Chapter 1031: A Call from the National Team!

The game was finally over, and while a draw against the fourth-place team was already good enough, some Schalke players couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

They all felt pity, as they had already been so close to winning the game. Just ten minutes away, and everything was destroyed with one stupid mistake.

Even though no one said anything or pointed at anyone, they still sent a stinging glare to Mustafi, who looked so ashamed of himself right now.

In the end, Higo just let out a deep sigh, went back to the locker room to take a quick shower, and went to the bus immediately, not wanting to discuss this game anymore.

’Yeah, the level of stupidity here is too much. Let Sensei handle this matter; I don’t care anymore.’

He would deny it, but everyone knew that the boy was sulking. Well, understandable, considering this was the first game since he was back after the injury, and the boy would love nothing more than to bring a positive result for the team.

In the end, they just went back to Gelsenkirchen in silence, not truly in the mood to talk about anything that happened on the pitch earlier.

Fortunately, though, the moment Higo was back at his flat, the boy found a perfect distraction, as someone who hadn’t called him in a long time suddenly had his name flashing on his phone.

"Fujita-san? What is he doing?" He couldn’t help but frown.

Yeah, honestly, even though the man was Higo’s agent, it was rare for them to chat with each other, let alone have a proper meeting. Their relationship was purely business, and Higo himself didn’t mind it.

While some people might think that it was foolish to let the agent dictate everything, Higo himself wasn’t worried. No, he had his mother and sister who always kept in touch with everything, so that if Fujita-san wanted to do something funny, they would know immediately.

"Yes? Is there something I can help you with, Fujita-san?" Higo greeted the man politely once he accepted the phone call.

"It is official, Ryusuke-kun!" The man replied with an almost-shout, his breath panting while a hint of excitement could be heard in his tone as well.

"What official?" Higo frowned, not having a single clue about what the man was trying to say.

"It is official! Moriyasu-sensei has announced the list of the national team for the international break two weeks later, and your name is included as the third goalkeeper!"

BOOM!

The news was like thunder striking on a clear day, coming out of nowhere to catch Higo off guard.

The boy himself was so dumbfounded, freezing on the spot while also looking at his own phone in disbelief.

"Wait, what happened? What is going on, Fujita-san?!" He demanded an explanation quickly. "Is it truly the national team? No scam or whatsoever?! Are you sure that my name is truly there?!"

"Of course, it is real! Why would I joke about something so serious like this?!" The man answered, his pitch got higher in that moment. "Just check on the federation’s website! It is so easy to access!"

Higo didn’t waste too much time, moving his fingers so quickly until he entered the JFA website. Not that it was a difficult task, since he himself was quite familiar with the interface after being on the U-20 team in the past.

He just opened the latest article, which was a list of the players who were chosen for the next international break, and true enough, the boy found himself being the third on the list.

1 – Shuichi Gonda – Portimonense

14 – Shusaku Nishikawa – Urawa Red Diamonds

33 – Ryusuke Higo – Schalke 04

Yeah, those were the names of the goalkeepers who were chosen to represent the country two weeks later, and somehow, Higo’s name slipped into the equation, being the youngest among the two veteran players there.

Higo himself still couldn’t process the information perfectly. No, his mind went blank, not having enough time to let everything sink in. The news came out of nowhere, and he didn’t know what to feel right now.

It wasn’t like he had never thought about joining the national team. However, due to the pandemic, all the international week was canceled from the FIFA schedule, and this was the first time it would be held after almost a year of absence.

So, being with the team to face this was definitely a big deal, and when he thought about it, nervousness slipped sneakily into the boy’s system.

"Don’t worry, you are not going to be alone there." Fujita’s words rang out once again, as it seemed that he knew Higo’s mood at this time.

"I am not alone?" Higo blinked, parroting the sentence with confusion on his face.

"Yeah, if you look down the midfield section, you will find that Morita-kun’s name is there. He has been doing well on your team, so it is no wonder that he is chosen as well."

Higo scrolled through his phone once again, and true enough, he saw Morita’s name in the list. This allowed him to let out a sigh, finding his anxiety drop a little bit.

’Yeah, at least, I am not completely alone there.’ He smiled wryly.

"Also, the international week this time is not really that important, so don’t worry about it." Fujita-san tried to assure him again.

"We will start with a friendly match against South Korea in Nissan Stadium, Yokohama, and a few days later, we will go to Chiba to fight against Mongolia in the second round of the World Cup Qualification for 2022."

"Two opponents: a stronger one just for a friendly game, while the second one was way weaker than us, so you don’t need to worry about anything else."

Higo finally nodded along, finding himself regaining his composure. Still, that didn’t mean he would follow his agent’s words here, treating this call from the Samurai Blue team casually.

’No, since I have already been called, I should at least try to make a name for myself, right?’