Tony Ruzzo, the U17 team's manager who had been watching the game, recalled a famous phrase.
'Blessed are those who wait.'
They say old sayings are never wrong.
It seemed that if you truly waited, blessings really did come.
Even when Lee Ji-an was snatched away by Juventus.
He had waited while keeping an eye on him, and eventually got to have him.
Even when Ji-an joined the team but still struggled to fit in due to adjustment issues.
Rather than pushing him, he had simply waited patiently, and now a response was finally coming.
Honestly, he wasn't sure whether it was the team's consideration that had opened his heart, or if there was some other reason.
But it didn't matter either way.
What mattered was simply that the kid was showing enthusiasm.
'I fell in love with that talent.'
Tony's gaze fixed on Lee Ji-an.
Truly... what a fascinating kid.
His physical build wasn't particularly impressive, nor was his natural speed exceptionally fast.
His on-the-ball skills were good, but not to the point where he felt like he was on another level.
Yet the impact Lee Ji-an had on the field was tremendous.
How to put it.
It was like he was some kind of lubricant.
The kid was always positioned in exactly the right place, always reacted and made decisions faster than everyone else, and almost always made the optimal choice.
Even the players who played matches every week couldn't keep up with Ji-an's tempo.
When Gino was there, the game had definitely felt like it was stuck.
But once the lubricant called Lee Ji-an was added, it was as if a stalled machine had started running smoothly.
'The most fascinating thing is...'
Manager Tony shook his head.
The most fascinating thing was that this Lee Ji-an had gone two full years without proper development.
And not just any two years—two years during his growth period.
From age thirteen to fifteen.
Everyone knew that this period was more important than any other.
Throughout a player's entire career, there was no time when skills improved as explosively as during this period.
Unfortunately, Lee Ji-an had wasted those two years.
And yet he was still this good.
In the end, it meant he was born with it.
The ability to read the flow of the game, to know how to move and how to play in order to win.
Simply put, you could say his soccer IQ was high.
It was a very unique style.
Especially at this youth level.
"..."
Manager Tony looked at Lee Ji-an with a somewhat bittersweet gaze.
This might sound a bit cruel, but Tony suspected that such an ability probably originated from the growth environment the kid had experienced.
It was just speculation, but Lee Ji-an was a child who had grown up alongside pressure.
He didn't know why his mother had pushed her son so hard.
It might have simply been out of a desire for her son to succeed, or it could have been for other reasons.
That was unknown, but what was certain was that it would have weighed on Ji-an as a burden.
Naturally, he would have developed a keen sense for reading others.
A young child who reading others had become a habit... was a rather sad thing to hear.
But in any case, on the field, it was an irreplaceable talent—that was a fact.
The kid was the most sensitive reactor to everything happening on the field, and because of that, he was capable of leading the flow.
"At this level, he could play in this weekend's match without any problem."
At the words of Coach Luca, who had approached at some point, Manager Tony nodded.
Without any problem? It was more than that.
As long as mental issues didn't flare up, it was clear he could dominate the U17 level right now.
As far as Tony knew, there wasn't a player who could lead a game like that.
"Still, we can't rush things."
But mental issues weren't something to be taken lightly.
If they suddenly threw him into matches and rushed his promotion to the upper team, it would backfire.
Why else had he been patient and waited for the kid? He couldn't let all that patient waiting go to waste.
"Still... I think it might be okay to move to the next step."
"What's the next step?"
"Give him some light praise. Just enough that he won't feel pressured. Enough to help him find his confidence."
"That's not easy. It's not like we're trying to befriend a stray cat."
When Coach Luca said this with a laugh, Manager Tony smiled as well.
A stray cat. That was a fitting expression.
"So specifically, what should we do?"
"Don't praise him for results. Focus on the process."
"Mm. You mean acknowledge his effort?"
"Yeah. That would be best."
Praising the process rather than the results.
That would be much less burdensome from his perspective.
"Understood. I hope things continue going well like this."
"Mm."
Manager Tony nodded while looking at Lee Ji-an.
*
"Bweep- Bweeep-!"
"Okay, good work everyone!"
The moment the whistle signaling the end of the match blew.
I collapsed right where I was and sprawled out on my back.
"Huff... huff..."
I couldn't breathe properly.
The sky was spinning.
Something felt like it was bubbling and boiling inside me.
'That was brutal...'
It was so exhausting that I almost let some harsh words slip out without realizing it.
Seriously, so exhausting.
And it wasn't simply a matter of physical stamina.
The stamina was one thing, but it was more like all my energy had been drained out of me.
Well, it made sense, since I had maintained full concentration throughout the entire match.
And not just on the field, but off the field too, watching the bench's reactions.
I had consumed an enormous amount of mental energy.
It felt like I had been walking on thin ice and had finally set foot on solid ground.
"Whew..."
In reality, it had only been about twenty minutes.
And it wasn't even a real match—just a practice game.
Yet I was this drained, which confirmed that the starters' level really was high.
For about the first five minutes, I had thought, 'This is manageable.'
My pass had created a decisive chance, and that chance had even connected to a goal.
But after that goal went in, the tempo of the game sped up dramatically.
Maybe it hurt their pride that someone like me had made such a pass, because everyone seemed to snap to attention.
After that, it flowed almost like a real match.
From then on, I instinctively felt that I couldn't let my guard down for even a second.
If I did, I felt like I would fall behind in an instant.
If it hadn't been for Ji-woo, I might have collapsed early on.
...Hmm? That sounds a bit strange.
Let me say it was because of the lies, not Ji-woo
Anyway, fortunately, I didn't seem to have made any major mistakes or shown that I couldn't keep up with the flow.
That was enough.
"Whoo-"
I sat up and grabbed the soles of my feet, stretching.
Doing this naturally brought back memories of the old days.
When I played soccer in Korea.
Back then... this was how it always was.
After every match, I would be completely drained.
Back then too, it wasn't simply because my body was tired.
I had to perform well, and because of that, I struggled desperately every time to perform beyond my abilities.
Back then, fortunately, the results were good, so I heard people say I was talented, and occasionally even heard the word genius.
But honestly, I had never once thought of myself as a genius.
I mean, think about it.
What kind of genius works themselves half to death?
I had simply done what I had to do.
And it was the same right now.
"Ji-an."
"...Ah, yes."
When I came to my senses, The Manager was already standing next to me.
I dusted myself off and stood up, and he placed a hand on my shoulder and said,
"Thank you for working so hard. It must have been tough being called up so suddenly."
"Ah... no, it's fine."
"Go home and get plenty of rest. See you tomorrow."
"Yes. Good work today."
The Manager patted my back lightly and turned to leave.
Watching him go, I felt something strange.
I'm not sure how to explain it...
Hmm.
Back then and now, it was definitely a similar situation.
But while back then I had been worried about whether I could do as well tomorrow as I did today.
Now I had a feeling that I could do it again tomorrow.
I didn't know why that was, but anyway, this feeling was pretty nice.
ㆍㆍㆍ
─Anything good happen?
"...Why do you ask?"
─Just. Your voice sounds kind of Bright.
"No it doesn't. It's the same as always."
─Hey, can't you be a little more honest?
"About what."
─You're excited about seeing this noona next week, aren't you?
"...What are you talking about."
─Ugh, it's so obvious, you know?
I clicked my tongue at the nonsense coming from the other side of the phone.
What is she even saying.
If anything, that's what's killing me.
After training ended.
I was walking home when Ji-woo called, and we were in the middle of a call.
...She seemed to be the one in a good mood today.
Her voice was even more chipper than usual, so I was holding the phone a bit away from my ear.
I had always wondered about this, but why did she like talking on the phone so much?
It seemed like she couldn't rest until she had told someone everything that happened to her that day.
It didn't match with me.
I was the type who recharged by being alone and quiet.
...So why was I always on the phone with her?
Ah, well. It's because she calls first.
─So, have you planned out a date course?
"...What? What course?"
─A date course! You have to show me around the neighborhood! Don't tell me you haven't thought about it?
"Uh... I'm a busy person, you know? Where would I find time to think about stuff like that."
─Wow, acting so busy. We're meeting after three years and you won't even put in that much effort!?
'It's not like you're my girlfriend...' is what I almost said, but I swallowed it back down.
"Then what... what do you want to do?"
─Hm? Oh, um... I don't know.
"I need to know what you want to do before I can think of anything."
─Just whatever... Saturday's the day before your match so you need to rest. Let's meet on Friday and get food or something.
"Sure. Whatever."
─So what should we eat? Pizza? Pasta? I want gelato too. Oh! And also...
Ugh.
The rapid-fire list of foods—apparently she had a lot she wanted to eat—was making my head spin.
What is she, a rapper?
Anyway, whenever food came up, her energy level shot through the roof.
She must have been happy just thinking about it, because even through the phone I could picture Ji-woo's face with a grin stretching from ear to ear.
If I left her alone, she could probably go all night, so I cut in at an appropriate point.
"Hey, hey. Enough. Let's just go into any restaurant in my neighborhood."
─No way! What kind of neighborhood restaurant?
"I'll pay. Good enough?"
─Then I accept.
This was the great thing about earning money.
"Anyway, I'm hanging up soon. I'm almost home."
─Already? We haven't even talked for an hour yet.
"I told you. I'm busy. We'll talk again later."
─Tch, acting so busy. Fine, I got it. Text me.
"Yeah."
We had been talking and I was already near my house, so I finally managed to hang up.
Whew.
I felt even more drained than usual today.
By the way...
"Hmm."
I stopped walking for a moment and opened up an internet search on my phone.
"Restaurants..."
So annoying, seriously.
What did she say earlier again?
Pizza, pasta, lasagna, risotto, gelato...