Blue Dream Trail (Soccer) - Episode 15

Bundesliga round 5.

A large crowd packed Augsburg’s home stadium early on.

The opponent is the powerful Leverkusen.

Few people paid any attention to one young man on the bench.

“A 19-year-old from Japan.” That was the only recognition that Ren had.

But then the game started to move.

70 minutes into the second half, the number 19 is displayed on the substitution board.

When Ren heard his name being called from the bench, he quietly stood up.

I take a deep breath and tighten the laces on my spikes again.

(Just bring out your color.)

The moment he stepped onto the pitch, the noise in the stadium stopped for just a moment.

The audience’s attention was focused on the unfamiliar jersey number.

“So this is the 19-year-old from Japan?”

At first, there was an air of “Who is this?”

But—

The atmosphere changed with Ren’s first play.

When he receives a short pass from a teammate, he only has two touches.

He made a long, arcing pass from near the center line to the opposite side.

At that moment, the entire pitch “opened up.”

The team’s full-back runs in without hesitation, traps the ball, and crosses without slowing down.

The forward jumped in but just missed the ball – an attempted goal.

But the audience’s reaction was enough.

“Wer ist das!? (Who is that!?)”

There was also an uproar in the commentary booth.

“Number 19, REN. The rookie from Japan makes this pass right away!”

“This is not just a coincidence… that player can see it.”

Several of his allies looked back at Ren in shock.

The manager on the bench silently stood up and stared at his back.

A particularly loud round of applause erupted from one corner of the stands.

Ren was quietly in the center, clearing his mind.

As if engraving everything into the present moment.

–The next 20 minutes.

I haven’t done anything special.

However, every time he touched the ball, his play was “smooth.”

Development on the opposite side.

A simple way to keep the ball in place.

Positioning that draws out the movements of your teammates.

By the time the final whistle blew, a sense of confidence had begun to grow among the crowd.

“This might be something.”

After the match, the coach approached Ren.

He said this with his arms folded, standing on the pitchside with the afterglow of the game still lingering.

“You’re too calm. Let’s put you in the starting lineup for the next game.”

Before Ren could open his eyes, the director continued.

“I wanted to find out if I was calm and if I could stay calm.

I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do in those 90 minutes.”

Ren nodded slowly.

Deep in his gaze, there was a glow not of fear, but of conviction.

——Quietly, surely, the world was beginning to take notice of this young man.