Chapter 48 - 46: Winger? Wide Midfielder

Chapter 48: Chapter 46: Winger? Wide Midfielder

The Head Coach of Tuzla Slobođa was a veteran coach from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

He had a wealth of experience and was a seasoned match commander. However, Mostar Zrinjski’s recent outstanding performance, driven by the tactics of their foreign Head Coach, Van Stiake, had ignited a heated debate in the world of Bosnia and Herzegovina Football.

Many believed they should bring in more foreign coaches to enrich the monotonous Bosnia and Herzegovina Football system.

But for the head coaches from Bosnia and Herzegovina, this was a huge blow. Old Moerst wouldn’t allow such a thing to happen. For that reason, he was preparing to teach the Dutchman a harsh lesson in his own way.

Mostar Zrinjski had two tactical systems.

This had made them nearly invincible in their recent matches.

When one formation ran into trouble, they would immediately switch to another, and the vastly different style of play often caught their opponents completely off guard.

But the root of the problem still came down to defensive positioning.

It was a simple game of cat and mouse; the important thing was to pinpoint the opponent’s weak spot.

The most crucial role in both systems was the center forward, and this was the only variable.

The different tactics were led by either Suk or Kosopech.

Therefore, adopting different defensive methods to counter these different tactics became crucial.

To that end, Old Moerst had designated a specific man-marking role.

The goal was to completely shut Suk down whenever he dropped back from the front line.

As long as Suk couldn’t receive the ball or create space, he wouldn’t be able to solve the problem of Modric being contained, nor could he organize the attack.

He couldn’t wait to see the frustrated look on Van Stiake’s face.

...

「During halftime, in the locker room.」

"In the second half, you absolutely have to watch their number 99. He’ll wreak havoc on our defensive line."

Old Moerst turned his head. "Manayatuci, you know what to do, right?"

Manayatuci, a sturdy young man of about 175 centimeters, nodded. "Understood. I’ll stick to Suk."

Only then did Old Moerst nod and clap his hands. "Alright. In the second half, let’s try to score on a counter-attack."

Meanwhile, in Mostar Zrinjski’s locker room, Van Stiake was also speaking to Suk. "You’re subbing in at the start of the second half. I’ll give you plenty of time to adapt, but I need you up front to help the team orchestrate the attack. Understand?"

Suk nodded at once. "Understood!"

At that moment, Modric also nodded at Suk. "The attack is all yours."

Suk grinned, already starting to get excited.

Kosopech patted Suk’s shoulder. "Go get ’em!"

...

「For the second half, the two teams switched sides.」

When the Mostar Zrinjski players walked out of the tunnel, Old Moerst saw Suk leading the way, and a smile touched his lips.

’Just as I thought!’

’Kosopech wasn’t effective, so the Dutchman is changing his formation.’

’But I was prepared for this!’

Old Moerst was confident, but his eyes quickly widened in shock.

He saw Kosopech, wearing the captain’s armband, walk directly onto the pitch.

’No substitution?’

Old Moerst was completely stunned.

’Did they make a mistake with the sub?’

Old Moerst watched Suk and Kosopech walk onto the pitch, covering their mouths as they spoke to each other. His eyes were filled with confusion.

’That can’t be right!’

’Something’s wrong!’

’This... this is very wrong!’

’Suk is on the pitch, so why is Kosopech still out there?’

’Those two are supposed to be a rotation!’

’So what’s going on now?’

It wasn’t just Old Moerst; even Manayatuci, who was on the field tasked with marking Suk, stared dumbfounded as Suk headed directly for the wing.

He then stopped in the winger’s position.

"A winger?"

Old Moerst was so shocked that he blurted it out.

’Suk playing winger?’

’This...’

On the opposite sideline, Van Stiake turned to glance at Old Moerst, a playful, mocking glint in his eyes.

The stands also erupted in an uproar.

This was the first time the Mostar Zrinjski fans had ever seen Suk and Kosopech on the pitch at the same time.

’Can these two actually play together?’

’Who’s playing center forward?’

’What’s the big idea?’

Then, they saw Suk move to the winger’s position, and a flurry of question marks appeared in their minds.

’Suk playing winger?’

"Can Suk even play winger?"

Buckqi asked, confused.

Mulinar replied uncertainly, "I suppose he can. A winger needs Speed and the ability to make forward runs, and Suk has an advantage in both areas. But... isn’t it a bit of a waste?"

In this era, the understanding of a winger was generally similar to that of a center forward—both were attacking players who made forward runs.

But if that’s the case, wouldn’t Suk’s ability to organize and pass be wasted?

They couldn’t figure out what trick Van Stiake had up his sleeve, or what the point of this positioning was.

Was he just having Suk attack the defense from the wing?

With such a one-dimensional role, Suk’s performance would be severely limited.

"Suk playing winger? Can he do it?"

"I guess so?"

"What is he thinking?"

"They should stick to the old tactics!"

"Have they developed a new tactic?"

"Suk and Kosopech working together... I don’t know what the result will be, but I’m kind of looking forward to it."

It wasn’t just the fans; in the commentary box, Basodachi’s jaw had dropped as well.

"Is Suk playing as a winger?"

"Suk is very fast. He certainly has the ability to attack the defensive line from the wing. Paired with Modric’s passes, he could create a pattern of forward runs down the flank..."

Basodachi pursed his lips. "But it’s Kosopech who’s being shut down! Even if Suk breaks through and sends in a cross, the tactic will be ineffective if Kosopech can’t score from it."

Even Basodachi was somewhat bewildered.

However, he did notice one detail.

Modric’s positioning.

Previously, Modric would play much further forward, but this time he was positioned as a defensive midfielder.

’Modric as a defensive midfielder?’

’Suk as a winger?’

Basodachi shook his head. ’Better to just wait and see how it plays out.’

In the second half, Mostar Zrinjski had the kick-off.

After Kosopech kicked off, the ball was passed back to the defensive line, then slowly moved forward.

Modric was passing and receiving the ball in his own half of the field.

Being in his own half with more teammates around him, Modric faced fewer restrictions.

He wasn’t in a hurry to pass, instead looking for an opening.

Just then, Suk cut inside, and at the same time, Billiar on the opposite side did the same.

With both wingers cutting in, Modric passed the ball toward Billiar, drawing the opposition’s defense out to the flank.

Billiar immediately passed it back. Modric received it and passed again, this time to Suk.

Suk also returned it with a one-touch pass.

This quick one-two passing sequence drew the defense to the flanks, while Modric pushed slightly forward, instantly opening up a channel through the middle.

Seeing this, Old Moerst’s brow furrowed slightly.

He felt a strong sense of unease.

Modric continued to dribble forward calmly, not rushing the pass.

But as he dribbled into the opposing half, he was immediately met with intense pressure from the defense.

Modric laid the ball off to Suk, who played a one-touch pass back to the advancing full-back, Kerpic, while simultaneously slipping past a defender into the space behind.

Kerpic played the ball forward along the sideline again. A simple give-and-go had beaten the defender.

After receiving the ball, Suk immediately turned and charged at the opposing full-back. After a few feints failed to get him past, Suk came to a hard stop and knocked the ball back to the midfield, finding the advancing Modric.

Modric once again switched the play.

Mostar Zrinjski’s build-up play was incredibly patient and composed.

But for Tuzla Slobođa, it was a very ominous sign.

Their defensive press was being effortlessly dismantled. Even in their own half, they were being run ragged, scrambling all over the place.

All the while, Mostar Zrinjski continued to pass with patience.

When one attack fizzled out, Billiar sent a long pass all the way back.

Simultaneously, both Suk and Modric dropped back deep.

Modric dropped all the way back into his own half to orchestrate the play, while Suk fell back to the midfield line, at times even crossing it into his own half.

"Isn’t he dropping back a bit too deep?"

Old Moerst frowned. ’This isn’t how a winger plays!’

’He’s not playing with that explosive impact; instead, he’s more involved in coordinating and building up the attack.’

As Mostar Zrinjski passed the ball back, Tuzla Slobođa started to push their lines forward, intending to apply more pressure.

Manayatuci was completely baffled.

Suk’s movement was far too unpredictable.

Suk moved laterally, left and right, a great deal.

Sometimes he was on the wing, other times he was positioned just behind the center forward.

Sometimes he would press the opposing full-back, other times he would drop all the way back to the midfield line.

You could say the entire left half of the pitch was his domain. There were even several instances where he tracked back so far that he was in his own full-back’s position, helping with the defensive press.

At first, Manayatuci could keep up, but soon, he was completely lost.

He didn’t know what Suk was going to do next or what his actual responsibilities were, which made it impossible to anticipate his moves, let alone contain him.

By constantly moving from side to side, Suk created an open space for himself and immediately raised his hand, calling for the ball.

Modric saw him and immediately sent the ball his way.

Suk turned his body, taking the ball in stride, and simultaneously burst forward on a high-speed diagonal run.

"Here it comes!!"

"Suk is on the move!"

Basodachi roared.

Manayatuci immediately charged toward Suk, trying to pressure him.

But Suk passed the ball forward. Manayatuci’s eyes followed the ball, and he didn’t notice that Suk hadn’t broken stride, continuing his sprint forward.

Ahead, Kosopech suddenly cut across, leaning back and using his powerful frame to hold off the opposing center-back.

At the same time, Mostar Zrinjski’s full-back also made a high-speed overlapping run, drawing the opposing full-back on Suk’s side with him and leaving a gap in the channel.

After receiving the pass from Suk, Kosopech flicked the ball into that same channel.

The surging Suk immediately collected the ball, put his head down, and charged forward again, breaking clean through the opponent’s defensive line.

"He’s through!!"

Basodachi shouted in excitement.

At that moment, it all clicked in his head.

"A wide midfielder! Not a winger! Suk is playing as a wide midfielder! And Kosopech is dropping back to act as a pivot, playing off Suk’s forward runs! Van Stiake, you imaginative genius!"

The prevailing football tactics of the time favored wingers.

That was why the commentator, Basodachi, had instinctively been thinking along those lines.

But he never imagined that Suk was actually playing as a wide midfielder!

On the pitch, Suk had already dribbled near the goal line. He looked up toward the center, where both Kosopech and Billiar were making runs into the box.

Kosopech made a straight, decoy run, drawing the defenders’ attention. After exchanging a quick glance with Suk, Billiar abruptly stopped and cut sideways.

Suk perfectly timed a cutback pass diagonally behind him.

The ball arrived perfectly in front of Billiar.

Billiar met the rolling ball and guided it with the instep of his left foot.

SWISH!

The ball hit the back of the net.