NOVEL NEXT chapter 101
101 – quantum mechanics
101
The Netherlands national football team has many nicknames.
Oranje, Clockwork Orange, Holland (not to be confused with Holland), and The Flying Dutchmen, a nickname also used for a famous player from Manchester United.
Among these various nicknames, the most famous one is arguably “Orange Legion”.
The origin of this nickname dates back to the 1974 West Germany World Cup, derived from the orange color symbolizing the House of Orange-Nassau, which rules the Netherlands.
At that time, the Netherlands national team, led by the two geniuses Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff, showcased a new style of modern football that shook the world.
They pushed aside the role-based philosophy that dominated the football world and established Total Football as the foundation of modern football.
Under the leadership of the two immortal geniuses, the Netherlands national team reached the World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978, stunning football fans worldwide.
It’s hard to imagine now, but back then, the Netherlands was a team that struggled to even qualify for the World Cup, let alone reach the finals.
From a team that couldn’t even pass the European qualifiers in the 50s and 60s, they achieved a miracle by reaching the World Cup finals twice in the 70s.
This marked the beginning of the Netherlands’ football history and the start of their journey to becoming a FIFA World Cup third-place team with a ranking of 8th.
Of course, their three runner-up finishes also made them a sacrificial lamb with a peculiar record of losing all three finals.
However, this couldn’t tarnish the Netherlands’ strength.
Once they qualified for the World Cup, advancing to the group stage was a given, and reaching the semifinals was almost a certainty.
Moreover, they boasted an impressive record against Asian teams, with a 100% winning rate in seven matches, earning them the title of Europe’s top Asian killer.
“This is a match between the Asian giant killer, South Korea, and Europe’s top Asian killer, the Netherlands.”
But that wasn’t the reason for the immense attention focused on this game.
No matter how good they were as European or Asian killers, that was just a story known only to themselves.
The real reason for the enormous interest in this game was—
“The Netherlands’ starting lineup is: goalkeeper Frrenki Gafo, defenders—”
Vincent van Basten, the Netherlands’ new star who ranked 3rd in the FIFA-sanctioned CIES’ 23-and-under player market value ranking,
“And next is South Korea’s starting lineup: goalkeeper Choi Kyu-hwan, defenders Kim Tae-jin, Joo Ji-tae, Jung Chae-geun, and Go Tae-ho—”
Joo Ji-tae, ranked 5th, and,
“Finally, Cho Jae-shin will take the field.”
Cho Jae-shin, ranked 7th, was playing.
This was a match that passionate football fans and scouts couldn’t miss, with three players from the CIES’ 23-and-under player market value top 10 ranking facing off.
* * *
＜ 2034 World Cup C Group 1st Match ＞
South Korea : Netherlands
Morocco Marrakech Stade de Marrakech
[South Korea 4-5-1]
FW : Cho Jae-shin
AM : Cha Jun-sang / Kim Seong-ho / Na Si-hyun
CM : Kim Soo-han / Noh Han-ho
DF : Kim Tae-jin / Joo Ji-tae / Jung Chae-geun / Go Tae-ho
GK : Choi Kyu-hwan
[Netherlands 4-3-3]
FW : Vincent van Basten / Andries de Jong / Frrenki Lang
MF : Matthijs Malen / Steven van Bart / Stefan de Vrij
DF: Steven Blint / Davey De Riet / Ryan Pasvil / Brian De Lun
GK: Franky Gapho
This year, marking his third year as the head coach of the South Korean national team, Marizio Del Neri, carefully groomed his beard more than usual this morning.
“Hmm… looks good.”
Of course, his beard did.
For some reason, his beard, which was exceptionally well-groomed today, gave him great satisfaction.
For a stylish Italian in his late 40s, what’s more important than—perhaps even more so than the game results—is his beard.
Marizio stroked his beard with satisfaction as he gazed at the Dutch players.
“They’re relaxed. They’re overflowing with confidence.”
The confidence of a team that’s ranked 8th in the World Cup and is a powerhouse in the Netherlands.
But how long would that confidence last?
Marizio’s gaze turned to his own players.
The tense faces of the Korean players, in contrast to the relaxed Dutch players, were… still the same even after three years, but two players in particular caught his attention.
Ju Ji-tae and Jo Jae-sin, who looked similar to Europeans but were distinctly Asian, stood out.
The two of them possessed faces that were charming enough to captivate even the discerning eyes of Europeans, including the demanding Italian coach.
But what’s important isn’t their faces.
“Jae-sin, that kid’s got a lot of potential. He can’t be expected to have delicate control with that kind of build. Well, it’s okay. The other one looks decent, at least.”
Ju Ji-tae, the core of the Korean team, looked as calm as ever, even on the eve of his World Cup debut.
No, he looked even more relaxed than usual.
A player who’s only 18-19 years old, and yet he’s this calm on the eve of his World Cup debut!
Ju Ji-tae’s attitude gave Marizio confidence.
“Preparations are over. All that’s left is victory.”
As a strategist, Marizio Del Neri pursued an aggressive and dominant style of football.
To implement this philosophy, he needed high-quality players.
The most important thing was quick judgment, followed by the ability to exchange precise passes, and then the stamina to keep moving non-stop, and…
But such players were rare.
Many coaches pursued the style of football showcased by Barcelona and Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, but few could actually implement it.
Was it because of a lack of coaching ability?
That was true, but more importantly, it was extremely difficult to gather players who could implement such tactics.
Marizio was not an idealist.
While he had a clear philosophy, he was a pragmatist who knew how to compromise with reality.
That’s why he accepted the offer to coach the Korean national team and knew how to balance reality and ideals.
But if he could implement his ideals… then wouldn’t that be even more ideal?
The moment Marizio recognized Ju Ji-tae’s skills and talent, he realized something.
If Ju Ji-tae were 11 players, he could fully implement his ideals on the ground.
But Ju Ji-tae was only one person.
Then—
“Even if I can’t make another player like Ju Ji-tae, I can make it seem like Ju Ji-tae is multiple players.”
In other words, the “quantum mechanics” of Ju Ji-tae.
The game began with the referee’s whistle and the Netherlands’ kickoff. Soon, Ju Ji-tae’s instructions began to resound loudly on the ground.
* * *
The match began with the Netherlands’ kickoff.
From the start, Korea applied strong pressure.
“Stick to it! Be careful!”
“Pass it back!”
From central striker Andries de Jong to midfielder Steven van Bart, and then to center-back Davy de Ligt.
Despite the Netherlands’ passes reaching their final defense, Korea didn’t relent on the pressure.
“Hey, Korean friends. Isn’t this too much from the start?”
“Calm down, it’s dangerous!”
In response, the Netherlands’ movements became calm.
“Take it easy! Pass it back to Fränki!”
“Stephan, return it!”
As they leisurely passed the ball from the back and slowly moved up, Korea’s pressure seemed futile.
“Who can calm down these crazy guys?”
“Hey, Vincent! Come down and receive it!”
Strong pressure can exert significant influence on its own.
The Netherlands players began to feel frustrated from a certain point.
“Is it stronger than expected?”
“It’s quite organized, isn’t it?”
In soccer, pressure doesn’t work just because one player is enthusiastic. As the old saying goes, “The ball is faster than the player,” so even if one player works hard, it’s useless if the opponent passes the ball.
In other words, modern soccer pressure is a team’s organizational strength.
In this regard, Korea’s organizational strength was quite impressive, which meant that the pressure on the Netherlands was stronger than expected.
Soon, the Netherlands players were able to find the reason behind Korea’s impressive organization.
“Suhan, go in! Seongho, left! Hanho, Stephan, mark number 15 correctly!!”
“Damn it. Was that guy the problem?”
It was none other than number 5, Joo Jitae.
Under Joo Jitae’s commanding voice, which echoed loudly across the ground, the Korean players moved in perfect sync, exerting pressure that was quite threatening to the Netherlands players.
“Be careful! Korea’s attacking line is quite fast, so if you get caught in the middle, it’s dangerous!”
The Korean players, led by Jo Jaesin, were known for their speed.
If they lost the ball in the back, they would immediately create a critical scoring opportunity.
“We need to pull up the line. Move forward! Don’t stay in the back!”
“Jaesin, block the pass! Taeho, keep sticking to him!!”
The players moved here and there according to the shouts of Netherlands captain Steven van Bart and Joo Jitae.
However—
“Ugh!”
“Foul! Hey, hey, referee! Foul!!”
The Netherlands’ notorious fouls began to erupt, and the ball slowly but surely advanced.