Chapter 919: Continuing the Trend!

Higo had to admit that when his mother laid it out like this, everything looked so simple. Still, this had never crossed his mind, especially when he himself was just a 19-year-old boy who had only worked for a year or so.

Even though the advice was quite obvious, once he asked Fujita-san to help him implement it- from opening another bank account for his emergency fund to inquiring about how to invest in this country- the boy felt more secure when he spent his money, enough to let him buy whatever he liked.

Of course, he still felt like he made a lot of mistakes when it came to money.

For example, at some point, Higo felt bored and thought that a PlayStation would be nice to let him spend his free time, so he bought the newest version, complete with so many games in it. However, in the end, he didn’t really enjoy playing games alone, so this felt like a big waste.

’It would really be better to just play a mobile game with the others, right?’ He muttered, remembering so many friends back home also playing one that was currently the trend in the whole world.

Still, he learned his lesson from the PlayStation, so the boy curbed his impulsiveness a little bit here.

It also helped that he still had to focus on the team, enough to distract him from the impulsive feeling that always emerged whenever the boy saw something good in the online commerce or something like that.

As for the team itself, the boy still showed the same level of performance, becoming the brick wall that could block everything that the opponent threw.

After the game against Frankfurt, it was time for them to meet another strong team, Bayer Leverkusen. Even though they were not better than Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, or Eintracht Frankfurt, at least Leverkusen was a solid team that always fought for the last place to be in the Champions League.

However, Schalke also fought in front of their crowd with big momentum on their shoulders, so they fought tooth and nail to continue their momentum. Hell, it was a strange scene to see Schalke dominating the whole game, and even though Leverkusen threw so many counterattacks as well, Higo and the defensive line worked hard enough to repel all of them.

In the end, a cross from Sebastian Rudy on the right side managed to find Mark Uth inside the box, and the man just headed the ball to the far post to give Schalke the only goal of the day.

This cemented their new title as the giant killer, managing to steal points from those in the top five of the league.

Unfortunately, the next game didn’t go as smoothly as before.

Against FC Augsburg, a team that still fought in the relegation zone, it was as if all the energy that the team had was sucked out of their soul, as they were unable to show their best performance.

It didn’t matter how hard the frontline tried, but any of their effort somehow met a blockade, as if telling them that today was not the time they could get a goal.

If anything, it was they who got unlucky. Malick Thiaw, who had just come back from his head injury, somehow became the biggest villain in the team, as he deflected a low cross that was whipped by the opponent’s winger, ignoring Higo, who had already jumped to snatch it in the air.

In the end, the ball just bounced into the goal without Higo being able to stop it, handing the team the fourth loss of the season. Another bad result that should’ve been avoidable by the whole team, leaving Frohling in fury back in the locker room.

As a result, everyone, including Higo, who still played well, got punished for the whole week after that game. Their physical portion got doubled, and they had to take turns washing the training vest that they always used daily after everything was over, with no machine allowed to be used to help them.

Frohling really showed his dictatorship in this regard, not giving anyone any chance to skip the punishment.

Then, in the next game, with motivation burning brighter than ever, they went back to their own home to face Armenia Bielefeld, the promotion team that was currently in 17th place in the standings. This time, they didn’t show any mercy.

The team managed to bag four goals, with Mark Uth getting a brace, Morita scoring one from a long shot, and Stambouli managing to win the aerial duel from the corner kick to seal the deal. Hell, they could even get more if only the frontline could be more clinical, as they got so many chances to destroy the opponent.

In total, they bagged 9 shots on target, and all of them were big threats that could be goals if only those who executed them could be a little bit calmer and better.

Still, Frohling was so satisfied with this result. After all, not only was this game the best that they had ever done in this season, but the process to get it was also perfect.

The midfield managed to control the tempo the whole game, and the defense also held their own ground for the full 90 minutes, not letting any threat get closer to Higo. In this game, the goalkeeper didn’t even do anything, as no shots on target were thrown at him.

This was definitely the easiest game that he had ever experienced so far this season, and with the team ending up winning the game, everything seemed to be perfect for Higo.

Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for the whole team. No, their perfect day had to be stained near the end of the game, when, in the 87th minute, Mark Uth failed to land on the ground perfectly, snapping something on his knee.

He had to be replaced straight away, and after the game was over, the medical team finally announced the grim news to the head coach.

"A strained MCL. He has to be sidelined for the next four to six months."