Chapter 94 - 8: Debut

Chapter 94: Chapter 8: Debut

The service window at the Dinamo Zagreb cafeteria.

"Four sausages! Thanks!"

Suk stared at the sausages sizzling with grease behind the window, his mouth practically watering.

Ever since joining Dinamo Zagreb, Suk’s diet had been strictly controlled.

Nutritional supplementation!

This was the order given to Suk by the team’s health manager, which came with a corresponding nutritional meal plan.

But the thing about nutritional meals was, while they were very healthy, they were also pretty tasteless.

The cafeteria lady placed one sausage on Suk’s plate.

Suk blinked and added:

"Four!"

"Only one!" the cafeteria lady said with a smile. "The club gave orders. You can have a maximum of one sausage per meal. You’ve been eating too much greasy food lately."

Suk’s mouth fell open. He looked at the plate full of green vegetables on his tray. Even though there was steak and other food, he was craving sausages right now.

But the cafeteria lady’s stance was firm. One meant one. No matter how much Suk pleaded, she absolutely refused to give him more.

In the end, Suk could only accept his fate.

Carrying his tray, Suk walked over to Modric’s table.

"You should eat less greasy food," Modric advised.

Suk grinned. "But I have a craving!"

Modric rolled his eyes in exasperation. "If you keep this up, I don’t know if you’ll get taller, but you’ll definitely get fatter!"

Suk sighed, then lowered his head and started shoveling food into his mouth.

Suk ate with a ferocious intensity, as if he were locked in a death battle with his food.

Modric was used to it, but Serna and the others always felt like Suk was being mistreated or something.

"Don’t mind him, he’s always eaten like that," Modric said casually, as if noticing the surprise in Serna’s eyes.

Serna nodded. "The first match is tomorrow. Aren’t you nervous?"

Modric shook his head. "I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time."

Serna looked back down at Suk. Judging by the way he was wolfing down his food, he didn’t look nervous either.

"I’m a little nervous," Serna said, pursing his lips.

Suk suddenly looked up. "Did you catch it from Mario too?"

Serna paused for a moment. "Mario? You mean, Mandzukic?"

Suk nodded. "Ever since the preseason ended, that guy has been training like crazy. With the official matches so close, he still shows no sign of resting."

Serna nodded. "Mandzukic is feeling the pressure."

"What’s he so worked up about?" Suk asked, confused.

Serna glanced at Suk and Modric.

’You two are the reason!’

As their peers, the performance Suk and Modric put on during the preseason matches made all the young players feel immense pressure.

In the past, they had all been the prodigies of their respective teams.

But after being called up to Dinamo Zagreb, in just one short month, their pride had been battered time and time again.

Mandzukic, Vukojevic, Planic, Duimovic, and even Serna himself were all greatly spurred on.

This was mainly due to the anxiety they felt after seeing Suk and Modric’s performance.

Back on their old teams, their talent had been the ceiling, so they never felt such a great sense of urgency.

But after coming to Dinamo Zagreb, everything changed.

On the very first day of training, their pride was shattered. The three preseason matches dealt them an even more crushing blow.

Now, Mandzukic, Vukojevic, and the others were all training from dawn till dusk.

They didn’t want to admit defeat.

Faced with Suk and Modric, who were more talented and had more outstanding performances, these guys’ competitive spirits were ignited.

Without a doubt, Suk and Modric were the team’s absolute ’anxiety-inducers’.

However, it was also under the spurring of Suk and Modric that these young players integrated more actively into the team, full of drive and eager to perform.

All of this made Dinamo Zagreb radiate an air of youthful vibrance.

...

Meanwhile, the Dinamo Zagreb coaching staff was also making their final adjustments.

Determining the starting lineup was a critical matter.

Although Be?i?’s coaching style included the idea of competing for a spot, he preferred to establish a core starting lineup first.

Based on the three preseason matches, he already had a rough idea in mind.

"Starting goalkeeper: Grestec!"

He was Dinamo Zagreb’s veteran goalkeeper, always diligent, and his form was very stable.

"Defensive line: Serna, Jarni, Stimac, Planic!"

The defensive line was a mix of new and old players. Serna was a winger who had been converted into a fullback, possessing a strong attacking instinct. He could coordinate with Suk on the flank, further disrupting the opponent’s defense during an attack.

And Serna’s abundant stamina could support him constantly running up and down the wing.

The two center-backs were chosen based on experience; both were former Croatian National Team Players.

"Midfield: Modric, Vukojevic, Duimovic!"

A young midfield could give the team more vitality, and these three had also developed a certain degree of chemistry during the preseason matches.

Both Modric and Duimovic could handle passing and receiving, though of course, the former’s role was more significant.

Vukojevic was responsible for sweeping up at the defensive midfield position.

"Forwards..."

This was the position that gave Be?i? the biggest headache.

Suk’s position was definitely confirmed.

Given Suk’s phenomenal performance in the preseason, he couldn’t possibly be ignored.

Accordingly, the emphasis on the left-wing attack had been increased. You could say that the left wing was currently Dinamo Zagreb’s most threatening attacking flank.

Davor Suker’s running ability wasn’t great, but with his exquisite technique and experience, he was still the team’s top scorer.

The problem lay with Mandzukic.

Because Davor Suker had squeezed Mandzukic out of the center-forward position, Mandzukic had been relegated to the wing, and his performance on the wing wasn’t particularly outstanding.

Mandzukic’s specialties were his Archery Skill and his Air Dominator attribute.

But this was at odds with Davor Suker.

As it stood, the likelihood of them both being on the field at the same time was not very high.

"Let’s have Mandzukic on the bench for now and start Valeric,"

said Assistant Coach Pavicenic.

This was also the consensus among most of the coaches.

Be?i? thought for a moment, then agreed to the plan.

"Oh, right," said Assistant Coach Pavicenic. "Suk, Modric, and Vukojevic want some internal tickets..."

It was understandable, since it was their team debut and they wanted to invite their families to watch.

Head Coach Be?i? nodded. "Three tickets each."

Assistant Coach Pavicenic grinned. "Suk wants a few more..."

"How many does he want?" Be?i? asked.

Assistant Coach Pavicenic held up both hands. "Ten!"

Be?i? was taken aback for a second, but then he remembered Suk’s background and nodded. "Give them to him."

「Three days later」, Suk received the ten tickets.

He specifically made time to visit the orphanage and gave the tickets to Di Camoqi.

Di Camoqi was thrilled. He was already a Dinamo Zagreb fan, and now that his good friend was playing for the club, he promised he would bring the kids from the orphanage to cheer them on.

As for the children at the orphanage, when they heard they were going to watch Suk play, every single one of them was extremely excited.

Suk didn’t stay at the orphanage for long. After saying goodbye to the old director, he immediately returned to the training facility.

After all, they were in the middle of intense preparations, so he couldn’t be away for too long.

Time passed bit by bit, and soon it was July 15th.

On this day, the city of Zagreb felt a bit more feverish.

The league, which had been on a two-month break, was about to start. For the fans, this was a very important event.

This was especially true for the fans of Dinamo Zagreb.

Last season, they had endured a terrible season. The return of Head Coach Be?i? and Davor Suker had given them a certain degree of confidence.

But they weren’t entirely sure what the new season would actually be like.

The first team had been rebuilt, but the newly signed players were all quite young.

In the past, the average age of the Dinamo Zagreb team was around 26, but after the rebuild, it had instantly dropped to 24!

Without a doubt, this was a young guard!

From a certain perspective, you could even call them a "junior guard"!

After all, veterans like Davor Suker, Jarni, and Stimac were pulling up a large part of the average age.

Suk was currently 17, with his 18th birthday still a month away.

Mandzukic was the same age as Suk but had just celebrated his 18th birthday.

Modric had also just turned 19.

Duimovic and Planic were 23.

Vukojevic was 21!

Serna was 22!

Looking at this age structure, the fans were all worried about whether these young men could handle the pressure.

After all, Be?i?’s rebuild this time was a drastic change.

However, the presence of Davor Suker brought them a sliver of comfort.

He was, after all, a Croatian hero, their number one star.

In their minds, Davor Suker was capable of anything.

Amidst this atmosphere, on July 15th, the 2003/2004 season of the Croatian League kicked off.

The Croatian League’s opening match, Dinamo Zagreb vs. Slaven Belupo, was also set to begin at Maximilienplatz.