LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 40
As Nuri Sahin fell to the ground due to Daniel Caligiuri’s foul, the Dortmund bench sprang into action.
Nuri Sahin was clutching his right knee in pain, and it looked serious.
“…He’ll be okay, right?”
For a moment, I glanced at the fallen Nuri Sahin with a worried expression while sitting on the bench.
“Jinho! Get warmed up, quick!”
At Klopp’s urgent shout, I stood up and began my warm-up immediately.
As expected, the match was briefly halted due to Nuri Sahin’s injury, and the Dortmund medical staff rushed onto the field.
The medical team, wearing serious expressions, gestured an X towards Dortmund’s bench.
“How is that a warning?!”
Referee Felix Zwayer gave a warning to Hummels, who was protesting vehemently.
“F….”
“Mats! Calm down!”
As Hummels was about to explode again at the stern-faced Felix Zwayer, Neven Subotic nearby rushed in to calm him down.
I could understand Hummels’ frustration. Honestly, Nuri Sahin’s injury had principally resulted from Felix Zwayer’s baffling decisions that heated up the match.
“Fick dich! Is that how you call a decision?!”
“Did you get paid again after match-fixing in 2006?!”
Naturally, the home crowd of Dortmund booed Zwayer, who had issued a yellow card to Hummels.
A flood of words that our German teacher warned us not to use poured out.
Nuri Sahin was carried off on a stretcher, indicating his injury was graver than expected. Nevertheless, it appeared that the pain had subsided, as he wasn’t grimacing.
“Jinho! You’re not scared just because I’m injured, are you?”
Despite being injured, Nuri Sahin playfully addressed me while I was warming up next to the standby referee.
He seemed to be worried that I, still young, might be too shocked.
“If you take too long to come back, I might take your starter spot, so hurry up.”
I exaggeratedly replied to Nuri Sahin.
“Honestly, such an arrogant rookie.”
Our eyes met, and we burst into laughter.
“Yeah, keep my spot warm for me.”
His words echoed in my ears as I stepped onto the field. The Dortmund players, having calmed down, welcomed me with nods.
“Jinho! Any tactical changes?”
“None!”
Life in Dortmund, Germany was turning out to be more perfect than I expected.
The dedicated players, friendly manager, and always passionate fans—all were thoroughly satisfying.
Well, Germany is the type where even Son Heung-min shakes his head at racism, so there is some, but it was being addressed through the club’s proactive response and the Ultras’ aggressive actions.
Anyway, since it was SC Freiburg’s foul, Dortmund was awarded a free kick.
‘Just play Nuri’s role… but I think each player has their own strengths? So, Jinho, show your unique play on the field.’
I positioned myself in front of the ball for the free kick, recalling what Jürgen Klopp had told me. Just like people, football players have various tendencies and strengths in their play.
‘About 40M, maybe.’
Being more aggressive than Nuri Sahin, I found myself at a considerably distant spot where I could barely see the white circle of the center circle. Still, I decided to take a shot.
Beeeeep!
With the referee’s whistle, I focused fully on the ball and swung my right foot.
Kaaang—!
The ball flew with such speed that the goalkeeper couldn’t even react, hitting the lower part of the goal post before bouncing back onto the field.
SC Freiburg hurriedly cleared the ball out over the touchline.
“Ref!! That’s a goal!!”
The Dortmund players near the goal raised their hands, claiming it was a score.
“No goal!! No goal!!”
The SC Freiburg players shook their fingers, arguing it wasn’t a goal.
“…Was it a goal?”
“….”
The referee, with a serious expression, was checking with the assistant referee regarding the goal. Since goal-line technology hadn’t been introduced yet, I sensed hesitation in the assistant’s expression and decided to quickly make a judgment to just go for it and rushed straight to the corner flag. Even if it went wrong, I’d just end up with a warning.
“Uooooaaaaaaaa!!!”
Dortmund fans erupted in cheers as I ran forward, thinking it was a goal.
“Hooowwwww!”
I performed my signature celebration, the “Hoo,” as the home crowd went wild with excitement over my supposed goal. With the uncertainty of whether it had been a goal, how could the referee cancel it amidst such atmosphere?
‘You better have some guts to handle this!’
With that level of determination, I would respect and acknowledge him.
“You’re not allowed to act when there hasn’t been a decision made yet?”
“Oh, I thought it clearly went in, so I assumed it was a goal. I meant no disrespect to the referee’s authority.”
I looked at the approaching referee with a cheeky expression.
“….”
He looked at me doubtfully.
“My eyesight is excellent because I’m Asian, you know.”
I threw in an additional comment, and the referee, who lacked understanding about my ethnicity, ultimately respected my proactive approach and the assistant’s judgment, recognizing it as a goal.
It seemed that this guy lumped together Asians and the Mongolian known for sharp eyesight. Well, that was fine with me.
“Hooowww!”
With the acknowledgment from the referee as a goal, I dashed back to the stands. Maybe because I had already shown the “Hoo” once, this time the crowd responded accordingly.
“Hooowww!”
By the way, scoring a goal and doing the “Hoo,” what a great cost-benefit!
*
At the same time, in South Korea.
[GOOOOOOOOAL! GOOOOOOOAL! A fantastic free-kick goal has been scored! At 17 years old in Korean age, 16 years old in international age, Son Jinho nets a goal in consecutive Bundesliga matches!]
└ Hooowww!
└ Ohhhhhh—that was insane!!!!
└ Ah, fuck! I forgot it was the middle of the night and accidentally howled, getting my ass kicked by my wife! Hahaha!
└ Dude, getting beat at home by your wife—lame!
[With Nuri Sahin’s injury, there was a moment where the atmosphere could’ve shifted to Freiburg! Last match, Son Jinho made a dramatic late equalizer, and now he succeeded in bringing the vibe back!]
[We’re seeing the shooting scene again. Whoa—! And, it hit the lower part of the goal post and fell! The assistant referee made a precise call. At first glance, it could have been deemed too close to call, but the assistant clearly made the right judgment.]
└ Kudos to the hawk-eyed assistant!
└ Wow, seriously, it’s just a thin line, how did he spot that? Hahaha!
└ That’s why we have assistant referees!
└ What about Zwayer, though?
└ That guy is a fool, haha!
[Referee Felix Zwayer, who consistently delivered vague decisions throughout the match. He may need to buy the assistant a meal!]
└ Not just one meal, but several!
└ For real, haha! Life-changing judgment! Haha!
└ But seriously, our dude’s celebration was way too fast! He dashed before the referee even made a call! Hahaha!
└ Damn, looking back, he rushed to the corner flag without a second thought! Hahaha!
└ With that speed, didn’t he bolt right after hitting the goal post?
└ Is it kind of like Fergie Time? Surely, it must have influenced the referee’s decision?
└ Obviously! Haha! How could you cancel a goal in that atmosphere?
└ Ugh… I can’t help but think if these idiots would just give up and stop coming around after Manchester United.
└ Seriously, whenever I see these douches, I wish United would just collapse.
└ For real, they are such a plague!
└ ㅠㅠ As a fellow Manchester United fan, I sincerely apologize, ㅠㅠ
*
SC Freiburg, now two goals down, fiercely pressed forward in hopes of scoring a consolation goal.
However, the combination of Neven Subotic and Mats Hummels stood as a wall, easily thwarting Freiburg’s attacks.
I, too, actively contributed to the defense and engaged in intense physical battles. After running so much, I ended up rolling on the ground, my uniform got filthy in no time.
“Die Menschen im Schwarz und Gelben Ruhrgebiet. (The black and yellow people of the Ruhr area.)”
“Werden immer stolz an deiner Seite sein. (Will always be at your side.)”
As my uniform got dirtier, the cheers from the Dortmund fans grew louder.
Fueled by the support of the Dortmund fans, I pressured the opponents even harder.
Eventually, just before the end of the first half, I assisted Lewandowski’s goal, effectively sealing the game.