Chapter 56 - 54: Mostar Twins

"...Suk is charging Sarajevo's defensive line on the wing, Jorijac makes a move! He's beaten!!"

"...It's Suk again! He's been incredibly active in the second half, still breaking through along the wing. We rarely see Jorijac in such a sorry state."

"...Mostar Zrinjski has started to focus their attack on the left side. Suk has become their main force for breaking through Sarajevo's defense."

"...Suk! It's Suk again!"

From the start of the second half, Suk relentlessly charged Sarajevo's defensive line from the wing.

After using the Status Recovery Card, Suk was at full strength, and in this state, his performance was exceptionally energetic.

In contrast, Jorijac was in a miserable state.

His stamina was already heavily drained, and now he was being tormented by Suk's repeated sprints.

By Suk's third charge, he was so exhausted that his body started to react physically, and he began to dry-heave uncontrollably.

"GACK!!"

"GACK!!!!"

Suk charged ahead, with Jorijac chasing behind him.

Jorijac's face was pale, his lips had turned blue, and he was constantly dry-heaving.

Although he was chasing right behind him, he had clearly lost all fighting spirit.

After reaching the byline, Suk swept the ball into the penalty area, but it was a poor pass and was cleared by the opposing center-back, Ivan Krich.

"Suk is too much of a threat. Sarajevo's full-back, Jorijac, is facing an immense test."

The camera then focused on Jorijac. The man ran directly to the advertising hoardings, squatted down with his shoulders heaving, and could no longer hold it in as he began to vomit.

"Did Jorijac... just run himself to the point of throwing up?"

As professional players, they have all experienced extreme exhaustion and throwing up from running, but for it to happen on the field during a match is rare.

But this time, Jorijac clearly couldn't continue.

The referee looked at Jorijac in astonishment, then turned his gaze to Suk, his eyes filled with shock.

He had officiated in the Bosnia and Herzegovina League for many years but had never seen a player like Suk.

This guy's endurance was insane.

Not only could he run, but he could also break through defenses.

He had completely burned out the opposing full-back, causing a physiological reaction and nonstop vomiting.

That was truly impressive.

The Sarajevo coaching staff urgently signaled for a substitution, and only then did the referee blow his whistle to stop the match.

Suk was the closest. He walked over and started patting Jorijac on the back.

"Did you eat too much? You can't eat a lot before a match."

Jorijac spat out stomach acid, his face a mess of snot and tears.

'Yeah, thanks a lot!'

When the opposing players ran over, Suk immediately pointed at Jorijac and said, "He ate too much."

Sarajevo's captain, Ivan Krich, gave Suk a strange look.

It wasn't strange that Jorijac threw up.

After all, anyone who had to deal with Suk's relentless breakthroughs on the wing would end up the same way.

'And this is the second half!'

'Doesn't this guy ever get tired?'

It wasn't just Ivan Krich; even the Mostar Zrinjski bench was silent.

Van Stiake watched the vomiting Jorijak and suddenly said, "The fitness coach, Hartbachi, once ran a fitness test for the team. Kosopech's stamina was a B+, Boban's and Kerpic's were an A, Modric's was an A+. Do you know what his evaluation of Suk was?"

The assistant coach, Fandier, asked curiously, "What?"

"A mule!"

"..."

Suk directed the people around them to help Jorijak up, then asked for some paper to cover the vomit until someone could come clean it up.

After doing all this, Suk returned to the field.

By now, the way everyone looked at him had changed.

But Suk didn't care.

Sarajevo was forced to make a substitution. They replaced both of their full-backs at once, mainly because the two had expended a great deal of stamina.

It wasn't just Jorijak; Bakrov on the other side was in a similar situation, though not quite as miserable.

Mostar Zrinjski also made a substitution.

Kosopech came off, and Boamei came on.

After Boamei came on, he ran over to Suk.

"Coach wants you to play center-forward."

Suk nodded and immediately ran towards the center.

Ivan Krich watched Suk stop beside him, his expression growing incredibly grave—more so than ever before.

By this point, his own stamina was also heavily drained. He didn't know if he could keep up with this guy who was like a perpetual motion machine.

In truth, Suk was also a bit tired, but he was in far, far better shape than anyone else.

The farce ended, and the match resumed.

Now at the center-forward position, Suk was still the most active person on the field.

Making forward runs, dropping back, organizing plays, distributing the ball—Suk displayed a style completely different from Kosopech's.

And this greatly increased the pressure on Ivan Krich.

At most, Kosopech used his body and height to dominate. That didn't require much thinking, just brute force.

But Suk was different.

Once this guy had the ball, his head swiveled back and forth like a sprinkler on the pitch, constantly observing.

The moment you tried to pressure him, he would immediately pass the ball.

If you pressed too far forward, his speed would become a huge headache.

Multiple styles, multiple options. Already exhausted and his mind foggy, Ivan Krich became even more confused trying to defend Suk.

When Suk dropped back to receive the ball again, Ivan Krich immediately followed.

Seeing that Suk was about to take possession, he rushed forward to interfere.

Just then, Suk stepped to his right, let the ball run past him, and at the same time, pushed off with the tip of his foot to circle around from the left, trying to use his raw speed to blow past Ivan Krich.

"Don't even think about getting past me!"

Ivan Krich turned and sprinted desperately, simultaneously shouldering Suk for position and forcing him away from the ball.

But Suk still used his absolute speed to gain a slight lead, which he gradually increased.

Seeing Suk about to break free of his control, Ivan Krich's head grew hot, and he shoved him forward from behind.

Suk immediately let out a cry and fell to the ground.

"Come on, little guy! Get past me!"

Ivan Krich vented his frustration, yelling angrily at the fallen Suk.

But Suk just rolled over, covering his face.

Through the gaps in Suk's fingers, Ivan Krich saw the corners of his mouth turning up into a slight smile.

'What's he smiling about?'

Soon, it dawned on Ivan Krich!

He looked up and around, and his face suddenly went deathly pale.

He was horrified to realize he and Suk were inside the penalty area.

He had pushed Suk down from behind with his hands inside the penalty area.

TWEEET!!

The shrill whistle made Ivan Krich's body tremble.

The referee was seen running towards the penalty area and pointing to the penalty spot.

In the 79th minute, Suk successfully drew a penalty.

"Ivan Krich! A very irrational push from behind, and that has resulted in a penalty for Sarajevo! And Ivan Krich gets a yellow card for it!"

"This penalty is a heavy blow to Sarajevo, whose situation was already dire!"

Suk picked up the ball and walked over to Modric.

"Here! Your first hat-trick."

Modric looked down at the ball, then suddenly shook his head. "No! It's your first league goal."

"You're letting me take it?" Suk asked in surprise.

Modric nodded. "Go on! You can do it."

Modric gave Suk a push into the penalty area. Stunned, he walked up to the penalty spot.

By the time he came to his senses, he had already backed up to his run-up distance.

The stands were incredibly quiet.

Suk could see the nervous expressions on the faces of the Sarajevo fans.

In front of him, Sarajevo's goalkeeper, Ivanqi, was moving exaggeratedly from side to side, waving his hands to intimidate him.

Behind him, the players standing on the edge of the penalty area were all breathing heavily.

Suk took a deep breath. He knew this was a chance to kill the game.

Suk called up his personal panel.

He currently only had five cards.

After using one Status Recovery Card, Suk hadn't reloaded.

So, Suk equipped the [Status Recovery Card].

And he swapped [Bosschenoqi's Interception] for [Vukocic's Archery Skill].

He wanted to ensure he would get his first league goal.

Suk didn't dare look at the goal too much, afraid the keeper would read his intentions.

At the referee's whistle, Suk immediately started his run-up.

"Suk starts his run, this ball..."

The commentator, Basodachi, also drew out his words in suspense.

The hearts of the fans in the stadium were pounding with tension.

Just then, Suk struck the ball with the arch of his foot, aiming for the bottom left corner.

The ball rolled quickly towards the left, while the keeper dove to the right.

"Bottom left corner, it's a goal!! Suk sent the keeper the wrong way, and Mostar Zrinjski extends their lead again."

"They've opened up the score to 3-1 away from home. This is undoubtedly a huge blow for Sarajevo, and it could very well be the goal that kills the game!"

"Mostar Zrinjski's performance in this match has been outstanding, especially Modric and Suk! The two of them, the Mostar Twins!"

"Modric with a brace, and Suk with two assists and one goal! Together, they've won this victory for Mostar Zrinjski!"

"They are about to take three points from Sarajevo's home stadium!"

"The Mostar Twins have dimmed the skies over Sarajevo, and even Suq Bazhi's own brilliance has been overshadowed!"

The more than 300 traveling Mostar Zrinjski fans in the stadium erupted in celebration.

They cheered and shouted wildly in the capital's Fihatovic Stadium, becoming the sole victors here.

Meanwhile, the Sarajevo fans held their heads in their hands, unable to believe this outcome.

They were already down 3-1.

Did they still have a chance to equalize?

Van Stiake wouldn't give them that chance.

In the final ten minutes, Van Stiake immediately brought on two defenders with fresh legs, and Mostar Zrinjski shifted completely into a defensive phase.

Faced with victory and revenge, they fought bravely, their morale soaring.

The goalkeeper, Kish, made one great save after another, repeatedly stopping the opponent's long-shot attempts.

Suq Bazhi constantly attacked the goal, but he was completely shut down by the amped-up Mashovich and Hajdari. With his mentality unbalanced, he lost his usual composure, let alone the ability to judge the ball's trajectory and score.

As the sun began to set, three whistle blasts echoed across Fihatovic Stadium.

TWEEET! TWEEET! TWEEET!

The 14th round of the 2002/2003 Bosnia and Herzegovina Super League season came to a close.

Sarajevo fell 1-3 to Mostar Zrinjski, losing the crucial match at home.

At the same time, they also lost their top spot in the league standings!

And it was in this match that Suk and Modric, the Mostar Twins, made a name for themselves!

They became the brightest stars in the Sarajevo sky tonight!