Chapter 787: Higo Gets Injured?!

At first, no one noticed something wrong when they saw Higo didn’t get up immediately from the ground. No, they thought that the boy was trying to slow down the tempo here, what with Union Berlin starting to get closer to his territory.

However, things were different when they all realized that instead of getting up, Higo was just curling on the ground, one hand clutching the other as if he was in pain.

"Higo! What happened?!" Ozan Kabak rushed, kneeling in front of Higo to check his situation.

"I... Don’t know." Higo cringed unconsciously, cold sweat starting to roll profusely down his face. "Something went wrong with my shoulder; it came out of place. I cannot move my arm at all."

Hearing this, Ozan Kabak’s face went pale instantly, realizing that this was a serious matter. "MEDIC! MEDIC! COME QUICKLY!" He shouted to the bench in panic; his mind went blank as he didn’t know what to do right now.

The rest of Schalke players followed, surrounding Higo immediately. Meanwhile, on the bench, Frohling couldn’t help but curse at the current situation. "What the fuck is going on with my luck?! Two players are not enough, and now I will lose my goalkeeper?! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

Soon enough, the medical team came to the pitch to check on the situation, and even though Union Berlin players wanted to complain, they were quite helpless about it. After all, the one who got injured was the goalkeeper, so the game had to be stopped before he was back on his feet or his replacement was ready.

Higo himself finally managed to sit properly, but his face was pale as if blood had drained from his face.

"Where do you feel the pain? Try to move anything that you can, and tell me which part feels numb or wrong." The man that Higo was quite familiar with, Daniel Guzman, tried to assess the situation quickly.

At this point, the man looked so professional, not like a maniac otaku that would always bother Higo with his broken Japanese language.

Higo gritted his teeth as he tried, but in the end, the boy could only move his fingers slowly even if he had mustered so much energy to do so.

"The pain is not in my hand. My shoulder... It stuck." He said, trying to sound calm.

"Did you land on it, or did it happen when you tried to reach the ball?" Guzman asked once again while trying to examine the shape of the boy’s shoulder.

Higo pondered for a moment, and even though his mind was hazy, his memory was still clear as day, especially with the help of his clairvoyance ability. "I think I landed with my arm above my head, and I could feel something move. I didn’t land properly." He cursed himself inwardly for this stupid mistake.

How to land properly was the very first thing that Higo learned as a goalkeeper from Kumiko, and yet, in that crucial moment, he forgot about this basic skill, injuring himself unnecessarily.

After gently checking one more time, Daniel Guzman asked Ozan Kabak and Timo Becker to help Higo get up from the ground, and he turned at the bench before making a big ’X’ sign with his arms.

"I cannot stay?" Higo grimaced when he saw the backup goalkeeper had already warmed up on the sideline.

In return, the Philippines doctor just shook his head apologetically. "I am sorry, unfortunately, no. We need to get you assessed quickly so that we can determine what is wrong with you. Say goodbye to your teammates, okay?"

Higo bit his lip quietly, clearly unwilling to leave the game like this. Unfortunately, the situation was not on his side right now, and after taking a deep breath, he turned around and looked at Ozan Kabak with a sharp gaze.

"Oz-san, I’ll leave the defense to you. Don’t you dare mess it up, okay? If I heard that we conceded a goal, let alone getting overtaken by the opponent, I will haunt you in your nightmares for the rest of your life!"

The Turkish defender gulped for a moment, not expecting to receive such a threat. The pressure was also huge here, and honestly, the man wanted nothing more than to curse at Higo directly for putting that boulder on his shoulders right now.

However, with no Higo on the backline, someone indeed had to take over the command once again, and this time, he couldn’t shy away from that responsibility.

"Okay, I will try my best. Just leave in peace, okay?"

Higo snorted lightly, but did not completely answer that jab. He walked slowly with the medical team supporting his injured arm, and during that short period before the boy truly left the pitch, he could hear a round of applause all over the stadium.

Honestly, it was a strange feeling, as the stands themselves were empty. However, everyone on Schalke’s bench stood and gave an applause, and not just them; even the players on the pitch, no matter whether it was from Union Berlin or Schalke’s side, gave the same appreciation toward the boy.

He had been an amazing goalkeeper, and his departure would hurt the Schalke team more in the future.

Higo himself felt a lump in his throat right now, not expecting this warm treatment from all over the pitch. Hell, some of the opponent players even came, patting him on the head and wishing him good luck. At this point, words seemed to fail to express whatever mess was inside his mind right now.

The moment he finally stepped out of the sideline, Frohling had already been waiting for him. The boy couldn’t help but show a weak smile, snorting a little. "Sorry, Sensei, I cannot protect the goal until the end." His voice was so heavy and unwilling, as if he still didn’t want to accept this reality.

Instead of answering directly, the coach just hugged Higo on his head gently, catching the boy off guard. In a low whisper that only he and the goalkeeper could hear, Frohling whispered, "Don’t worry about that. For now, just check on your injury and come back stronger later!"