"OH! Damn, Taisei, what a shot!"
"That’s crazy! Fucking hell, what is your foot made of?!"
"Hey, hey! Don’t forget about Morita’s pass! That crazy bastard has a loose screw in his head!"
"Fucking shit! That’s an insult, not a praise!"
The Japan team was full of laughter right now, as they were celebrating Miyashiro’s goal on the corner of the pitch. The main protagonist himself was grinning widely, feeling ecstatic over everything that happened in the last few minutes.
He became the team’s first goal scorer in this tournament, and most importantly, the boy even had time to celebrate the goal on his own, hitting a knee slide near the corner spot. For a boy around 20 years old, image was definitely the most important thing in the world.
Of course, the focus was not just on him. No, Koki Morita, the main perpetrator of the attack, also received huge praise from everyone else. That poor boy got slapped so many times in the head that he had to try escaping from the crowd quickly. Still, the grin on his face clearly showed how pleased he was with his role in this goal.
Even Higo himself was impressed at the scene before him. The boy joined with the other bench players, cheering the team for the goal they finally scored. However, his eyes still landed on Koki Morita, as he observed the midfielder intently.
’So, that’s the best midfielder in my generation, huh?’ He couldn’t help but mutter, staring at the boy in admiration.
Honestly, before this, Higo always maintained a skeptical approach toward Koki Morita. After all, he didn’t see anything special from the boy in the training camp. Other than calmly dictating the pace and controlling the midfield, the boy had never shown any exceptional individual skill.
"Thing is, Ryukkun, being able to control the midfield with completely new teammates also shows his quality as the team’s leader. He doesn’t need to make a move by himself; just instructing the others is enough to get the result that he wants. This is not something that would pass the eye test, but any coach would appreciate the talent."
At least, that was what Kumiko said in the past. Of course, Higo wouldn’t believe it straight away, still thinking that the best should have something more special in him. Then, this goal happened, and he was finally able to see the charm that the man showed in a high-stakes game like this.
’That instinct to find a gap to escape from three people, the vision to find Miyashiro-san, and the execution pass itself... Everything has been done in less than ten seconds with full precision. His calculation and execution skills are really scary... As expected from the best player of my generation...’
While the atmosphere was bustling on Japan’s side, the same couldn’t be said for Italy’s side. Most people there just stared at the ball helplessly, still getting taken aback by the goal. No one really blamed each other here, as the attack itself was so quick, coming like lightning. Still, this was a big concern for the team, as they finally treated the game more seriously.
"Okay, we need to move quickly before they establish a wall on their territory." Alessandro Tripaldelli, the team’s captain, spoke to snap his teammates out of their daydreaming. "Domenico, you need to get closer on that number 10. His control over the tempo is incredible, so you need to press him more, make sure he doesn’t have time to be comfortable with the ball."
"Sure, leave it to me." Domenico Alberico, the team’s defensive midfielder, nodded solemnly.
"Also, Giorno, that is a poor awareness from you. Keep an eye closely on that striker; he shouldn’t be your opponent, right?"
The team’s defender, Alessandro Buongiorno, just grumbled grumpily here. His expression was so sour when he remembered the goal, because the boy himself just stared stupidly at the ball curling in front of him.
"I will not let him escape again later." He vowed in front of his teammates.
"Well, then, we will need to score too, so let’s worry about that first." The captain turned to the bench slightly. After he received a nod from the head coach, he added, "We will increase the tempo by one point, so get ready to run more. Try to avoid any unnecessary collisions, and move the ball faster. I don’t believe they can keep up with our pace."
"Sure!"
"Let’s do this!"
Even though the players were still fuming at the goal, they showed maturity beyond their age, moving on quickly with a new target in front of them. Everyone here knew that getting beaten by one goal from the opponent was taboo in a game, so it was better to vent their emotions out there to tie the score.
However, the Young Samurai was also ready for this.
Being led by Ito, the commander at the back, they narrowed their defense immediately, not letting even a single one fly through it. They would only send the full back once in a while to kick out the attack from their territory.
At this point, Italy finally realized why Japan was considered one of the most disciplined teams in the world. There was no weakness at all, and their coordination would always shut any individual attempt to break through any side of their defense.
Honestly, it was like punching a sponge here. Every hit was absorbed perfectly, not leaving any trace on their shape. Hell, if anything, it was the Italy side who got hurt more, finding every attempt to be futile.
Now, they couldn’t help but start to get anxious, wondering what kind of method they should try to break this wall in front of him.
"Chris, you are the creative worker here, any idea?" Andrea Pinamonti asked while panting heavily after losing another aerial battle against Yuki Kobayashi.
Christian Capone, the team’s number 10, wiped the sweat on his face while also glancing at their own bench. "We need Boss’s instruction here. I cannot do anything about it."
Meanwhile, seeing that the opponent’s players were starting to get frustrated, Kageyama-sensei couldn’t help but nod, feeling satisfied with his team’s performance.
’Yeah, that’s how we should do this.’ He muttered under his breath. ’We might not be the most physically or technically gifted country in the world, but with iron-clad discipline like this, we can beat anyone in this tournament!’