Chapter 309 Qualifier finals XXVI
Although those words weighed heavy on his hearts, yet still Hiro couldn't bring himself to open his mouth. Neither could he bring himself to face his manager at this moment. Covering his eyes with his hands, he continued to remain silent.
'Why are you making it more harder for me to leave?' Hiro thought to himself while gritting his teeth.
Instead of providing him a sensation of comfort, right now those words of comfort had quite the opposite effect on him. They were more like harsh winter wind instead of a refreshing spring breeze to him.
However despite experiencing Hiro's unresponsiveness, manager Haruki didn't mind Hiro's attitude. Observing him closely from the shadows, he knew Hiro's situation the best. Haruki knew that Hiro wasn't trying to disrespect him by staying silent nor was he being stubborn. It's just that right now, he was having a really hard time accepting the outcome.
Thus, Haruki didn't probe this matter any further and decided it would be best to let Hiro rest. Signaling the medics to take Hiro away, Haruki then continued with a stern look on his face, "Rest assured Hiro, we'll definitely win this match"
After that while taking advantage of the momentary stoppage, Haruki then began to reorganize his thoughts, 'Previously even though we were playing with two playmakers, given the presence of Hiro it wouldn't be unfair to say that Yutaka was pushed into a secondary playmaker position. But now in absence of Hiro, will he be able to fill the gaps left behind by Hiro?'
Pondering about the gap left behind by Hiro, Haruki's gaze drifted towards Yutaka who seemed quite anxious as of this moment. Looking at that frail looking boy who was sweating profusely, Haruki began to have second thoughts, 'Will he be able to carry the burden?'
But as soon as he had those thoughts, he immediately discarded it as well. He knew that that kid was talented, just that his mentality wasn't up to par. Skill-wise he had absolutely no doubts that Yutaka could fill in the shoes of Hiro.
It's not that there weren't any other playmakers in the team either. However when comparing them to Hiro or Yutaka, they were rather bland. Mostly those other playmakers in the team lacked creativity like Hiro or Yutaka. And having another playmaker at this point was pretty much meaningless as well since they were already in the lead and the game was also nearing it's end.
It would be better to bring in defensive player instead of an offensive player. Given their current situation, it would be more beneficial to bring in a defensive player and defend their lead. And that's what manager Haruki decided after pondering for a while as well.
Thus in place of Hiro, he brought in another defensive midfielder who not only played as a defensive midfielder but also played as a center back.
"With the unfortunate injury of their star player, Japanese side has decided to bring in Kenta Tanaka, a defensive midfielder who can play as center back equally well. The last time we saw him on the field was against team India where he played as a center back"
Just as Kenta entered the field, commentator elaborated his previous records to the audience as he announced that he'll be replacing Hiro.
Aside from substituting Hiro, no other changes were made to the team, except the fact that they were no longer playing in their previous 4-1-2-3 formation. Right now with addition of Kenta Tanaka, they were playing in 4-2-1-3 formation with Yutaka as the sole offensive midfielder.
Nijichi with cotton stuffed on his nose to prevent bleeding stood behind the half line seemingly giving off the aura of an injured lion. Even after wiping the blood stains from his face, his nose still looked somewhat disfigured and kinda red and blue. And upon closer inspection, one could tell that his nose was swollen.
Despite looking seemingly injured, his morale was at an all time high. The goal which he scored previously was definitely one of the factor which led to this surge of morale. However it wasn't the only factor which caused his eyes to flare with determination.
Hiro's absence was one of the main factor, leading to this sensation as well. With Hiro's absence, he was the sole ace of the team. If he could score another goal, he could very well bag the MOTM award for himself.
So unlike most his teammates who were either grieving or despairing, right now he was quite joyous. The simple thought of snatching the limelight of the show was enough to make his blood boil and his body to steam.
Beep!
Just as the referee blew his whistle, the game resumed after the seemingly endless commotion on the pitch. Once again the fans roared furiously as the players on the field started moving their tired bodies again.
Given the current scenario one would expect Japanese side to have the momentum because of the goal which they scored just a moment ago, however the reality was quite different. Right now, opposing team were in charge of the momentum.
Their hungry eyes were like that of a predator which had been starved for weeks— ruthless and starved. Those eyes were hungry for goals and right now those eyes wanted nothing more than to see them scoring a goal.
On the contrary, eyes of most of the Japanese players looked rather panicked and restless while one thing was repeating again and again in their mind, "Please sound the final whistle as fast as you can"
Right now, they desperately wanted the game to end, so that they could loosen their bodies and become completely free from this tormenting feeling which was making their heart throb at an alarming rate.
Despite the opposing players relentless assault and despite their heart complaining about the intensity of the match, player of Japan continued to persevere. Resisting the all out assaults of the opposing team, they put their bodies on line to prevent the opposing team from scoring.
With only couple of second remaining to end the match, the victory was very well within their sights. However one player from their side looked seemingly unsatisfied.
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