Chapter 100 - 14: So Exciting

Chapter 100: Chapter 14: So Exciting

"Jump!"

After passing the ball, Suk jumped up and down on the sidelines in frustration. He pointed at Mandzukic inside the penalty box and roared, "Your forward run is too slow! The moment I gave you the signal, you should have jumped."

Mandzukic pressed his lips together and said nothing.

He was too embarrassed to say anything.

Although he was angry, he knew that Suk and the others had come over to help him get used to the tactics and tempo.

They really didn’t have to do this, but they came anyway. That alone was enough to make him grateful.

「Three minutes later.」

"Slow again! Way too slow!"

Suk was small, but he had a big voice.

Mandzukic made one forward run after another, but he missed the timing every time.

And each attempt was met with Suk’s furious shouts.

A fire of rage burned within him, and his frustration and resentment were reaching a breaking point.

"Are you even trying to learn? You haven’t improved at all."

Suk was holding back his own frustration. With each pass, he grew more irritated, and his shouts grew louder.

’How can this guy be so dense!’

Mandzukic’s face flushed red. He turned to look at Suk, his eyes filled with intense anger.

"This is bad!"

The fitness coach, Losperich, cried out inwardly. Just as he was about to step onto the field to intervene, Mandzukic suddenly roared:

"I’M SORRY!—"

The earth-shattering roar instantly silenced the entire field.

Everyone stared in astonishment at Mandzukic’s furious back.

Even Suk was taken aback.

He cleared his throat and said, "Just get it right next time!"

Run after run, jump after jump.

Mandzukic gradually started to find his rhythm.

And as he began to master the timing of his forward runs, their coordination started to click.

Suk made a square pass.

Mandzukic laid the ball off to the flank, then immediately turned and sprinted.

Suk met the returned ball and immediately crossed it.

The placement of the ball was perfect. Mandzukic jumped and headed it towards the goal.

"Beautiful!"

Modric and the others clapped from the sidelines.

’He finally got it!’

After landing, Mandzukic threw his head back and let out a long roar.

’Finally! Dammit! I got it!—’

Seeing the goal, Suk slowly let out a breath.

He also felt a sense of frustration.

’How did this guy ever become Croatia’s main attacker in the future?’

Right now, Mandzukic’s performance couldn’t have been worse in Suk’s eyes.

He had first-class physical attributes paired with a third-rate tactical awareness.

The only thing worthy of praise was his tenacity and perseverance.

"Alright! Alright! There’s no point in practicing more now. We’ll train again during tomorrow’s session."

Suk waved his hand dismissively. The others were feeling tired as well.

Mandzukic, on the other hand, seemed full of energy, but seeing his teammates exhausted, he was too embarrassed to insist on continuing.

"Dinner! Dinner!" Suk pointed at Serna. "Chinese restaurant!"

Serna gave a thumbs-up. "Leave it to me!"

After everyone showered and changed into casual clothes, they took a taxi to a Chinese restaurant.

Suk loved Chinese food.

For him, being able to taste the flavors of home in a foreign country was a precious thing.

In this life, over more than ten years, Suk had only gotten to eat Chinese food in the first few days after returning to Zagreb.

Before that, the taste had existed only in his memory.

He loved the SIZZLING sound of ingredients hitting hot oil.

He loved the fragrant, mellow aroma of fluffy white rice.

He knew that as an athlete, he couldn’t eat food that was too oily, but Chinese restaurants were expensive, so he couldn’t afford to eat there every meal.

So, whenever he got the chance, Suk was overjoyed.

The group of seven took two taxis to Zagreb’s commercial district.

Amidst the bustling crowd, Suk spotted a striking red lantern.

On the wooden sign were the words "Sichuan Pavilion."

Suk led the group of seven into the restaurant. It wasn’t very crowded; after all, the high prices had scared off many customers.

"Boss! A private room for seven!"

Suk shouted in fluent Chinese as he walked into the restaurant.

Modric looked at Suk in surprise.

"You speak Chinese?"

Suk rolled his eyes. "Obviously!"

Soon, the owner led them to a private room with a round table.

Suk had the palate of a child, so he mostly ordered sweet and sour dishes.

Kung Pao Chicken, Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork, Mapo Tofu, Spicy Diced Chicken, and so on... ten dishes in total.

There were seven of them, and all were athletes with huge appetites.

The owner thoughtfully offered to bring forks, but Suk waved his hand. "Why would we use forks? When in Rome, do as the Romans do. We’ll use chopsticks."

With that, Suk began teaching everyone how to use chopsticks.

The novel way of using chopsticks piqued the young men’s interest. They were all clumsy with them but couldn’t put them down.

Once all the dishes were served, everyone began to dig in, eating heartily with their rice.

Suk ate the most skillfully.

After eating for a while, Mandzukic suddenly said, "Thank you, guys."

Everyone paused for a moment. Suk pointed at Serna and said, "You should be thanking him. He traded this meal for a training session with you."

Mandzukic was slightly surprised, but he still sincerely expressed his thanks to Serna.

After all, it wasn’t their duty, but they were still willing to help him.

Mandzukic was someone who knew how to be grateful.

Serna waved his hand. "I just wanted to get us off to a good start. The professional league is brutal. None of us can predict if we’ll maintain our form or integrate into the team smoothly. Sometimes, you need a little help."

"The fact that we’re all here together means we share a common goal, and the journey is bound to be tough. When facing difficulties, it’s better to have teammates helping you than to overcome them alone."

"This time, we’re helping Mario. When we’re in trouble, Mario won’t just stand by and watch!"

After a pause, Serna smiled. "We are all the result of Be?i?’s careful selection. I don’t know what the future holds, but I believe we are all exceptionally talented."

Everyone looked at Serna in surprise. The guy was surprisingly eloquent.

Suk was also a little surprised.

He had thought Serna was just a people-pleaser, but it turned out the guy had his own plans.

"Alright, to foster our team spirit, I propose..." Suk raised his hand. "We eat Chinese food once a month, and we take turns paying!"

Everyone laughed and retorted in unison, "Why does it have to be Chinese food!"

...

Returning to the dorm that evening, Suk went back to his space on the second floor.

In his room, Suk opened his attribute panel.

[Name: Suk]

[Height: 167 cm]

[Weight: 56 kg]

[Speed: 78+15]

[Flexibility: 86]

[Power: 72]

[Explosive Power: 90]

Seeing his height attribute, Suk couldn’t help but clench his fists.

’I grew another centimeter.’

Effective daily training plus nutritional supplements were causing Suk’s height to steadily increase.

Although he was still short, Suk still had a chance to grow taller.

Suk had used the two Attribute Cards from the end-of-season reward on his Power. Although there was no particularly obvious improvement, he was a bit more resistant to collisions, which allowed him to dribble more smoothly.

Of course, for now, Suk needed to focus more on acquiring cards.

His debut performance for Dinamo Zagreb was excellent, and the Yellow Card gave him a huge boost.

In particular, the [Yellow Card - Vampeta’s Dribbling] allowed him to be an explosive threat on the wing.

Just like Bosschenoqi’s Interception, the Yellow Card provided a massive personal boost, which would allow Suk to put on even better performances in the Croatian League.

He could even outperform a host of talented players and become the cream of the crop.

Of course, he was still a long way from the true geniuses who were starting to make a name for themselves in Europe, but he wasn’t discouraged.

’Falling behind now doesn’t mean I’ll be behind in the future.’

’I’ll fight to catch up.’

When the horn of the new era sounded, he would make sure that this new era heard his voice!

...

During the week of training, the team continued to focus on building chemistry.

Be?i? was a Head Coach who wanted to dominate possession on the field.

To that end, he wanted a faster game tempo. In Be?i?’s own words, he was benchmarking them against the pace of Europe’s Five Major Leagues.

Davor Suker became the key figure here.

His experience and ability were a huge help to these young talents.

Davor Suker taught them many things, not just about matches, but also about daily training routines.

While the Head Coach focused on the big picture, Davor Suker delved into the minor details.

For example, things like decision-making on the ball, concealing passes, the timing of an interception... his vast experience allowed Suk and the others to grow rapidly.

In that week’s performance, Suk’s and Modric’s displays were still the most outstanding.

Serna, Duimovic, and the others could barely keep up.

As for Mandzukic, he had undoubtedly fallen behind again.

The guy was terrible at learning new things. His thinking was too one-dimensional, his mind too rigid. As a result, when it came to coordinating in the attack, he would subconsciously revert to his old playing style instead of the current tactical system.

Although Suk and the others were helping as much as they could, some things he just had to figure out on his own.

In the end, Head Coach Be?i? pulled Mandzukic aside.

"The second round of the league is coming up. This year, we don’t have to play in the Champions League qualifiers, so we have more energy to focus on the league."

As the dominant force in the Croatian League, Dinamo Zagreb perennially held the champion’s title, making them regulars in the Champions League qualifiers. Although they had never made it to the group stage, they had a wealth of experience in the qualifiers.

However, due to the chaos of last season, they didn’t have the chance to play in the qualifiers this season.

But this also allowed them to focus more of their energy on the league.

"Next match is against Hibbenik. Our goal is an away draw!"

The moment he finished speaking, the team was in an uproar.

"Why a draw?!"

Duimovic said, annoyed, "We can get the win!"

Modric also shouted, "We’ll take all three points!"

"Don’t underestimate us!" Vukojevic shouted, clenching his fist.

Watching the spirited youngsters, Davor Suker grinned and said softly,

"So passionate!"

With that, he glanced to his side.

"Except for this one!"

Suk stared ahead with a calm expression, lacking the indignant emotion of the others.