NOVEL NEXT chapter 114
114 – World Cup Review
114
*As the author mentioned earlier, I’d like to clarify to avoid misunderstandings. Yesterday’s episode showed Joo Ji-tae’s mistake, which was not the same as ‘humiliation.’ Gerhard was mocked for his ‘humiliation,’ but it was because of his desperate attempt to get up after falling, whereas Joo Ji-tae lost balance and had the ball stolen, but he didn’t fall or make a desperate attempt to get up. Please refer to the author’s notes for more details.
* * *
『South Korea, a disappointing loss in the semifinals』
『Joo Ji-tae, who was judged to have lost in the semifinals, where will the Golden Ball go?』
『He fought well, but lost! Joo Ji-tae, the best player of the 2034 World Cup, showed an impressive performance!』
『The match was neck and neck, but the result was a disappointing loss. The intense confrontation between Joo Ji-tae and Fernando Alvarez!』
Joo Ji-tae and Jo Jae-sin’s agency representative, Jung Seon-woo, browsed through the sports news.
The World Cup fever, which had been burning fiercely, didn’t subside even after the semifinal loss. The third-place match, which had a strong event-like atmosphere, was held with unprecedented attention, especially towards Joo Ji-tae.
In the third-place match against France, Joo Ji-tae made an incredible display, covering both offense and defense, and took revenge on France.
His performance was so impressive that it was comparable to Hong Myung-bo’s popularity after the 2002 World Cup.
In the end, they achieved a third-place finish, the highest record in Asian history, and Joo Ji-tae’s performance was outstanding, earning him the title of ‘national hero.’
Now, even if he commits a minor crime, it would be overlooked, saying ‘he can do that.’
Of course, if he really did it, he would fall from grace immediately. It’s more dramatic to fall from a higher place than a lower one. It took only 10 years for Hong Myung-bo, the 2002 World Cup hero, to become ‘Hong-ttong-bo.’
‘But that’s for later. Now is a good time to enjoy success.’
So, Jung Seon-woo decided to savor the current success.
Now is the peak of Joo Ji-tae’s popularity and status. If not now, when will he feel this way again?
But Jung Seon-woo’s expectations were shattered just a few days later.
“Representative team!! The World Cup awards have been announced!!!”
“So? Now that it’s settled, let’s take a look. …But why is it such a mess? What’s going on?”
“Joo Ji-tae and Jo Jae-shin have won the award, and…”
“Award? That’s a given. Everyone expected it, so what’s the big deal… Wait a minute.”
Something flashed through Jung Seon-woo’s mind as he sat lazily in his chair.
Jung Seon-woo suddenly jumped up from his seat and shouted urgently.
“What award? What did we receive?!”
As he hastily opened the report handed to him by the staff, Jung Seon-woo quickly scanned the contents.
[ 2034 Spain-Portugal-Morocco World Cup Results ]
Champion: Germany
Runner-up: Uruguay
Third place: South Korea
Fourth place: France
The championship title went to Germany.
In the final match against Uruguay, Germany was shaken by Fernando Alvarez’s outstanding performance in the first and second halves, but they persevered and entered extra time, where they scored two goals and secured their victory.
With this win, Germany’s total World Cup championships increased from 4 to 5, and their total final appearances reached 9. Naturally, their runner-up titles also reached 4. This elevated Germany to the top spot in World Cup career rankings, surpassing Brazil.
Of course, this didn’t matter much to Jung Seon-woo—
“No way. In Germany, there’s a meme going around that Joo Ji-tae and Jo Jae-shin helped Uruguay win the championship, so this is a big deal. Can we use this?”
It was somewhat, very slightly important.
[ World Cup Awards ]
Golden Ball: Joo Ji-tae
Silver Ball: Fernando Alvarez
Bronze Ball: Maxim Goretzka
“Golden Ball?! It’s not Fernando Alvarez, but our treasure, Joo Ji-tae?!”
Jung Seon-woo let out a loud shout.
He hadn’t expected it, but after losing to Uruguay, he had given up on his expectations. But naturally, he had thought Fernando Alvarez would receive it… Golden Ball? The World Cup Golden Ball?!
“We thought the curse of the winning team not receiving the Golden Ball had ended in 2022…!”
Starting from the 1998 World Cup, where France won but Brazil’s Ronaldo received the Golden Ball, until the 2022 World Cup, the winning team had not produced a Golden Ball winner. In 2010, it was even worse, with Uruguay’s Diego Forlan, a semifinalist, receiving the Golden Ball.
This strange curse seemed to have been broken in the 2022 World Cup, where Lionel Messi, who led Argentina to victory, received the Golden Ball… but Joo Ji-tae was even more exceptional.
The staff quickly added an explanation to Jung Seon-woo’s stunned expression.
“I don’t know the details, but according to the experts, there was a difference in overall influence during the game… They say.”
“Overall influence…”.
Fernando Alvarez was undoubtedly an amazing player.
At just 21 years old, he had become Real Madrid’s core player, scoring 32 goals this season and providing 11 assists.
He was a complete attacker who could do everything, from scoring to assisting, to building up attacks. However, Fernando Alvarez tended to focus only on the attacking side.
Unlike Messi, who didn’t participate in defense, Fernando Alvarez minimized his defensive involvement and only exploded in attack situations.
On the other hand, Joo Ji-tae was involved in every aspect of the game, from defense to attack, and was truly a key player for Korea.
“Well… Joo Ji-tae wasn’t lacking in attack either. He scored 4 goals and 3 assists, and as a center-back, he was also responsible for the team’s buildup, so it’s possible.”
Below the Golden Ball award list, Jung Seon-woo gazed at the Golden Boot award list, nodding his head unconsciously.
Golden Boot: Fernando Alvarez – 8 goals
Silver Boot: Jo Jae-shin – 6 goals
Bronze Boot: Joo Ji-tae – 4 goals
It was only natural that the Golden Boot, awarded to the top scorer, would go to Fernando Alvarez.
This was an objective indicator that had been expected from the start.
However, the fact that the Bronze Boot winner, Joo Ji-tae, was a center-back was… Well, it was expected, but still, it was amazing.
Looking at the objective indicators, it was astonishing to see a player who could do everything from the front to the back.
What kind of monster is this, who can do everything on his own?
After that, there were various records, including the Golden Glove and Fair Play, but what caught Jung Seon-woo’s attention was the Best 11 section.
The 2034 World Cup Best 11, announced by Castrol Index and Fantasy Football, was based on a 4-4-2 formation, and from Korea, Joo Ji-tae and Jo Jae-shin were selected.
As an agent, it was a joy to have two Korean players selected, especially since they were both only 19 years old.
“What the… At 19, he’s already won the World Cup Golden Ball and Bronze Boot, and is part of the Best 11… Where did this genius come from?”
Jo Jae-shin was also a genius, selected for the World Cup Silver Boot and Best 11 at 19, but there was a difference in their brightness.
If Joo Ji-tae was the sun, then Jo Jae-shin was… a small sun?
Although he didn’t make it to the World Cup Dream Team, it was still an incredible achievement for a 19-year-old player. This was a part of their career where they needed to build up their objective indicators.
Anyway, the important thing was that these two players were part of Jung Seon-woo’s top agency.
Jung Seon-woo was lost in happy thoughts.
* * *
Incheon International Airport was packed with people, bustling with excitement.
There were so many people that the airport’s internal security was insufficient, and the nearby police department had to be mobilized.
Of course, this caused inconvenience to the airport staff and passengers, but no one could complain or speak out publicly.
Why?
Because today was the day the World Cup heroes returned home.
It was only natural that the national heroes, the World Cup team members, would receive a grand welcome.
The people gathered here were enthusiastic fans who had come to cheer on the team, and some had even come to the airport to welcome them in person.
“He’s here! He’s here!!”
“Is he coming out? Has he entered the arrival gate?”
“Wow! It’s Coach Marizio! Mar-baji! Mar-baji!”
“Ah, sir, please don’t push.”
“Excuse me, can you move over a bit?”
The return of the World Cup heroes, who had achieved a historic 3rd place finish, was indeed grand from the start.
“I’m Kim Woo-hwan from World News! What was the driving force behind your good performance?”
“Coach Marizio, there’s a lot of praise for Joo Ji-tae’s shift, what was your thought process behind your tactics”
“Oh Seung-hwan, there’s been rumors of your transfer from AS Roma, do you plan to return to Italy? Or—”
“What do you think about the riots between Italy and Brazil after the match—”
Among the flood of questions, there were occasionally sharp knives hidden.
“Joo Ji-tae, you lost to Fernando Alvarez in the quarterfinals against Uruguay! What impact will this have on your rivalry in the future—”
“Some people have criticized you for being too focused on yourself and only performing well in certain teams—”
Despite some awkwardness, the successful World Cup performance meant that the welcoming ceremony could end on a high note.
“You’ve worked hard, guys. You’ve had a tough season.
“Ah, yeah. You’re right. We’ve had a hard time too.”
“It was tough… Can we finally take a break now?”
However, the vacation for Joo Ji-tae and Jo Jae-sin had yet to arrive.
“Joo Ji-tae, Jo Jae-sin.”
It was Jung Seon-woo, the representative of Top Agency, who had come with a bunch of things.
“Long time no see, Representative.”
“Haha… You don’t look too happy to see me. You look exhausted.”
“I’m a bit tired, but it’s okay. It’s because of the transfer, right?”
No matter how hard it was, they couldn’t avoid talking about the transfer.
Joo Ji-tae and Jo Jae-sin sat down seriously.
“Of course, we need to talk about the transfer. But today, I want to talk about something else before that.”
“What is it?”
Jung Seon-woo pulled out a report he had prepared.
“When the tide comes in, you’ve got to ride the wave. Let’s take this opportunity to grab some CFs and variety shows.”