"Come on! Get faster! Don’t stop running!"
"Miki, keep your eyes on him! Don’t let him escape!"
BRUGH!
"FOUL! REF, THAT’S A YELLOW CARD!"
Twenty minutes had passed since the game began, and somehow, not much really happened there. The referee blew the whistle almost once every minute due to the intensity of the game. Hell, in total, there had already been 9 fouls committed so far, with Japan leading in this regard with 5.
It couldn’t be helped. The tension was always high when the two teams played. Even when they were in Europe, far from their own home, the rivalry running deep in their vein boiled instantly the moment the game started. No one dared to show mercy, as all the players here were fighting for their lives.
Of course, not everything was well balanced here. The game somehow tilted to one side, and unfortunately, it was toward South Korea.
Once again, it couldn’t be helped. Unlike Japanese people who were genetically shorter, South Korean people were among the tallest in Asia, and it also reflected in their tactical approach. They knew they were bigger, so they tried to push the game into a physical battle.
They also seemed to learn from Ecuador here, knowing full well that Japan couldn’t develop a good tempo here, which would be detrimental for Japan’s part. That was why they didn’t hesitate to bait the game into one clash after another, knowing that they had a full advantage on this part.
However, South Korea was not Ecuador. They had more clinical players up front who could cause a threat. One of them was their prodigy, Lee Kang-In, as the boy had been wreaking havoc on the left side of Japan so many times. Miki Yamane was forced to run left and right and even foul the boy three times so far just to stop him from running deeper to the penalty box.
Honestly, it was a miracle that Miki Yamane hadn’t gotten a yellow card yet, what with the amount of fouls he had committed so far.
Still, no one blamed the boy here. Lee Kang-In had already proven to be too much on that side. He was good with both feet, and no one really knew what he was going to do next. Not only that, but the others were also willing to cooperate with him, giving the boy the biggest space in the world either to run deep to the byline or to cut in to kill with his left foot.
The last foul was also one of the cases here. Miki Yamane had already dropped his stance lower, stepping back little by little to prepare himself against a deep run. However, South Korea’s full back suddenly penetrated through the sideline, catching him off guard. At that time, Lee Kang-In also made his move, turning sharply to cut inside the box.
Having no choice, Miki Yamane had to stop the boy by pulling his jersey lightly. Not too much for him to get a yellow card, but enough to stop the game immediately. That was definitely the best decision he made, because if he didn’t do that, the boy would create more chaos on that side.
"Miki-san, you okay? Do you need my help?" Naoya asked while helping the boy get up from the ground.
If it was anyone else, they would be offended by the suggestion. After all, it had only been twenty minutes, and asking something like this was as if doubting the boy’s ability. However, Miki Yamane had been his high school’s captain for so long, and he knew that ego with no ability to match would only hurt the team.
After pondering for a second, the left back finally said, "Just guard his cutback route and try to make it obvious. Force him to go to the byline. Even though there are two people there, I could still kill them both."
This was the part where he showed his pride as the best left back in his generation. At the end of the day, the boy was still in his late teenage years, and his ego was still at its peak. There was no way he would just let this slide so easily.
However, South Korea was not just Lee Kang-In. No, they were way more dangerous than that.
On the other flank, they had another dangerous player named Oh Se-Hun. The boy wasn’t as dynamic as Lee Kang-In, and his speed was also manageable for Sugawara to handle. However, his positioning when he inserted himself into the box was always troublesome.
The boy was sneaky, always finding himself in the best position to receive the ball. He had already stolen the position behind Ito and Sugawara twice, and the only saving grace here was that the pass to him was always far from being perfect.
Still, it showed that the man was dangerous to be left alone.
Then, they also had their duo on the front, Park Han-Gyeol and Cho Young-Wook. No one was surprised by the first one since most of the Japanese players here had already fought against or even alongside him in high school. His rapid speed, sharp nose for chances, and first touch skill had already been recognized among Japanese defenders.
However, the same couldn’t be said for the latter. Cho Young-Wook was a strong guy who always fought for the ball relentlessly. Hell, his style was even borderline reckless, as he had already contributed three out of the four fouls that South Korea committed.
However, no one could deny his effort, as he always managed to attract so much attention even unconsciously. Not only that, but he was also a good wall, dragging several players to his side before shifting the possession to his teammates who managed to open the space around.
Overall, those four attackers with a different characteristic for each one of them were a little bit too much for Japan to handle, and Kageyama-sensei couldn’t help but frown when he saw this.
’What change should I make to deal with this situation?’