God Of football Chapter 5: Who Is He[edited]

Komi navigated the car to the side, right at the entrance of the Valencia International Youth Academy, before silencing the engine.

She leaned in, planting a kiss on Izan’s forehead, and encouraged him to simply relax and enjoy himself. Komi felt a sense of fulfillment, knowing she could support her children in whatever paths they chose to explore.

"Now go on and show them what you've got, Miura," Komi said, a smile gracing her lips, unaware of Izan's current standing within the club.

"I will, Mum," Izan replied, exiting the vehicle. Komi drove away, leaving Izan standing at the entrance, seemingly lost in thought. Suddenly, Mikel, his friend at the academy, approached and playfully smacked him on the back, snapping him out of his reverie.

"Ow! What was that for?" Izan inquired in Spanish. "What are you just standing here for? Let's go," Mikel urged. Izan chuckled, shaking his head, and walked alongside Mikel as they entered the facility together.

After changing into their training kits, both Izan and Mikel made their way onto the pitch.

The training drills were already set up, though the number of players was sparse as it was still quite early.

Izan was pleased with the setup and decided to engage in his own specialized training regimen before the main drills commenced.

Observing Izan deep in his drills, Mikel commented, "Bro, are you trying to tire yourself out before the actual training even begins?"

Izan, brimming with energy, assured him, "It won't affect me during the real drills."

A short while later, the youth trainer, Mr. Oryazabal, arrived on the pitch. "Alright, boys, gather 'round," he announced as the majority of the players assembled.

"This marks the beginning of a new season, and I expect nothing less than your absolute best, both in training and in matches. This applies to the regular starters and those on the bench," he stated, his gaze sweeping over Izan and the other younger players near the bottom of the rankings.

"As you can see, some of the players who were with us last year are no longer here; they've been promoted to the Under-19 squad.

Their outstanding performances earned them call-ups, so I hope you keep that in mind during your training. Even during the season, if you perform exceptionally well, you too can earn a promotion," Mr. Oryazabal elaborated.

As he spoke, Izan stood resolute, a silent promise forming within him: he would be promoted this year. With the system he possessed and his own dedicated efforts, failure was simply not an option.

"It's uphill from here on," Izan muttered to himself before refocusing on Mr. Oryazabal's words. "Now, defenders, head to the defensive coach. Forwards and midfielders, join your respective coaches," Mr. Oryazabal instructed.

Seconds later, the players dispersed to their designated coaches, with Izan remaining stationary. Noticing this, Mr. Oryazabal inquired, "Izan, why are you still standing here?"

"Coach, I wish to discuss a potential position change with you," Izan replied, his expression neutral. "Huh? A position change?" Mr. Oryazabal questioned. "Yes, sir," Izan confirmed. "I assume you're looking to transition to a winger position?" Mr. Oryazabal probed.

"Sort of," Izan answered vaguely. "What do you mean, 'sort of'? Do you want to change positions or not?" Mr. Oryazabal’s voice rose slightly.

"Well, sir, I do want to play as a winger, but I also wish to develop as an attacking midfielder," Izan clarified.

"Oh, I see. I won't pry further, but you can choose where you want to go first," he said, walking away.

With that, Izan approached the midfield coach, who appeared surprised to see him. He called Izan forward, questioning his presence as he had always seen him training with the full-backs in the defense department.

"I'm here because of a position change, Coach," Izan stated, meeting the gaze of the midfield coach, Mr. Garcia. Mr. Garcia stared at Izan as if a position change in football was some sort of taboo.

"Very well, welcome to Midfield 101," he said, eliciting a chuckle from the other players. He directed Izan to join the rest of the team and instructed them to begin their warm-up for 15 minutes.

Coach Garcia consulted the whiteboard he held. "Okay, lads, as usual, here's what we'll be focusing on today," he announced, proceeding to list the day's training drills.

Drills:

• Warm-Up (15 minutes)

• Passing Drills (20 minutes)

• Ball Control Drills (20 minutes)

• Shooting Drills (20 minutes)

• Defensive Drills (20 minutes)

• Positioning and Tactical Understanding (20 minutes)

• Fitness Training (20 minutes)

• Cool Down (15 minutes)

The players listened intently as the midfield training commenced. Izan felt a knot of tension forming, fearing he might not perform well. Just then, Max's voice echoed,

"[System recommends the host relax. Your heart rate has elevated significantly. If the host remains nervous, you may utilize the 'snooping' function to view the ratings and information of other players.]"

"Huh, a snooping function?" Izan inquired, as no new system capabilities beyond the shop had appeared. He then summoned the system mentally.

A blue screen materialized before him and he began to navigate through its options. After a brief search, he found what he was looking for.

Upon activating it, the system prompted him to select a target. Izan scanned the nearest player, and with a *swish*, a beam of blue light emanated from his iris, scanning the individual without their notice. After a few moments, the player's information appeared.

PLAYER INFO

■■■■■■■■■

NAME: HUÉVES RAMOS

AGE: 16 (1 week until 17)

HEIGHT: 1.82m (6'1)

PROFESSION: FOOTBALLER

STATUS: YOUTH PLAYER

SYSTEM EVALUATION: A decent youth

PLAYER RATING: 55/100

Position: Central midfielder

Potential: 77

STATS

■■■■

Pace: 57

Body control: 52

Spatial awareness: 55

Technique: 57

Shooting: 55

Passing: 57

Body strength: 57

Weak foot strength: 3 stars

Skill move: 3 stars

SKILLS POSSESSED

■■■■■■■■■■■■■

Step-overs: 40% Completion

Roulette: 5% Completion

Observing the player's statistics, Izan felt a measure of relief. "Based on my own stats," he commented, "it seems I'm superior to him." He then noticed another player standing somewhat apart and an idea sparked. Approaching the individual, Izan initiated a conversation: "Hi."

The player turned, acknowledging Izan with a smile. "Hi, I'm Jose," he replied. "Izan," the protagonist responded, then inquired, "Who on the team would you consider the best midfielder?"

Although Izan was rarely fielded in matches, he still observed them and had a general sense of the skilled midfielders. Jose pondered for a moment before stating, "It has to be Herrera."

"Who is that?" Izan asked, to which Jose pointed towards a blonde boy, roughly 5'8" or 178cm tall, who was standing with a ball at his feet amongst a group of other players. Izan focused his gaze on him and activated the snooping function.

*****

PLAYER INFO

■■■■■■■■■

NAME: SOSÁ HERRERA

AGE: 16 (4 weeks until 17)

HEIGHT: 1.80m (6'0)

PROFESSION: FOOTBALLER

STATUS: YOUTH PLAYER

SYSTEM EVALUATION: A prospect

PLAYER RATING: 60/100

Position: Central midfielder

Potential: 84

STATS

■■■■

Pace: 65

Body control: 59

Spatial awareness: 60

Technique: 61

Shooting: 57

Passing: 61

Body strength: 56

Weak foot strength: 3 stars

Skill move: 3 stars

SKILLS POSSESSED

■■■■■■■■■■■■

Flip flap: 80% Completion

Roulette: 70% Completion

Ronaldo chops: 70% Completion

"Wow, impressive stats. But wait, mine are still higher than his. Does this mean I'm the best midfielder?" Izan mused, lost in his self-congratulations, until Coach Garcia's voice broke his reverie, calling him to participate in a passing drill with three stages.

● Passing the ball to a teammate

● Passing the ball to cones

● Passing the ball into bins

Slightly taken aback but feeling a surge of confidence, Izan approached. "Now, who is my partner?" he murmured, surveying the area. The coach then gestured towards a lanky boy with freckles.

Izan couldn't resist and scanned the new player, almost exclaiming aloud before his inner voice cautioned him.

This was because the player he was paired with was, to put it mildly, not very skilled. His stats were predominantly in the 40s, with only spatial awareness barely reaching the 50s.

Izan stepped forward. The first task involved passing from 15 meters, with the distance increasing for each subsequent attempt.

The ball was passed to Izan, who executed a skillful touch before sending it to Javier, who then smoothly slotted it into the net.

"Did Javier just score?" Coach Garcia, well aware of Javier's tendency to miss even easy chances, expressed surprise. He was also taken aback by Izan's passing, which was remarkably precise, even rivaling some of the under-19 players.

The drill continued with similar success, Izan delivering beautifully weighted passes. Growing bolder, he even attempted a trivela pass on the fifth try, which Javier expertly guided into the net. "Nice work, Izan; you too, Javier," Coach Garcia praised them upon completion.

After Izan had moved on, Coach Garcia pulled Javier aside, inquiring how he had scored so effortlessly.

Javier responded, "Coach, I honestly don't know, but Izan's passes just made scoring incredibly easy." Coach Garcia nodded thoughtfully before dismissing Javier.

This unexpected praise from Coach Garcia, who was not known for his compliments, earned Izan curious glances from the other players.

The passing drill concluded with Izan securing first place; he dominated the bin challenge, successfully hitting the target five out of five times. Following him was Sosa, who appeared disgruntled at being dethroned, managing four out of five.

Jose, the player Izan had initially spoken to, secured third place, also with a four-out-of-five success rate. This outcome wasn't surprising to Izan, as he had already used his snooping tool on Jose, revealing a player rating of 58.

The results of most other trials remained unchanged, with a slight shift only in the defensive drills where midfielders known for their defensive capabilities secured the top positions. Even so, Izan secured a respectable 5th place.

"Hey, isn't that the Japanese fullback?" one spectator remarked. "Now that you mention it, it is him," another replied. "But I heard he wasn't that great, and I've seen him play a few times, yet he wasn't this skilled," a third boy chimed in.

Overhearing this discussion, Izan offered a faint smile before heading towards the pitch for the upcoming 11 vs 11 match between the regular and reserve teams.