higo to the team as well.
"Come on! Let me show you the facilities first! Oh, you really come at the right moment!" The man whispered conspiratorially. "The team’s main captain and goalkeeper, Ralf Fahrmann, has been considering a move, and as a result, the team’s reserve goalkeeper, Alexander Nubel, is about to be promoted. Not only that, but another goalkeeper from the reserve team will also be released, so we will have an empty spot on the back line later."
Higo just nodded quietly as the man explained to him. The boy had already done his homework before, and he knew Schalke’s team structure. They had the main one, where they competed in the highest competition, the U-23 team, which people knew more as the second team, the U-19 team, where the youngsters gathered, and the younger teams below 19 years old.
The fact that Marius Draxler didn’t mention the main team at all showed that the man didn’t have any high hopes for Higo’s performance to be that outstanding today. However, it also helped that the man kept mentioning the reserve team, not the U-19 team, where he should belong. That meant the man still had a wishful thinking that he would be strong enough to get through that side, which meant it was within an achievable range.
"So, when do we start this trial?" Higo asked, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves.
"Well, we will start with introducing you to the one in charge first. Ah, there is the man!" Marius Draxler perked up immediately when he saw a man, far younger than him and with short, blonde hair, standing alone on the sideline watching the training session unfold. "Torsten! This is the boy I talked to you about a few months ago! The one I found in Japan!" He pointed at Higo enthusiastically.
Higo didn’t know his chances at all in this scenario, but he liked the fact that the man was so enthusiastic over him. That showed Marius Draxler valued the man quite a lot in this regard.
"Hello, my name is Ryusuke Higo, and I am from Japan. Nice to meet you." Higo bowed politely.
The man named Torsten had his eyes lit up in surprise for a moment. "You know German?" He asked with a thick accent that was hard to understand.
"Only a little, not too fast." Higo winced unconsciously before switching back to English. "I have only been in a German class for about 7 meetings, cramming everything inside my head forcefully. However, the effect is still not as good as I would like."
The man nodded in understanding. At the same time, his impression of Higo also improved drastically. After all, who wouldn’t appreciate a proactive boy who would learn the local language without the need to be told first?
The man had met a fair share of talented players in his team who couldn’t adapt due to the language issue, and he was glad that Higo was not one of them.
"Well, my name is Torsten Frohling, you can call me Mr. Frohling or Boss once you are accepted into the team." The man smiled brightly as he offered a handshake. He switched into English as well, understanding Higo’s difficulty in this regard. "Anyway, let’s go to the medical team. We have to go for the physical test first."
Right after that, Higo was being led into the medical building, where he had to do so many tests, just like when he entered the national team for the first time a few weeks ago. So many machines were being put to monitor everything about him, from his heartbeat to the things he himself couldn’t even detect, like muscle movement or something like that.
During the process, Ayaka and Koisuke Fujita also accompanied him. After all, this was not a closed trial, so there was nothing to hide here. They could also find the result together with the medical team, at least giving them good information as a reference.
One of the medical teams also gave a nod at Frohling. "Besides the fact that he is just 181 cm, a short posture for a goalkeeper, I have to remind you that everything is in excellent condition. It is clear that his body is built to be a goalkeeper. Whoever trains him knows what they are doing."
Ayaka snorted secretly when she heard that, deciding to save the information in the back of her mind for Kumiko later.
Frohling himself didn’t mind it. For him, while height was indeed an advantage, he was not prejudiced enough to judge a goalkeeper just based on that. No, everything was still based on the boy’s ability to protect the goal, and this was what he intended to test after the physical test was over.
"So, have you grown tired already?" He asked teasingly.
"Just from this?" Higo blinked incredulously. "I might be just a goalkeeper, but I have a good physical state, you know? It will take me at least four or five tests like this to knock me out, and that would come from boredom rather than exhaustion."
"Hah! I like your spirit, Kid!" The man laughed boisterously, slapping Higo on the back. "Come on, wear your vest! It is time to let me see whether you have the ability to back up your big words or not!"
When Higo heard that, a little smirk formed on his face. "That is exactly what I have been waiting for. Come on, it is time for action!"