Please Read: I decided to add some characters from other anime for story-wise.
Guidance for player description:
- Player's name (Shirt's number). Eg: Hachiman (8), Tripone (10), etc.
Characters appear as Sobu team mostly from: Oregairu, Ao Ashi, Giant Killing, Keppeki Dashi! Aoyama-kun, Haikyuu, Danshi Kokosei no Nichijou, and Kyoukai no Kanata.
I attach some images links for positioning illustrations just in case you are confused with my tactical explanations.
—OoOoO—
Oregairu by Wataru Watari & Ponkan8
Ao Ashi by Yugo Kobayashi
And I Don't Own Other Characters Appeared
Genre: Sport, Friendship, Slice of Life, Romance
Summary: What if Hachiman is not a mere high school boy but a former of football player in his middle school? More importantly. he is one of big shots in his generation!
Chapter 2: Place Your Bet on Me.
—OoOoO—
"Let me emphasise again. You asked my permission to join the football club?"
"The hell? I don't need your permission. I said that in advance, since I don't want to play behind your back."
Yukino narrowed her eyes at the explanation. Of the many events, ranging from slight to remarkable, she experienced today, what Hachiman just said shocked her the most.
As usual, they gathered in the clubroom after school. Yukinoshita Yukino, Hikigaya Hachiman, and Yuigahama Yui sat in their respective seats. And as usual, not many visitors came to the volunteer club. However, if anything made this day different from the other, it was Hachiman's confession.
Yukinoshita Yukino was an extraordinary young girl. She was assertive, intelligent, and good at responding to things. The girl had an extraordinary stature. Her long black hair and tapered face, combined with her piercing gaze, became the perfect blend that made Yukinoshita Yukino perfect.
It wasn't even a month since Yukino knew Hachiman. However, Hachiman's indifferent tendencies allow Yukino to draw conclusions without him couldn't hide anything.
"I don't want to look down on you. However, I don't think someone like you can play football," Yukino said.
"Let alone you. Even if I met someone like me, I wouldn't believe that person could play."
Yukino twisted her brows with a deadpan after hearing such a silly joke. Meanwhile, Hachiman just put on a clumsy smile. He then cleared his throat.
"Well, I don't care if you believe me or not. What's clear, I will join the football club, with or without your permission," said Hachiman.
Yui showed a complex expression but couldn't hold back her anxiety. As such, she decided to voice it.
"So, are you gonna leave our club?"
Hachiman had expected the question. He had also reflected on the choice he had to make.
Normally, he wouldn't take Yui's questions thoughtfully and only respond with ridiculous words. Not only was Yui's brain capacity incapable of keeping up with tough topics, but she pulled her hair up in a side bun like an idiot, making it difficult for Hachiman to take the girl earnestly. However, no matter how bad his communication skills were, he knew when to put his goofy jokes aside.
"I won't. I considered it, but after thinking it over thoroughly, there are still a few things that I might still need at this club."
Had Hachiman fully recovered from his past trauma? No, it wasn't easy to recover after they made him a scapegoat and became a clown. He had shut himself in for over a year and kept away from the football to heal his mind.
Hachiman wasn't strong, but he tried to overcome his nightmares. However, he feared his past would repeat itself. That's why, if football wasn't the right path for him, he hoped that at least the volunteer club could be a place to isolate himself.
"During active days, the football team has three regular practice sessions. That means you can only join our activities twice a week?" Yukino asked.
Hachiman was about to reply. However, Yukino still needed to finish her words.
"For someone who always wants to run away from the club, I hope you don't use football activities as an excuse. If I see you aren't putting your heart into the volunteer club, it would be best if you just dropped out as well."
Those were Yukino's harsh words. Her piercing gaze didn't improve the impression she gave Hachiman. However, she thought what she was doing made perfect sense. She didn't want any half-hearted members joining her club. Unfortunately, when it came to that, Yukino didn't realise that there was someone who more accurately matched her words than Hachiman.
Yui was still trapped in her own world without anyone knowing. A feeling of dilemma still enveloped her mind. She didn't join the Volunteer club because she wanted to befriend a certain Yukinoshita Yukino. After a year, she finally could approach the hero who saved her dog. And yet she was faced with the possibility that the hero must disappear from her sight.
Based on her egoistic alone, Yui decided not to let that happen.
"Yukinon, I think there's nothing wrong with letting Hikki stay even if he joins the football club later. Besides, it's not like we'll be getting clients every day."
The reason given by Yui was quite reasonable. The volunteer club was not busy. They weren't a well-known club among the students. Not only was the club just founded this semester, but even hearing its name would make the students suspicious. In fact, they once had no clients at all for a week.
Forget about requests that required a lot of effort, like Totsuka's request and Yui's cooking lesson. Most of the requests they received were trivial consultations regarding the complaints of students' livelihoods, and even then, they didn't get them every day.
Yukino seemed to consider Yui's suggestion.
"Uhm… If you are really committed to what you said earlier, maybe we can try it," said Yukino, who couldn't bear to see Yui's puppy eyes.
Meanwhile, Hachiman just narrowed his gaze at the reaction. He stared at the black-haired girl.
'Aren't you being too soft with that Gahama, Yukinon-san?'
—OoOoO—
Three days had passed without significant hindrance since the meeting of the two schools. Like a sea breeze that blew to the land, everything passed quietly. Even so, for some people, the last three days were not easy, but rather hectic.
Hiratsuka's plan to take on the responsibility of coaching the football team didn't go smoothly. She got a lot of opposition and doubts from the school. However, after laying out her proposal and confirming that she could take on the responsibilities of being a teacher and football coach, they gave her a probationary period of six months. During that time, if she seemed overwhelmed and neglected her primary duties as a teacher, they would immediately revoke her position as a coach.
However, the challenge had only just begun. Hiratsuka didn't have a coaching team. Or rather, there was no such thing in this club. If anything, the only staff she had were the two managers from the student side alone. They were Isshiki Iroha, a first-year student who had just enrolled, and a third-year student. Unfortunately, the third-year one would resign from the club to focus on university exams. In other words, Hiratsuka had only one active management staff.
However, there were other problems. The club manager only acted as part of the logistics. Instead of assisting the team in providing and analysing data, the club manager focused too much on menial tasks, such as ensuring the availability of .
'Though I can't blame them. I can't expect to have staff at Funabashi's level in the first place.'
It wasn't like Hiratsuka held up to such high standards as the other top youth teams. She also didn't expect the Sobu High football team to have big data on the players from the start, like she saw from Funabashi a few days ago. However, she didn't expect the Sobu team's data to be very limited.
Hiratsuka was currently holding the papers. Those were data inherited from the previous coaching regime. Unfortunately, everything contained only height, speed, number of goals and assists scored by each player, and only the number of goals conceded. If it was for entertainment purposes, what Hiratsuka had was actually enough. However, for the sake of analysis and potential gameplay, more was needed.
At the very least, Hiratsuka hoped she would have some basic data, such as how each player responded during progression and defence based on numerical statistics. However, hope was just hope.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, everyone is ready."
Hiratsuka turned her head when she heard the hoarse voice of a girl. Not only she, but all the teachers present also looked at the source of the voice. Hiratsuka found a brown-haired girl standing in the doorway of the teacher's room. Her face still seemed shy, typical of a new student who had to go where the teachers were.
"Got it."
Hiratsuka stood up from her throne and walked towards the female student. However, she got some comments from her colleagues.
"Oh, today is the match day against Funabashi, huh? I'm 100% behind you, Hiratsuka-sensei!" said her female counterpart.
"I was astonished when I heard you became a head coach. However, knowing you could seal the deal with Funabashi makes me think that maybe you're not just any woman. I support you, sensei!" this time, it was a middle-aged man's turn to speak.
"Don't be too burdened, Hiratsuka-sensei. Win or lose doesn't matter. It's just a friendly match, after all. Use this opportunity to get to know your team better," said Atsugi, the PE teacher.
Atsugi was indeed a PE teacher. However, he was also the head coach of the baseball team. He had a lot of experience that he could share with his colleagues. However, he knew Hiratsuka was an exceptional woman. She had an extensive knowledge of football and has always been renowned for being an expert at dealing with various students. So, Atsugi doubted whether Hiratsuka needed advice from him.
Hiratsuka bent down at a right angle and faced all supporting her. She then straightened her body back up and looked at them confidently.
"Thank you for your supports. It means a lot."
—OoOoO—
When they say the Sobu High football team was terrible, it wasn't that bad, to be honest. Maybe some aspects were not up to par compared to the top teams. However, Sobu High was sufficient for basic infrastructure to meet the criteria, even though most joined infrastructure with other sports clubs.
For example, the locker rooms and meeting rooms. It was no secret that sports clubs in Sobu High preferred using the gymnasium locker room to change clothes. Not only was the place cleaner and more spacious, but it also had a shower room. Meanwhile, the owned club room was often used as a meeting room. Speaking of club rooms, several sports clubs in Sobu High were provided with separate buildings with two floors next to the gymnasium. That differed from other clubs that use a special building as their bases.
In a room dedicated to the football club, a group of teenagers were huddled with tension clearly etched on their faces. An invisible pressure seemed to force them to force their heads down. However, among the group, some creatures didn't match the atmosphere. One of them was a boy who isolated himself in the corner. Unlike the others, the nervousness and tension didn't show on his face. A relaxed, carefree look was all there was to find.
The solitary teenager seemed to be doing something with his shoes. On each hand, there was a hair dryer on the right and on the other hand was a white Adidas 11 Pro with a blue combination on its back. It might be a strange sight. How come? Even though his shoe wasn't soaked, he directed the hair dryer into it.
"I admire your composure, Hikigaya-kun. As if this isn't a big match."
Feeling his name being called, the young man who did something to his shoe using a hair dryer looked up. He found a blonde boy with a handsome face that made him sick. He was Hayama Hayato, who was always the centre of attention.
"Well, it's not a big game. Even if your opponent is Real Madrid, a friendly match is still a friendly match. Feeling burdened because it was something ridiculous."
"Someone who once won major titles on the U-15 level and was called to the national team is something, huh?" Hayama replied with a faint smile, referring to Hachiman's past achievements.
"I won't say it had anything to do with me winning the league or something. However, if it came from my mouth, you might think it was just some stupid nonsense."
Hachiman said those sharp words without even meeting Hayama's eyes. Instead of taking the boy earnestly, he put down his right shoe and took a left one. Repeating his routine, Hachiman directed the hair dryer to every shoe corner.
What Hachiman said earlier made Hayama step back a bit. He didn't really know the boy before him, who was busy doing a ritual that he didn't even know the purpose of. He only heard a few words from Yumiko, giving the boy high credit in football. Besides that, Hayama could reasonably judge that Hachiman was a sceptical loner. However, he didn't think that the rotten-eyed boy was that critical.
What Hachiman said did sound harsh. However, the meaning contained was pretty clearly conveyed. Hayama understood that sobriety had nothing to do with the titles he had won.
The title of champion indeed gave extraordinary self-confidence so that anyone who won it had confidence in his abilities. However, if that were the logic, it would be tantamount to saying that teams or other athletes who have never won a title have no confidence or composure.
In fact, calmness in dealing with everything came from the maturity of one's mindset. In other words, it came from experience. Those who have played many matches would know which were important matches and which were exhibitions. In other words, assuming that Hachiman could keep his composure because he had won some titles implied an immature way of thinking and only showed his inferiority.
Hayama pondered after being slapped by Hachiman's piercing words. He was always proud of himself. He was handsome, smart, and liked by many people. Nothing was wrong and lacking in him. However, he didn't expect to have such an inferior side.
"You're right. It was my fault for thinking too shallowly," he said after reflecting on himself.
Hachiman didn't respond. He didn't care about that guy. It was great if he had learned something, but Hachiman still didn't care! He knew that his attitude might harm the club's internal condition. On top of that, a powerful club must have cohesiveness, both on and off the field. Moreover, he was a deep-lying playmaker who connected the back and front lines and initiated attacks.
If he couldn't understand the character of his comrades, he couldn't bring out the best potential of the team.
"By the way, what exactly are you doing?" asked Hayama after suppressing his curiosity.
"This?" replied Hachiman while showing his work.
He didn't reply right away. Hachiman unplugged the hair dryer first before turning to Hayama.
"It's just a habit of mine. I like keeping my shoes warm."
Hachiman knew he had only played in the second half. So, it was a bit of a waste if he warmed up his shoes now. He should have just done it at halftime. However, he did it without realising it because it was a habit before the match.
Hachiman glanced slightly, observing his surroundings. He found that some team members would occasionally steal glances their way. That was only natural because he was a player who had just joined today. Moreover, there were rumours, who didn't know where it started, that Hachiman was one of the regulars when he was still at Funabashi Junior High.
After they entrusted Hiratsuka with leading the team, she said a new player would join the club. However, the player in question would only participate in the D-day friendly match against Funabashi due to preparation and training issues to restore his fitness. And yes, it was Hachiman.
What Hiratsuka said was not a lie. She had deliberately ordered Hachiman to practice separately. Hiratsuka only gave basic training to her players in her first days in charge. That was why she omitted Hachiman, because she believed the boy already had good foundations.
Hiratsuka's purpose in separating Hachiman was to rebuild his shape after not playing on the pitch for so long. Indeed, the time they owned was only three days, so the results were not optimal. But it was still better than nothing.
After they had waited for some time without a guide, the door opened without permission. And without hesitation, a long black-haired woman in a ponytail walked into the clubroom.
She wore a white shirt, the sleeves of which she had rolled up three-quarters. She was wearing a black sleeveless vest over her shirt. A red tie was seen tying her collar loosely. Meanwhile, she wore black pants and flat black shoes as her bottom. If there was anything she lacked, it was her trademark lab coat.
The woman was a well-known figure in the Sobu High society. The figure who made a splash in the school environment for suddenly proposing herself to handle the football team. None other than Hiratsuka Shizuka.
Behind the woman was Isshiki Iroha, who followed her. She was the only manager they had at the moment. The two females walked towards the whiteboard. While Isshiki needed to figure out what to do, Hiratsuka already had a clear roadmap.
Hiratsuka immediately took a marker and started writing something on the board.
"We will use a 3-5-2 system with a medium block in the first half. We don't have much time to prepare. So, besides what I instructed during practice, use what the previous coach has done."
[https-:/-/-imgur.-com/2U1WW3o]*please remove the "-".
In these two days, there wasn't much improvement that Hiratsuka could make. She hadn't even touched on administrative matters in the team. If there was anything she started to do, it was the positioning of her players had to adopt during the defensive phase, especially when dealing with Funabashi's trademark.
"I'll leave the attack patterns to your creativity. However, you must be disciplined in maintaining the defensive shape. A good attacking phase always starts with a build-up from the back. In other words, against an opponent with high attack intensity like Funabashi, keeping our defence solid is our first step in building up an attack."
Hiratsuka started scribbling on the board.
"The idea is simple. We won't do man marking, but zonal compactness. Funabashi is famous for their counter-press, so it would be precarious to use man marking. Instead, we will wait until they enter our mid-low zone. However, when they could penetrate our second line, we must immediately recover and use low block compactly."
Mid-low was the development of the term to refer to the block zone. If generally only three terms were known, low block, medium block, and high block, then in Germany, it has developed into six. Each was defensive-low, defensive-high, mid-low, mid-high, attacking-low, and attacking-high.
[https-:/-/-imgur.-com/nyxXX7l]*please remove the "-".
Attacking low was the zone right outside the penalty box, while attacking high was inside. Attacking low and high were used to simplify instructions on where the striker must be in each attacking phase. Strikers would go into the penalty box or attacking high if they go all out and lock the opponent in their own defence. Or on an attacking low when they were in a transition phase. However, specifically for the attacking-low zone, that was the position the attackers must be in when doing the high press.
Meanwhile, the mid-low of the Sobu team was just above their starting third. In other words, they must immediately track back to lower their defensive block when they fail to press, and their opponent entered their mid-low zone.
'Even though I'm an AC Milan fan, I'm often dissatisfied when they play low block. Honestly, the medium and high-block games used in La Liga and the Premier League are much more entertaining. However, when I manage a team myself, I can't maintain the ideal of an entertaining game if my opponent is much more superior, or they will slaughter my team.'
Hiratsuka let out a long breath to clear away the nervousness that had clouded her mind. Even though it was just a friendly match, it was still her first match. It would be lying if she didn't feel nervous. Moreover, her opponent had superior qualities to her team. However, Hiratsuka couldn't express that. Her position required always putting up her body bravely, no matter who the opponent was.
Hiratsuka then returned to scribbling on the board, showing how her players should behave when facing an onslaught from Funabashi. Until finally, she got to the moment where she announced her line-up.
"As I said, we use 3-5-2. The starting eleven is; Goalkeeper, Karasawa Toshiyuki (1). Centre backs, Motoharu Daisuke (4), Kinoshita Hisashi (3), and Narita Kazuhiko (13). Midfielders, Nase Hiroomi (7), Tabata Hidenori (6), Ennoshita Chikara (10), Aoyama Ryoutarou (17), Tobe Kakeru (2). And forwards, Hayama Hayato (9), and Sera Kyouhei (11). While the rest are on the bench."
It didn't feel like time had passed so quickly. Looking at the clock on the wall, she realised the clockwork indicated kick-off in less than five minutes. Hiratsuka then took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Alright. Everyone, assemble!"
With these brief instructions, the players stood up and started crowding in a circle. Isshiki, who had been by Hiratsuka's side, joined the crowd.
"Funabashi is strong, but they're not a monster. They eat rice, just like us. They've two legs and two arms, just like us. They do not breathe fire from their mouths and just breathe oxygen. Don't be intimidated, and don't be afraid to make mistakes. They have ambitions, and so do we. So, let's kick their ass and let them know who rules this prefecture!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
Meanwhile, a sweat drop apparently appeared on Hachiman's forehead.
'What the hell with her last line? Is she a yanki or something? Seriously, I think you watch too much Crows series, Hiratsuka-sensei!'
—OoOoO—
Students would generally do whatever they wanted to do after school was over. They might hang out with their respective clubs, hang out with their friends from other schools, or even just go straight home. The students of Sobu High were no exception. They were busy with their world.
However, the scene presented today was different. About half of the Sobu High students stayed. In fact, more unique views could be seen on the back side of the special building. All the windows were open, and many students were crammed in just to get the best spot to look directly at the football field. Meanwhile, the field's outskirts have also been surrounded by them.
"I didn't expect the audience to be this big. There were even Funabashi supporters who came carrying snare drums," said a girl with her hair in a bun side.
"It's just natural. The opponent is Funabashi Academy, after all. Besides that, many things make this match interesting to watch," replied a black-haired girl with eyes that were always sharp, "And the militancy of Funabashi supporters is already well known throughout the prefecture."
Yuigahama Yui and Yukinoshita Yukino, that was them. Unlike the rest of the crowd, who could only watch from the other side, the two ended up on the Sobu team's bench. Only players and officials should be allowed to be there. Even in amateur matches, not just anyone was allowed to sit on the bench.
However, Yukino and Yui's current situation was slightly different. Hiratsuka officially asked them to become additional Sobu High staff two days before the match. The reason was simply that they were a scarce human resource. Just relying on Isshiki alone couldn't handle all the work during the match. Because of that, Hiratsuka—who had positioned herself as an outsider—sent such a request to the volunteer club.
"To be honest, I originally thought that Hiratsuka-sensei was a little over the top to the point of asking for our help. However, after looking at Funabashi Academy's management team numbers, I can tell why she asked us."
Yui spat out those words while looking at the Funabashi's bench. She saw at least two girls and two boys her age. She knew the boys weren't players because all of the Funabashi players were still in the locker room provided. In other words, it could be concluded that the two boys were part of the management team.
"If you add the two girls who accompanied them to the locker room, doesn't that mean Funabashi has six managers?" Yui asked, completing her previous words.
Yukino followed Yui's eyes. It preoccupied her brain with her own thoughts for a few moments before she answered the question.
"Rather than managers, they are more suitable to be called an official team."
Yui turned her gaze to the dark-haired girl.
"Eh? Is it different?"
"Of course. Considering this is Funabashi, I think their roles have been divided up specifically. While the term 'manager' for extracurricular clubs that we know is still too ambiguous in the division of tasks."
Yui only tilted her head, indicating she didn't understand Yukino's words. The ice queen snorted and gave a more understandable explanation.
"Funabashi is a sports-oriented school. They are known for creating a professional environment for athletes. Moreover, I heard that they have a special subject for sports science. So, I believe some of Funabashi's official team have roles such as ensuring the nutrition and fitness of the players."
What Yukino said hit the spot. Even high schools at the Funabashi Academy level were limited in what they could do. Or rather, they didn't have the luxury of the youth academy of a professional club like Tokyo Esperion. That was the existence of sports medicine physicians and sports dietitians. Funabashi may have a canteen that provided healthy menus. However, each sport has its own diet.
As such, Funabashi opened sports science as an elective subject to cover this hole. That way, they could bring in experts as teachers. The existence of sports science subjects also made Funabashi Academy an ideal place for collecting scientific data. That made the teachers who came not only because of money, but they were also interested in the facilities offered. Simply put, they had an exclusive place for youth athletes to be observed as thesis materials. In fact, it was common for intern students to come to Funabashi voluntarily because they wanted to collect scientific data for research there.
From the side of the school itself, they were also gaining profits. The initial investment seemed expensive, but the funds that must be disbursed in the future were manageable. On the practical side, knowledge transfer could occur between lecturers and students.
The lecturers would usually accompany sports clubs in the competition. However, every sports club in Funabashi had students in sports science classes as part of their official staff or management team. In addition, opening a sports science program didn't violate government regulations. Considering that the school is a public school, they still had to follow the rules made by the government.
"I still don't really understand, but I quite grasp the idea," said Yui, touching her chin with her index finger.
"Well, that's the gist of it. The striking difference between Sobu and Funabashi makes many people want to watch this match."
Sobu High and Funabashi Academy were both elite schools in Chiba Prefecture. However, the two were in different fields. If Sobu High was the best in academics, while Funabashi Academy was a champion in sports. Those who excel in academics against those who dominate in sports. That was an overview of this friendly match.
In addition, Hiratsuka Shizuka, as the head coach of Sobu High, also attracted attention. In this school, no one didn't know that woman. She was known as a friendly but firm teacher and a graceful but eccentric woman. Seeing the teacher who received much respect from the students suddenly become the head coach would definitely attract their attention.
Yui and Yukino's shoulders jumped when the away team's supporters blared their snare drums with great fanfare. Their eyes glanced at the noise in unison. The supporters sang to the accompaniment of drums as if they were escorting a departing knight to the battlefield.
The girls from the volunteer club followed the chant's direction. There they saw the Funabashi players had emerged from the locker room. Beside them was a line of Sobu players. While leading the two schools, referees dressed in all black.
Funabashi wore their pride jersey, a mix of dark blue with wide vertical white stripes, and dark blue shorts. While those who don't play use an orange training vest.
Meanwhile, Sobu High showed up in their jersey that didn't change from last season, a white jersey with green shorts. Several players who didn't start in the first half wore green vests. However, some also chose to wear a green sports jacket, usually used during PE class. Hachiman was one who preferred to wear a coat over a training vest.
The teams go hand in hand. While the core players walked in the forefront, the reserve players were behind them. The cheers from Funabashi supporters continued to echo as if Sobu High were their playground. However, there was a moment when the drums stopped playing.
The sudden change attracted the attention of the home team supporters. They looked at the Funabashi supporters with probing eyes. It felt like after they were at the peak of their euphoria, they were suddenly in a moment of silence. However, they didn't mourn anyone. It was more like they saw a ghost, a ghost that had disappeared from their historical glory.
"Isn't that Hikigaya-san?"
Yukino and Yui both turned to the opponent's bench. Their distance was pretty close. As long as they weren't whispering and no snare drums were playing, Yukino and Yui could hear what was being said.
"Those gloomy eyes, no doubt he's Hikigaya-san."
"What is he doing in Sobu?"
"I haven't been in touch with him since graduation. I thought he quit football?"
"Wait, does that mean we have to face Hikigaya-kun? Isn't it like we're facing a big deal?"
Before the two girls could hear the conversation end, the sounds of the marching bands erupted again. The supporters seemed to have recovered from the shock for a moment. Therefore, they could no longer hear the rest.
Hachiman, who was walking behind, also noticed the glances directed at him. He didn't care about that because his current focus was on the match. However, his concentration was slightly disturbed when he felt someone standing beside him.
Hachiman looked to find out who the culprit was. He found a tall boy with short blonde hair. The boy looked at him with an even expression. And Hachiman replied by looking at his eyes without the slightest flinch. After a few seconds of eye contact, both of them averted their eyes and stepped forward.
'So, Tsukishima will play in the second half too, huh?' Hachiman thought.
'Did Hikigaya not play in the first half? If so, that's a wonderful coincidence,' thought the blonde boy.
While the starting eleven continued to walk onto the field, the reserve players sat in their respective places. As for the two coaches, they approached each other to shake hands.
"Honestly, I wasn't surprised when Hikigaya refused to return to Funabashi. However, I was more surprised when I saw you become the head coach and bring the boy to your team, Hiratsuka-sensei," said Natsume—Funabashi's coach—while shaking Hiratsuka's hand.
"Please forgive me, Coach Natsume. I didn't mean to stab you in the back."
Natsume shook his head and replied, "My boys told me Hikigaya really doesn't want to return to Funabashi. If they can't persuade him, no one else will be able to."
Hiratsuka was speechless with her imperfect smile. She was a little uncomfortable because she didn't take Natsume's request seriously and kept Hachiman in Sobu instead. As if understanding Hiratsuka's anxiety, Natsume returned to saying something.
"Don't worry about it. It's normal for your scouted player to be cornered by another club. It's not something personal. In fact, I hope your decision is not just on your whim."
Hiratsuka smiled confidently.
"It's not. Just wait, and I'll prove it."
A long whistle interrupted their conversation. The two coaches walked to their respective benches. The old man—Funabashi's coach—immediately sat in his chair. On the other hand, Hiratsuka remained standing on the touchline, so she didn't lose her momentum in instructing her players.
"Flat 4-4-2, huh? Looks like Coach Natsume wants to try something new. Well, it's a friendly match, after all. If you want to dabble in a new formula, this is the time."
While Hiratsuka analysed while standing on the touchline, the people on the bench also had their own things to do. Iroha was busy with her papers while focused on watching the match. It was a new task for her, so she still didn't understand it. The same went for Yukino. Her sharp eyes watch the entire field like an eagle stalking its prey. Meanwhile, Yui was only entrusted with logistical work and did nothing. Unless someone needed her strength, she could be considered relatively spare.
"Hey, Hikki, it seems like many people from Funabashi recognise you," Yui whispered in Hachiman's ear.
The rotten-eyed boy glanced at Funabashi's bench. Some of them looked at Hachiman, who was sitting on the bench.
"Didn't I say that I used to play for Funabashi in middle school?" replied Hachiman.
"Eh? So, it's real, huh? I thought you were lying."
Hachiman rolled his eyes, bored. He had no intention of continuing the conversation, but Yui remained persistent.
"They also seem to have high admi—."
Before Yui finished her words, the drums sounded louder than before. She could hear cheers of joy from the Funabashi supporters. It made she turned her eyes to the pitch. And she saw the scene where the Sobu's keeper picked up the ball from his own goal.
It was a goal. They scored a quick goal in the fourth minute. The goalscorer was none other than last season's top scorer, Funabashi's number 10, Tripone.
"Don't mind! Don't mind!" Hiratsuka shouted from the touchline, "Next, don't be lured again by the opponent striker, and focus on intercepting to steal the ball! Kinoshita, we don't do man-marking! Check out your comrades to your left and right! Don't get out of a position like that! And midfielders, watch the space behind you. Don't leave the space between the lines too wide!"
Tripone (10) scored the goal in a fairly simple scheme. Tripone was a striker with a stocky body. Even though he was a Japanese-African crossbreed, his African traits were more dominant. That made many other defenders feel pressured when they had to face him. As such, reckless decisions to duel to win the ball from Tripone often occurred.
When a defender left his post, it left an opening that could be exposed. Actually, leaving the position to duels was natural, especially if a team applied strict man-marking. However, another player must quickly cover the room left if such a situation occurred. Usually, the player next to him would move sideways, or a midfielder would go down one line to fill the space left.
However, the response from the Sobu players was not that fast. As a result, when Kinoshita (3) left his post, Funabashi's number 9 immediately entered the free space. Seeing the gap, Tripone (10) sent a pass to Futahara (9). And they played a one-two, allowing Tripone (10) to break through and fire a powerful shot into the top corner.
Hachiman, who saw it from the bench, didn't change his expression.
'Futahara-senpai is always keen to find space in the opponent's back line. And the number 10 is not only big and powerful, but he is selfless. He has good effectiveness.'
Score 0-1 for the away team leading the game.
Several minutes had passed since the first goal. To be honest, Hachiman had expected that they would suffer a quick goal. However, he didn't think that Funabashi would tone down their intensity after they led the game. In fact, they let Sobu High play the ball and develop their game.
'Coach Natsume usually won't let his opponent get comfortable holding the ball. But what the heck is this? Funabashi's press wasn't as tight as I had imagined. What's more, he uses a flat 4-4-2? That really goes against his high press philosophy,' thought Hachiman.
Unlike 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1, which has a tight line spacing., the flat 4-4-2 formation could be said to allow quite a wide gap between the midfield and the front. That made the formation unsuitable for use as the high press and counter-press that Funabashi liked to do. In fact, the 4-4-2 formation was also not suitable for gaining supremacy in the midfield.
However, this formation provided more comfortable stability in the back and midfield due to the tighter distance between the lines. For this reason, flat 4-4-2 was more suitable for low and medium blocks. Meanwhile, on the attacking side, 4-4-2 was a formation that relied on direct balls and each player's speed. Because it was not suitable for playing the ball in the midfield for too long, the team that used this formation would lock up the opponent's defence as soon as possible and create chaos in the final third.
In England, this philosophy was better known as the kick and rush.
However, what Natsume did was different. The intensity of their attacks dropped drastically after they scored the first goal. Hiratsuka also noticed the oddity. It was nearly the 20th minute, but Funabashi didn't show their remarkable aggressivity.
'When I saw them go with 4-4-2, I thought they would play kick-and-rush style and lock us up in our starting third. I'm even getting ready to lower my block defence and convert it to 4-4-2 compactness.'
Hiratsuka glanced at coach Natsume to find out what the old man was thinking.
'Never mind locking us up. Instead, they gradually lowered their own block of defence. Are they aiming for a counterattack?'
Hiratsuka only gave instructions to keep the shape afloat and anticipate counterattacks. However, she gave no specific directions when the Sobu team had the ball like now. It wasn't like Hiratsuka had no ideas in her head. she had it. However, she wanted to see how far the team's creativity she inherited from the previous coach was in building attacks. And from there, she would evaluate it.
The ball rolled from one foot to another foot. Hidenori (6) kept the ball calm. He held the ball in the middle to draw out Funabashi's players. However, they were very disciplined. As such, Hidenori (6) just flowed the ball to the left, towards Hiroomi (7) on the flank. Hiroomi immediately pierced forward after he received the ball, attracting Funabashi's right flank and pulling towards him.
When the two Funabashi players started marking him, Hiroomi tried to keep the ball. Until he saw his comrade, Motoharu (4), had approached him from the back. Hiroomi swiftly sent a pass to Motoharu (4). Even though he was no longer in possession of the ball, Hiroomi (7) wasn't necessarily quiet. He ran through the back of Sobu's number 4.
It was a move to hit a one-two. Motoharu (4), who realised Hirromi's (7) goal, sent the ball to the right into the half-space area. Hiroomi (7) well received the pass. However, Hiroomi didn't want to hold on to the ball for too long because some Funabashi players started to press him hard at his side.
Then, he kicked the ball and sent a reasonably fast low pass to the right side of their formation. Hiroomi targeted Tobe (2), who was in the free space. Tobe was getting ready to receive the ball. He had even positioned his feet well. However, the ball that was heading towards him was too fast. That made his control imperfect and sent the ball bouncing a metre away.
Unfortunately, one of Funabashi's players immediately stole the ball when he saw the imperfect control. The ball has changed ownership. Funabashi's left fullback, number 26, immediately overlapped. Seeing that, the player who stole the ball gave him a through pass.
Tobe tried to recover. He tried to grab the ball from number 26's feet. However, the number 26 pushed the ball back slowly using his heel. That tricked Tobe and slowed his speed for a second. Meanwhile, number 26 just ignored him and kept running forward.
Meanwhile, the ball pushed back was immediately greeted by the Funabashi player, who was alert. He swiftly gave a pass to the middle, towards their captain, Tokitou (7). The captain received it well, but he didn't let the ball delay on his feet too long. Not only because Sobu's number 17, Aoyama, had marked him but because he didn't want to lose their momentum.
As such, he sent back a through pass to number 26. It was a quick pass. Which led to a sprint race between number 26 from Funabashi against number 13 from Sobu, Narita.
Seeing Narita coming out of his post to pick up the ball, Hiratsuka immediately issued an instruction.
"TOBE! ENTER THE CENTRAL AND FILL THE ROOM NARITA LEFT!"
It satisfied Hiratsuka when the orange-haired boy followed her lead. However, she couldn't calm down when she saw the sprinter on the left side of Funabashi's attack.
Funabashi's number 26 was a fullback, while Narita was a centre-back. Even though they both had 'back' on their posts, both had different main attributes. Fullbacks tended to be faster than centre-backs because they were required to help the attacking phase. Therefore, it was clear who the winner was in the sprint race.
Number 26 didn't want to waste opportunities by dribbling it any further. As soon as the ball was within reach of his left foot, he immediately swept to the right. It was an immeasurable crossing. However, the ball made it to the penalty box. Unfortunately, it was still a lousy cross because the ball went to the far side of the goal. Even so, Tripone tried to reach it by jumping as high as possible.
Tripone was confident he could still reach the ball, but knew he couldn't score from such a tight angle. That made him decide to head in the opposite direction from the goal. Although he didn't see if any of his comrades were there, he could tell that their counterattack had been remarkably fast and well-organised just now. That way, he was sure his colleagues had filled key spots in the penalty box.
The ball that Tripone headed fell freely into an empty place. However, Funabashi was used to playing counter-press, requiring them to be alert to second balls or rebounds. Number 12 from Funabashi had anticipated that. He swiftly drove to the place with the highest possibility of the falling ball.
And without further ado, he immediately kicked it into the right corner of Sobu High's goal.
Karasawa, the Sobu's goalkeeper, had jumped in the right direction. His reflex was arguably good because he reacted well to the shot. Unfortunately, the ball hit Tobe's leg and bounced off the opposite side of what Karasawa had anticipated.
And with that, Funabashi's second goal had come from a lightning-fast counterattack, which sent the Sobu defence into disarray.
—OoOoO—
The locker room felt so dejected when the first half was over. After Funabashi scored the second goal, they kept their gameplay going. Funabashi let Sobu High had the ball, and they would gradually lower their defence block to continue to pull Sobu High up. With their defensive compactness, they waited for their opponent to make a mistake. After that, Funabashi quickly destroyed Sobu High with their quick counterattack when the opportunity arose.
The first half ended with a 0-4 in favour of Funabashi. What's worse, the goals they scored all started from slight mistakes made by Sobu. It made their self-confidence drop dramatically. It was, ostensibly, Funabashi trying to send a pretty obvious message that they would destroy them through every recklessness they threw at them.
"Do not think about it! We still have the second half! We still have enough time to fix it," said Hiratsuka, trying to cheer them up.
The woman stood before her students, who almost all sat down listlessly. Hiratsuka looked at the faces of the players one by one, confirming the morality of the youths. She tried to dive into their emotions. And just as she imagined, the flames in their eyes had almost disappeared. Of the eleven players, only Nase Hiroomi, Aoyama Ryoutarou, and Tabata Hidenori were still in good condition.
'They are in pretty good shape. Especially for Nase. He played very well and exceeded my expectations.'
Hiratsuka then returned her attention to the dejected players.
"Yukinoshita, can I see the notes during the first half?" asked Hiratsuka.
Hiratsuka wasn't the only woman in the room. Beside her, loyally accompanying her, Isshiki Iroha. Two additional girls, Yukino and Yui, had prepared logistics on the bench before the game started.
Yukino handed over her observations to Hiratsuka. And the Japanese literature teacher scanned it.
'Funabashi used a flat 4-4-2. That said, they were playing a game that went against their identity. In addition, their attacks were more focused through both flanks, while the midfield fully functions as a link between the two. Their flanks were quite ineffective when I changed my defensive phase to 5-3-2 to dampen their counterattack. Even so, out of the six big chances, four of them were goals.'
What Yukino did was actually quite simple. In short, she was just taking minutes during the game. She recorded all important events without exception. However, what made it difficult was how she could turn the reports into easily digestible data.
Actually, Yukino knew nothing about football. She understood the outline, but she didn't go deep into it. Simply put, Yukino's knowledge was limited to football being played with the feet, and the ball was round, not an egg-like one played with hands. Otherwise, Yukino was like a kindergartner just learning how to read.
She learned about football instantly when Hiratsuka asked the volunteer club to help her with this match. She researched it independently, to the point where she barely slept for two days.
"We will try to be more proactive in the second half."
Hiratsuka's statement surprised most people, including the captain, Hayama Hayato, who then voiced his concern.
"Sensei, won't that just make us suffer even more?"
"Playing more proactively doesn't mean an all-out attack. It's just we will better organise our defence and attack. Simply put, we will improve our transition in the second half to be more effective."
Hiratsuka's explanation didn't stop there.
"Most likely, Funabashi will play with their signature gameplay, combining high press, counter-press, and direct ball. If we don't improve our transition, we will become their butt."
Everyone fell silent. No one made a sound. They were still suffering from a mental shock after suffering a heavy blow in the first round. And hearing that their opponent hadn't brought out their best playing style weighed more on their shoulders.
"No need to think about it, guys. It's just a friendly match. Even if we concede 10 goals, it won't make our ranking worse," Nase Hiroomi said casually. "Well, maybe my sister will be angry if the results turn out to be worse."
"What Nase said is true. A friendly match is just a friendly match. I don't really care about the score. What I want to achieve in this match is as much stock as possible to enter the league," added Hiratsuka.
The teacher felt lucky for Hiroomi. The third-year student, who always displayed a carefree expression, could break the ice. After all, Hiratsuka was a new coach. Without players with a character like Hiroomi's, it would be difficult for her to overcome the locker room atmosphere alone.
"Funabashi will probably use their best formation, 4-2-3-1. Therefore, we will serve them using 4-1-2-3."
Before continuing her session, Hiratsuka drew a picture of the formation she thought Funabashi would use and the tactics her team would use.
[https-:/-/-imgur.-com/37ZliPs]
*P.S: The goalkeeper's shirt number in the picture should be (1), not (13)
"However, they have a reactive type of play. In this sense, their difference in each game is how they use their block pressing. Funabashi tends to use high-line defence when facing teams with an open play. And based on the first half, they tried something new and used a medium block to face our defensive play."
Some might think that Funabashi was a defensive team, as their ball possession was lower when playing against a team of their level like Tokyo Esperion. However, judging from the number of chances created, you could tell that Funabashi was also dominating.
So, what made ball possession and created chances inversely? The answer was their playing style. Funabashi was not adopted tiki-taka or total football style. They were unlike Barcelona or Ajax, who were consistently superior in ball possession. They also didn't carry the parking-the-bus style like Jose Mourinho or Diego Simeone.
Funabashi's style was direct ball and counter-press. Counter-press itself has another, sexier name, namely gegenpressing. In other words, their style of play was more similar to Germany coaches.
The essence of this tactic was that all players were required to press with high intensity and high-line defence. It didn't only aim to grab the ball as quickly as possible and recover when you lose the ball. The main objective was to force the opponent to make mistakes when they possessing the ball. That was much different from the parking-the-bus, which was just waiting for the opponent to make a mistake.
"What we fought in the first round was Funabashi, who was trying new things."
While saying that, Hiratsuka circled several posts on Funabashi's formation and drew dotted lines. It was an analysis of the pattern of how their opponent would act.
"So, I believe they were going to press us from the start of the second half, just like their signature playing style. Moreover, we will take the kick-off later. Because of that, we will bring them to our defence. We will build up attacks from the fullback side."
Hiratsuka started pouring all the ideas she had onto the whiteboard.
"With the ball in our fullback, they will immediately press one of their wings up to steal it. Then, their AMF will shift to the side to cover up the space we can use to feed a progression to the midfield. Meanwhile, their only striker will mark our centre-back."
Hiratsuka then marked the infield area.
"That way, they will force us to pass to the middle. However, that's what I want. That way, their two DMFs will interfere and force us to make mistakes. From this logic, we can create an overload situation on one side of the field. If we play the ball on the right side, the left Fullback will enter the half-space, parallel to the DMF. So, our DMF can shift to the right to receive the pass. The RWF will go down one line but must maintain width."
[https-:/-/-imgur.-com/WXCwHGZ]
Feeling that the board was full of scribbles, Hiratsuka turned it over and used the other side that was still empty. However, Hiratsuka saw Hayama Hayato, who raised a hand before she could continue her doodle.
"If like that, didn't we leave some posts vacant instead?"
"That's why I said you have to keep your width. When one fullback is in line with the DMF, the CM must be prepared to become a bouncer so the fullback can quickly overlap. And when one wing forward goes down, one of the CMs has to go up behind the striker. The key is paying attention and filling in the empty spaces while keeping the distance between players. That way, from a 4-1-2-3 shape, it will change to a 3-2-3-2 when we are being pressed. That will make it easier for us to create situations of overloading on the various sides needed."
[https-:/-/-imgur.-com/GSt7Pob]*3-2-3-2 shape
[https-:/-/-imgur.-com/02En9wW]
Having finished drawing the adaptive formation changes, Hiratsuka drew a line diagonally upwards. Hachiman, who saw that narrowed his eyes. He was pretty familiar with the patterns Hiratsuka had drawn.
After finishing drawing the diagonal line, Hiratsuka turned to her players.
"As you can see. Our pattern is quite simple. The counter-press, or gegenpressing, that Funabashi uses does look horror. However, each tactic always has advantages and disadvantages. The drawback of gegenpressing is that all their players are too active in pressing. This makes it easier for players to gather in one area. We can take advantage of this by playing a switch play style."
The basic idea of switch play was quite simple, shifting the ball from one flank to another. This gameplay was very common and widely used to dismantle the opponent's defence line. However, this simple tactic was once conjured up by Zinedine Zidane into deadly gameplay. In fact, Klopp's Liverpool, famous for their gegenpressing, had to be forced to submit helplessly before Zidane's Madrid.
After explaining the changes in tactics, Hiratsuka looked at the clock on the wall. There wasn't much time, only a few minutes before the second half started.
"That being said, I will announce some changes in the second half. Hikigaya (8) will be stepping in to replace Ennoshita (10)."
Ennoshita pulled out a breath. He knew he would be subbed, given his messed-up game.
"For the back line. Tadakuni Miyu (15) replaces Narita (13). And since I'll be using fullbacks, Yoshitake (5) will sub in to replace Kinoshita (3). Then Tobe (2) will fill his original position as a right back."
The same expression as Ennoshita was also printed on Narita's and Kinoshita's faces. However, that's what sports were like. If you didn't perform to match the coach, you should be prepared to be subbed.
"Nase, you will fill the LWF post."
"Roger that," Hiroomi replied casually.
Hiratsuka nodded and continued, "As for the RWF, Tsubaki Daisuke (14) replaces Sera Kyouhei (11)."
Hiratsuka's last words caused confusion and dissatisfaction among the players concerned. They all initially thought that Hiratsuka's substitution was quite reasonable until, in the end, she instead brought in a Tusbaki Daisuke.
"Sensei, I mean, coach, what is this? Why am I being pulled out? And… did you put Tsubaki in to fill the RWF? I mean, he is a damn fullback!" protests Sobu's number 11, Sera.
"I understand your complaint. However, what I need in this formation is a player who has the attributes of an attacker but can also help defend," Hiratsuka replied calmly.
"But still—."
Sera couldn't finish his complaint because Hiratsuka cut him off.
"There is no time to argue. I still have much to say. If you have any problems, we'll talk later."
Hiratsuka's mouth felt bitter when she had to spit out those heartless words. However, she had to do it. Because that was her job as a head coach.
However, some still doubt her decision. Even the player in question, Tsubaki Daisuke himself, had no confidence in Hiratsuka's choice.
"Hikigaya, I know your role at Funabashi back then was pure as a deep-lying playmaker because Tsukishima would always cover you. However, this time you don't have him. Your job is as a single pivot. I demand a lot from you for playmaking and maintaining being the last filter before the opponent reaches our back line. Besides that, I want you to enter the half-space area more often, whether on the right or left. The success of the switch play style will really depend on you."
Hachiman, who had only been warming his shoes using a hair dryer all this time, listened carefully to what Hiratsuka wanted from his capacity as a player.
Hachiman didn't immediately respond to Hiratsuka's demands. He read Hiratsuka's scribbles on the whiteboard and imagined a simulated match in his brain. He sorted the various moves and grouped who and what he could best do to improve the quality of the game.
Although Hiratsuka had a lot of headache-inducing demands, strangely enough, it didn't bother Hachiman at all. On the contrary, it was that it made his blood boil. It was the challenge he was looking for. It was what he yearned to improve his abilities.
"Do I also have to often enter the final third?" asked Hachiman, asking for confirmation.
"I want you to be active in the half-space area. However, I won't forbid you if you want to advance to the final third, as long as you don't neglect the main tasks I give you."
Hachiman nodded slowly.
"Got it."
Hiratsuka exhaled in satisfaction at Hachiman's reply. She closed her eyes, imagining the imaginary game spinning in her brain. The clockwork that kept moving and making sounds became a metronome to synchronise the rhythm of her brain and heart. Finally, her eyes opened, and she came to a determination.
"Last but not least, keep your ears wide open," Hiratsuka said and paused for a moment, "We'll score a quick goal in the second half."
Hiratsuka immediately shifted the whiteboard and pulled out another one. She returned to scribbling on the milky whiteboard. Every line she made, made her players give out pale faces in unison. Their mouths gaped like idiots. Even Hachiman, who had quite a lot of experience, couldn't help but label Hiratsuka as a madwoman. Hachiman had gotten used to Hiratsuka's absurdity. However, her madness this time was on a whole different level. It's like nothing could suppress Hiratsuka Shizuka's wildness.
However, the woman paid them no heed. Hiratsuka only focused on pouring out her ideas and letting her players challenge themselves to make them come true.
"Sensei, isn't that me? Are you seriously asking me to do that?" asked Tsubaki, who had been silent all along, holding back the behaviour of his new coach.
"It's true. Hikigaya and Tsubaki will be the key actors. Hayama and Nase will put the finishing touches. With three touches, let's surprise them."
"Still, is that even possible? Will it work?" asked Hachiman.
Hiratsuka smiled broadly. Confidence radiates with great intensity from her.
"It will. Just place your bet on me."
—To Be Continued—
Author Note: Happy Ramadhan for me and my fellow Muslims. I almost drank a glass of water this morning because I forgot today is the first day of Ramadhan.
As you can see, there are only 12 Sobu players here, including Hachiman. So, there are still some spots leave and I'm open if you guys suggest someone. The conditions remain the same, I don't want characters that are too OP to the point that they overshadow Hachiman's progress in this story.
Anyway, this really was a tough chapter to write, to be honest. I had the ideas in my head, but putting it into words was really hard. Moreover, I had to overhaul the entire contents of the chapter because the draft I wrote before was really ridiculous. That's why, I hope the images link I attached here will help you to grasp what I want to convey. However, I'm so sorry for the inconveniences because you need to remove the "-". I mean, it sucks we don't have feature to attach pictures right away.
That's all from me. Please support me by subscribe me on "patre0n.-com-/-akadaka" (please replace "0" to "o", and remove the "-". Once again, sorry for the inconveniences because this site blocked the word and I can't provide the link). I won't force you and I'm still continuing the story although you don't subscribe me. But it'll help me a lot if you willing to click subscribe button on my paare0n. Anyway, See you and stay safe.