Chapter 29 - 27: Are You Going to Mend These Holes?

Chapter 29: Chapter 27: Are You Going to Mend These Holes?

The morning training session went smoothly, and Suk grew even closer to Kosopech’s little clique.

Although it was only one morning, Suk made full use of his charisma to get the others to like him.

Knowing how to be likable was an essential skill for every child from the orphanage.

In the cafeteria at noon, Suk held a large bowl of rice and began to wolf it down.

The club’s cafeteria was starting to offer a richer variety of dishes.

But Suk seemed to have set his sights on the rice. Compared to the other food, this stuff was simply delicious, and it filled him up.

His small frame held a huge rice bowl as he continuously shoveled rice into his mouth.

Suk’s astonishing appetite amazed everyone.

"How long has it been since you last ate?"

Hajdari couldn’t help but tease.

Suk chewed quickly, swallowed a mouthful, and then replied, "I often didn’t have food before. The longest I went was four days without eating."

Kosopech pushed the beef from his own plate over to him.

"Eat up."

He was on the older side, 30 years old this year. He was married and had a lovely son.

Perhaps it was his fatherly sympathy overflowing; he couldn’t bear to hear such things.

Suk didn’t stand on ceremony, spearing the beef with his fork and immediately popping it into his mouth.

Watching Suk wolf down his food, Haziqi shook his head and said, "Don’t stuff yourself. We have a scrimmage this afternoon. You don’t want to throw up."

Munching on his rice, Suk mumbled, "I... I digest fast!"

Next to Suk, Modric was also eating, but his appetite was clearly much smaller. He wasn’t gobbling down his food like Suk.

Modric really admired Suk. In just one morning, he had gotten friendly with so many people.

He had even brought Modric along, who was also gradually integrating into the small group.

"During the training match this afternoon, let’s pass the ball to Suk more often. Help him get used to the first team’s pace as quickly as possible."

As the clique’s leader, Kosopech spoke up.

After all, Suk had willingly joined his ranks, so he had a reason to look after his little brother.

In response, Suk immediately gave a thumbs-up.

"You’re the best, Captain!"

Kosopech laughed and corrected him, "Vice-captain!"

Speaking of the captain, Mashovich suddenly said, "The captain’s injury should be healed by now, right?"

"Even if it’s healed, he’s done for. The injury was too severe. I heard he’s going to retire."

At these words, the group suddenly fell silent.

For any player, injuries were the demons that haunted them.

"Professional players can’t avoid injuries. We can only do our best to protect ourselves and try not to get hurt."

After lunch, there was a half-hour break.

Suk had indeed overeaten a bit. He had been too relaxed while eating and got carried away for a moment.

To stay in good condition, Suk remained standing right after he finished eating, trying to digest his food as quickly as possible.

After standing for half an hour, his digestion sped up, and Suk no longer felt so uncomfortable.

The afternoon sun was even more scorching, but training had to proceed as usual.

When the players returned to the training ground, Head Coach Van Stiake and the rest of the coaching staff were already standing there.

"This afternoon is a squad scrimmage, starters versus substitutes."

After a pause, Van Stiake looked at Kosopech and said, "You’ll be with the substitutes for now."

Kosopech shrugged, showing he didn’t mind.

He’d known from the moment Suk joined the team.

Suk wasn’t here to replace him.

This was to expand the team’s tactical options. After all, he was a tall, goal-poaching striker, while Suk was a supporting forward who dropped back and roamed.

Van Stiake then called Suk over and said simply and clearly, "You might not be used to it at first, but play with the same teamwork you showed when you played against us. Got it?"

Suk immediately nodded. "Got it!"

It would be difficult if he were on his own. But Modric was also in the starting lineup, and he and Suk already had a good rapport. The two of them could organize the attack and link up play, which would make things much easier.

"And for the subs, no holding back. Other than malicious fouls, normal physical contact is allowed."

After he finished speaking, everyone started putting on bibs and walking onto the pitch.

Suk stood at the very front of the starters’ team. His height of 155 centimeters was so out of place it was almost comical.

But the substitutes knew very well just how dangerous this little guy was.

On the sidelines, Van Stiake rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

Assistant coach Fandier, standing beside him, smiled. "The tactics have been communicated. Whether they can pull it off is up to their performance."

Van Stiake nodded. "Two tactical systems. This is an important step for us on the path to becoming champions of Bosnia and Herzegovina."

With that, Van Stiake shouted, "Begin!—"

The match began abruptly!

The substitute team kicked off first, making a series of back passes.

Suk immediately charged forward, heading straight for the ball.

’Here he comes again!’

Bokachi’s eyelid twitched. Watching the little guy charge straight at him, he suddenly felt a sense of panic.

He immediately passed the ball to the full-back, Lovich.

At the same time, Suk changed direction and charged toward the full-back.

Lovich’s first thought was to pass the ball to the winger.

But as soon as he looked up, he saw Vice-captain Oliveira already positioned between them, completely blocking the passing lane.

In that moment, he started to panic.

Suk was charging at him from the side, and in the central area, Modric was waiting to make an interception.

Left with no choice, Lovich could only boot the ball long upfield.

THUMP!!

The ball flew high into the starters’ half of the pitch.

On the sidelines, Van Stiake pumped his fist at the same moment. "It worked!"

This was the high press!

It’s a tactic based on aggressive forward pressure in the attacking third, blocking and intercepting the opponent’s passing lanes to make it difficult for them to play the ball out from the back.

In this situation, they either get dispossessed or are forced to clear it long.

And once they’re forced into a long clearance, possession is basically handed over.

Sure enough, the starters’ defensive midfielder, Boban, headed the ball to the winger Oliveira up ahead, who then laid it off to Modric.

The moment Modric received the ball, Suk had already started to drop back.

This time, all the coaches focused their attention on Suk, watching how he would handle the ball.

As Suk dropped back, he constantly turned his head from side to side, observing his teammates’ positions and also looking for open space behind him.

When Modric was pressed, Suk immediately moved into an open space to receive a pass.

Modric passed forward and ran into the next open space.

Suk passed the ball back with one touch, not holding onto possession at all, while simultaneously running a few steps forward before dropping back again to receive another pass.

No matter where the ball was passed, Suk would position himself at an angle toward that direction.

This meant the starters always had a forward passing option in their build-up play, which made their passing combinations incredibly fluid.

"Whoa!"

Assistant Coach Fandier couldn’t help but cry out in pleasant surprise.

Suk’s performance was a pleasant surprise.

They had thought Suk would need some time to adapt to the pace of the Super League, but he was incredibly proficient from the get-go, showing no signs of being out of rhythm.

Moreover, Suk was very clever.

He knew he was at a physical disadvantage, so he tried to minimize his time on the ball, avoiding confrontations that could lead to losing possession.

His stable and precise short passing, combined with his clear passing vision, made the team’s forward attack surprisingly fluid.

Everyone on the sidelines watched without blinking, their eyes fixed on a starters’ team that looked completely different.

As for the substitute team’s defensive line, the pressure was so immense they could barely breathe.

Most importantly, the feeling this guy Suk gave off had completely changed.

In the match three weeks ago, they had been able to limit Suk, putting him in his place occasionally.

But now, with the support of stronger teammates, Suk’s performance had skyrocketed.

The guy was on the verge of making their defensive line completely collapse.

Just then, with his back to goal, Suk saw Modric look up at him.

A single glance was all it took for them to reach an instant understanding.

Modric played a diagonal through ball into the space behind and to the left of Suk. The pass was a little firm.

But Suk continued to drop back, feigning to receive the pass, then quickly turned to his right, letting the ball run past him. His turn completely fooled Bokachi.

"Beautiful!"

Van Stiake couldn’t help but applaud.

The ball was dummied, and Suk immediately turned his head. The area was completely empty—no players from the substitute team, and no players from the starters’ team either.

The ball actually flew out of bounds.

Suk: "..."

Modric: "..."

Both of them turned in unison to look at the bewildered Vice-captain Oliveira.

The latter shrugged, kicked at the turf, turned his head to spit, and then sauntered away.

"He didn’t even run!"

Modric said, displeased.

Suk shook his head. "He’s probably just not used to it."

Modric insisted, "No! He’s always like this."

Suk didn’t know how to describe it. Anyway... it was pretty weird.

Although it didn’t result in a threat, they still managed a dangerous, penetrating pass.

Especially the combination between Suk and Modric.

One passed, the other drew defenders away, and they tore a huge hole right through the defense.

If Oliveira had kept up, it would have been a clear one-on-one with the keeper.

After that combination, Suk felt even more in his element.

However, the angry substitutes would occasionally get rough and knock Suk straight to the ground.

Because of this, Suk needed to accelerate faster and create more distance to avoid being knocked down before he could even receive the ball.

The entire training session was a process of gelling together. Finally, after several failed combination attempts, Suk chipped the ball to assist the left-winger, Billiar, in scoring a goal.

Of course, the goal wasn’t the key. The overall teamwork and the effect it produced were what they were after.

For now, the overall tactical play was still not very stable, but they were already able to execute it. This was already a very good start.

Head Coach Van Stiake was also extremely satisfied with the progress.

Suk’s first day of training ended, and his performance was commendable.

The most encouraging news was that Suk was integrating with the team very smoothly.

Of course, this was also thanks to the cooperation of the starters, who actively passed the ball to Suk, which helped him integrate into the team quickly.

After training ended, Suk made sure to properly thank these senior players.

Suk was young and a sweet-talker, which made them like him even more.

With the training match over, everyone started heading back to the locker room.

In the hallway leading to the locker room, there was a sink, and above it hung rows of cleats.

Suk saw Boamei standing in front of the sink, head down, scrubbing cleats with a brush.

And the other players who walked by would toss their cleats into the sink for Boamei to scrub.

Suk even saw Modric put his cleats in as well.

Kosopech walked over to the sink, tossed his cleats in, and then said to Suk, "You put yours in, too."

Suk shook his head. "I can scrub my own."

"Put them in. It’s the rule!" After saying that, Kosopech whispered, "If you don’t put them in, it’ll be worse for him tomorrow."

Hearing this, Suk silently tossed the worn-out cleats in his hands, which had several holes in them, into the sink.

"Can you patch up these holes?"

Kosopech: "..."

Boamei’s movements paused, and he looked up, glaring coldly at Suk.

Kosopech immediately grabbed Suk by the scruff of his neck and hurried away!