With the first half ending 2-0, Guardiola entered the dressing room wearing an uneasy expression.
'Not enough.'
In terms of both process and result, it had been a first half worthy of satisfaction, but there were still clear shortcomings if he was to be truly satisfied.
Of course, Ho-young, the key to the attack, had performed beyond expectations.
He was like a vanguard commander who personally carried out everything required in a match, leading the way in runs, passes, shooting, and heading.
The basic pattern was always the same, dragging defenders out and then pouring forward in attack, but its greatest strength was how unpredictable the process itself was.
David Silva and James Milner, who supported him closely, had also delivered satisfying performances.
'That part is fine.'
The problem was what lay above and below that.
First, the line behind him.
The shield built by Gareth Barry and Yaya Touré was weaker than he had expected.
Yaya Touré, whom he had coached before at Barcelona, followed instructions well, but he was no longer what he used to be.
Gareth Barry had also fallen below expectations.
His attacking contribution had weakened, and his defending had not improved in return.
There was no real point in setting up a 4-2-3-1 like that.
And that was not the only problem.
Emmanuel Adebayor at the top of the attack.
He produced something when he was on it, but he too was not the kind of attacking option Guardiola wanted.
If anything, Guardiola thought he was part of what was dragging down the attack.
'Manchester City's scoring power right now depends on how many chances Ho-young gets.'
That made the role of the surrounding players extremely important.
That much had already been proven when Ho-young was at Real Madrid.
Carlos Tévez was already on the release list because of the language issue.
The only remaining option was Roque Santa Cruz, who would soon return from loan.
He would have to see him in person to know for sure, but Guardiola did not think he was enough to join the team properly.
'The attacking line needs restructuring too.'
Guardiola felt that every area except the second line needed work.
'Ho-young's link-up play is excellent, so it might be better to go with a 4-3-3 instead. That is, if the midfield can be built properly.'
After organising his thoughts, Guardiola returned to the dressing room and spoke to Ho-young.
"In the second half, change your movement from the flank into the centre."
"So you expect them to narrow the distance between the lines to maintain shape. Which means there will be more space left on the flanks."
"You can see right through me."
A conversation between two geniuses.
Guardiola did not need to go into tactical detail.
No matter how he put it, Ho-young understood everything.
And that was not all.
"Gather up!"
He called the players together himself and relayed the manager's instructions word for word.
And he did not simply pass them on.
"If I move wide, the flank will tighten up again and the centre will open up. Then Touré and Barry need to cover it."
"Got it."
"Okay."
It was one surprise after another.
At that sight, Guardiola's mouth fell open.
'So this is how City won the treble. The secret was in the dressing room.'
Ho-young did not simply relay the manager's words, he understood the true meaning of what the manager wanted and passed that on to the players exactly as intended.
He was taking on part of the manager's role.
And his true value showed itself through the match.
[In the second half, LA Galaxy have changed shape. They're sitting back with a five-man defence.]
With the physically strong left-back Kajumba coming on and taking the left side alone, the rest of the defenders tucked inside into the centre.
It was the moment Guardiola and Ho-young's prediction proved correct.
[Meanwhile, Manchester City's attacking build-up is the same as it was in the first half. David Silva and Ho-young are switching again.]
[That's right. I imagine he'll push up into the front line again and combine with Adebayor.]
That was everyone's expectation.
And it was also why LA Galaxy had brought on Alex Kajumba.
The idea was to put only a minimal safeguard on the flank and concentrate defenders in the centre to stop Ho-young.
So Alex Kajumba felt less burdened.
'I just have to do my job.'
Since Ho-young would move into the front line anyway, he thought all he had to do was stop Micah Richards from overlapping.
But then.
[Ho-young gets the ball. He drives straight down the right flank!]
Ho-young did not go forward into the centre.
Instead, he drove down the right side.
"Damn it!"
Kajumba used his superior speed to catch up and just about managed to stick a foot out, but the ball was no longer on the ground.
"...?!"
On the instep.
The ball had somehow risen and settled on top of Ho-young's instep.
And that was not all.
Astonishingly, it was spinning madly in place, holding its rotation.
'What the hell is this...'
He had been told to play football, and yet here he was putting on a circus act.
From the perspective of anyone watching, it was absurd.
In that brief instant, all sorts of thoughts ran through Kajumba's mind.
How on earth was that possible? Was it even physically possible?
No, it was not worth thinking about.
It was something no human being should be able to do.
That was right.
Kajumba's instinct had been correct.
It was a performance beyond human limits.
Ho-young was spinning the ball using the friction at the tip of his boot by twisting his ankle like a madman.
That was the ball sense born from insane physicality and bodily control.
For a moment, time seemed to stop, and even the noise of the crowd faded.
It was a breathtaking spectacle that mesmerised everyone.
But that moment did not last long.
Tap.
Ho-young flicked the ball up ever so slightly from the top of his foot.
Even then, more than half the spin remained alive.
And then.
Boom!
He struck it powerfully with the inside of his right foot.
The ball, already loaded with spin before the strike, took on another turn and lifted while bending at a tremendous angle.
[Ho-young curls it into the box!]
"Uh, uhhh...!"
The heavily spinning, bending cross was more than enough to throw the defenders into chaos.
Even Leonardo, who was excellent at positioning, was left scrambling and unsure.
He simply could not predict where the ball would drop.
But Adebayor was different.
'It's coming!'
As if he already knew where the ball would land, he held his position to the very end.
The reason he could do that was because of what Ho-young had told him at half-time.
-Stay there. The ball will always drop above your head.
Adebayor was not merely loyal to Ho-young, he practically worshipped him.
To the point that he believed anything Ho-young said was absolute truth.
So he stood still in that spot and finished preparing to leap.
And sure enough.
'It's here!'
That trust did not betray him.
'If I can't finish this, then I'm an idiot.'
This was practically being spoon-fed.
Adebayor leapt on the spot and thrust his head forward.
The net shook naturally.
Rustle!
[Gooooooooal! Adebayor calmly puts it away. It's 3-0!]
[The goal was good, but really it was Ho-young's cross that stood out. The trajectory was extraordinary.]
"Yessssss!"
Adebayor roared like a beast and ran toward Ho-young.
It was moving, pure and simple.
Because it was easily the best cross he had ever received in his life.
"I told you, if I just listen to you, good things happen without me even trying!"
"Hoo!"
And so came the first crossing assist.
The second assist followed not long after.
It came from an early diagonal cross around the 25th minute of the second half.
And once again, Adebayor was waiting there.
Rustle!
[Gooooooal! 4-0! Adebayor smashes it in again!]
[That was another incredible cross. Ho-young really is going wild today, maybe because it's his birthday.]
They did concede late on due to a defensive mistake, but in the end the match still ended in a Manchester City victory.
It was the match in which Ho-young obtained his first T-grade talent.
He gained a total of two talents through this match.
[You covet Dead-Ball Specialist (T). You acquire part of David Beckham's experience and sense. It will take 14 days to fully absorb the experience and sense.]
[You covet Kicking of the Dead-Ball Specialist (SU).]
'I still can't tell yet.'
David Beckham's sense.
What exactly that meant, he felt he would only understand after the 14 days had passed.
After the match against LA Galaxy, the United States tour continued for another week.
The second fixture was against Chicago Fire SC in Chicago.
That day, Ho-young scored 2 goals and showed off his finishing once again.
Next came the match against New York Red Bulls in New York City, and again, they were able to cruise to victory through Ho-young's opening goal.
The tactics were gradually taking shape too.
The question was whether they would work in the Premier League as well, but there was still enough time left to prepare, so the shortcomings could surely be addressed.
After the match, the players were given some free time.
But even then, Guardiola instructed them to move as a group for the sake of team unity.
Even so, that alone could not solve every issue.
On the final night of the United States tour.
Guardiola sat in his hotel room, drinking wine and deep in thought.
"4-1, 4-2, 3-1."
Those were the results against LA Galaxy, Chicago Fire, and New York Red Bulls, in that order.
They had won them all, but neither the process nor the results were completely satisfying.
A few players had failed to carry out even half of what Guardiola had asked of them.
The midfield in particular was absurdly weak compared with the second line.
'Yaya Touré no longer has the physical level to support it.'
If a player whose game depended on physicality lost that physical edge, there was no longer any reason to keep using him.
And it was impossible to keep someone around purely out of personal attachment.
The goals they were conceding every match clearly started there.
Of course, if Ho-young were placed as an attacking midfielder to balance the attack and defence, they might be able to prevent those goals.
'But the trade-off is too big.'
The problem was that if Ho-young played as an attacking midfielder, the team lost attacking power compared to when he played in the front line.
A difficult puzzle.
And besides, the biggest issue was something else.
'At this rate, he might break down after only a few seasons.'
Human beings are not machines.
No matter how tough Ho-young was, if he were run into the ground for several seasons, it would have a serious impact on his career.
England in particular had an even tighter calendar than other countries because there was one extra competition.
On top of that, December also brought Boxing Day, so there was no mid-season break like in other countries.
A style where he ran all over the pitch and did everything by himself looked good on the surface, but in the long run it was not something he could be made to do every match.
If he were used that way, it was obvious his career would suffer badly.
With more and more on his mind, Guardiola called one player into his room.
"You called for me."
It was none other than Ho-young.
Guardiola was originally the kind of manager who decided everything alone and took responsibility for it himself.
But he was changing.
"Who do you think this team needs right now?"
"Are you asking for my personal opinion?"
"I'm asking for the opinion of the club captain. I'm going to build a team where you can score in the easiest and most perfect way possible. That will be the concept of our team."
It meant he intended to make Manchester City Ho-young's club, just as Real Madrid had once done.
Guardiola asked.
"Who do you want?"
Guardiola would handle the process, and Mansour would take care of the finish.
To that question, Ho-young spoke his mind without hesitation.
"I think it would be good if we had Iniesta behind me."
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)