The Rise of the Iron Wall!

Chapter 306: Preparation for the Second Round!

Neither team had met yet, but somehow the smell of gunpowder between them could be felt in the air. Even though this was going to be their first-ever encounter against each other, they all felt like they were quite familiar with their opponent, what with some of them being friends with each other.

However, that didn’t mean they would go easy in the next game. No, if anything, while Hiroshi didn’t know about his former teammates in Shohei High, he and the twins would go all out, showing their best ability since the referee blew the whistle at the beginning.

It wasn’t just because of a sentimental reason, but deep down, the boy recognized Kumiko’s words here.

’If you put aside the fact that he is your senpai, Hiroki Kawabe is the second-best player in the country right now, a member of the junior national team. There will be so many scouts coming to watch his game and observe his playing style. So, if you still want to attract scouts’ attention, this will be your biggest chance so far.’

’Yeah, Shishida-senpai is right. This is going to be my biggest chance to show off.’ Hiroshi clenched his fist tightly, starting to run faster than ever.

The others were also quite pumped up, especially Makino. Out of everyone else here, only he and Hiroshi had the urge to show off, wanting to attract attention from the professional teams outside. Other than them, the rest of the team didn’t have any urgency, either because they didn’t really have the ambition to be a pro player or because they still had more time in high school to achieve higher.

When everyone was in a high spirit like this, though, Kumiko did a really good job as a head coach to pour cold water into their head.She first forbade the team from going for extra training outside of what she had set beforehand, and the girl also got rid of all the arduous physical training that could burden their body too much over a long period.

With only three days of rest, it was important for the team to maintain the work-rest balance. After all, most of the players’ injuries didn’t come from the real game, but from the reckless action outside of the pitch.

So, the only training menu for the next two days was just the light one to maintain their condition to stay hot and the simulation one to help them know what to expect in the next game.

Of course, there would always be one person suffering in this scenario, and that person turned out to be Denki. The boy was so depressed right now, as if he had just lost his three years of living out of nowhere. His movement was sluggish, and his concentration broke s easily at the slightest disturbance outside.

"Come on, Denki! This is not you!"

"Yeah, fucking hell, Mate! You couldn’t even stop a crossing from Hori! That’s the fucking Hori who we are talking about!"

"Wait, that’s not nice! What do you mean by that?!"

Denki himself just twitched the corner of his lips madly when he heard them like this. "It is easy for you guys to say that, but I am going to be the one who deals with Kawabe-senpai! You think this is going to be a walk in the park?!" He whined.

Kumiko also frowned when she heard that. This was indeed the problem that she had to face right now. "So, what do you think is the best way to handle him? You know him the most, right?" There was no arrogance or sarcastic tone in her voice, which could usually be found in any other prominent head coach who was being told by the players. No, the girl was genuinely curious since she herself had already racked her brain without getting any result.

"Do you think with Kazawa and me joining that side, it would be easier to stop him?" Ishinori also asked her, having one hand on his hips while the other wiping the sweat on his forehead.

"...No, he will still be able to get through that," Denki answered after pondering for a moment. "Also, you cannot just put all of the players on him at the same time. The rest of the team still has a dangerous player there, and you see how they wreaked havoc on their first opponent once Kawabe-senpai was surrounded. No, pouring number will definitely be the worst possible scenario here."

"..."

Kumiko just let out a deep sigh as she heard that. Honestly, Kawabe was probably the local version of Yuwell Carlson from Sapporo Otani, but with faster speed and better dribbling skills. However, when that thought came, an inspiration suddenly flashed in her head.

"Ryukkun, come here!" She called her childhood friend loudly, waving at him to get there.

"Yes, Kumiko-chan?" Higo ran toward her immediately.

"A quick question, please. If Yuwell Carlson suddenly goes wide to receive the ball, what would you need the defenders to do to help you out?" She asked quickly.

The question was so strange that even Higo himself looked at her as if she were just growing a second head. However, the girl didn’t really care. After all, when facing Yuwell Carlson in the past, they didn’t really win with strategy. No, it all came from the brilliant performance from Higo, so if they wanted to stand a chance, relying on him once again would be necessary.

"Hmm... If I were the goalkeeper, huh?" Higo pondered, not questioning the strange question at all. "The first thing is to force him to stop the ball. Drop back a little to close down the area for a through pass, and bait him to the edge of the pitch. Don’t let him gather momentum with his speed, because we wouldn’t be able to deal with that."

Kumiko nodded, taking a note inside her head.

"As for the others... Probably go a little bit closer to the middle. Give him the illusion that the flank is open for him to tear apart. Don’t let him think he can cut in and get a good angle to shoot. As long as it is a cross, I think I can deal with everything above my head."