Chapter 1033: Preparation for the Next Game

"Hey, Ryusuke! You heard about the national team?" The next day, right before the training began, Morita suddenly came and asked about this matter.

"Yeah, we will go together, right?" Higo smiled, especially when he saw the excitement that could barely be contained in his friend’s eyes.

"Hahaha! You are right! Damn, this is going to be awesome!" They high-fived each other, ignoring the wondering gaze from everyone around.

"Oh, how envious..." Suddenly, someone chimed in in Japanese, his tone full of sarcasm. "If only I got called as well..."

That was when those two remembered that they were not the only Japanese players on the team anymore, as they could see Tanaka looking so glum while also eyeing them with burning jealousy.

"Ahaha... Sorry about that one..." Higo rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

Somehow, he felt like a jerk here, especially knowing that Tanaka was excluded from the national team since he wasn’t good enough yet.

Fortunately, the coach arrived at the right moment, ignoring the awkwardness between those three before starting the meeting immediately.

Even though Higo got called into the national team, that didn’t mean he could relax here. After all, before he went back to Japan, the team still had one game to be played first, and this time, they had to face SC Freiburg in their proudest Veltins Arena.

This was a very important game for the team, as they hadn’t won even a single one in the last three games. They really needed a victory to boost morale, or if they let this go on for a little bit longer, the team’s psychological state would crumble instantly for the rest of the season.

Not only that, though, the game itself was quite important since SC Freiburg was the team in 9th place in the standings, Schalke’s direct rival to go to the European competition next season.

They had a 4-point gap right now, as Schalke, who was sitting in 11th place, only had 34 points so far, while Freiburg had 38 points and was so close to getting into the European zone in the standings.

Between those two, Union Berlin stood firmly, having 36 points so far and still maintaining their chance to sneak into the European Competition once again after their success a few years ago.

So, yeah, the competition was at its tightest moment right now, and one win would be enough to change the whole ordeal of the standings in this league.

"Fundamentally, Freiburg is just like Wolfsburg, a team that attacks vertically, going straight to the penalty box." The man spoke while controlling the screen on the wall. "However, unlike Wolfsburg, their offense falls deeper into their opponent’s territory."

Higo tensed instantly, knowing that this was time for him to listen to the explanation carefully.

"You can expect their three frontline players: Demirovic, Sallai, and Holer to mingle inside the six-yard box, Higo, so keep your eyes on your surroundings and keep your concentration."

"They will want to create chaos by aiming straight at you with those three charging in at the same time, so be decisive whenever you want to take an action!"

"Yes, Sir!" Higo shouted while also giving a solemn nod.

Inwardly, though, the boy couldn’t help but groan. In the last game, he also suffered from a collision with the opponent’s striker in an aerial duel, and while at that time, he managed to win it, the boy still felt uncomfortable with the memory of his past.

Still, the boss was right. He had to be ready for everything, including any unpleasant scenario like him having to clash against the striker directly to stop the attack.

’Yeah, fuck it. The job description for a goalkeeper sucks.’ The boy smiled wryly.

"We are lucky, though, that their most dangerous player, Vincenzo Grifo, will not be able to play due to the yellow card accumulation." Frohling continued, ignoring Higo’s stare.

"Still, their threat from the flank side is the most dangerous, as they have scored more than 70 percent of their goal from their exploitation on the wing. So, Bastian, Sead, you have to get ready to support the flank, okay? Don’t just let the defense collapse to the middle so easily!"

"Yes, Boss!"

"Don’t worry, leave the rest to us!"

Higo just rolled his eyes at their confidence. With how they spoke, people would think that those two were world-class fullbacks or something like that, when in reality, they got destroyed quite often even by Wolfsburg’s two fullbacks.

’Hopefully, they can do better, or we are going to be so screwed...’ He murmured secretly.

The coach added one or two more pieces of information here, trying to highlight which player was dangerous and what kind of threat they would try to pose in the game.

Higo also nodded along like a good student, especially since the content would be important for how he would survive later.

Still, that didn’t mean he had to enjoy this meeting, because somehow, the atmosphere was not right here.

It was as if the desire to win the game against Freiburg couldn’t be seen in the players’ eyes, as they just wanted to finish the game as quickly as possible and move on.

When Higo was back and asked Kumiko about this, the girl somehow managed to give a reasonable explanation regarding this matter.

"You guys have been in a competition for six months without any break, so it is understandable for the players to get exhausted mentally, you know?" She replied.

"It also doesn’t help that you guys are so close to the international break, which, to those who don’t get called by their national team, means a proper break for at least a week. Now, you tell me, how could they get excited in the last game before the break?"

"It is like how we were in Hakodate Nishi back then. How could you be focused on the lesson just one day before the summer break?"

Higo could feel the corner of his lips twitching madly when he heard that.

’Indeed, when I think about it, the situation is similar to that analogy, huh?’ He murmured to himself. ’Still, if this is their attitude, how could they expect to gain anything from the game?’