My Girlfriend Wants Victory

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After the match against Juventus, I exchanged greetings with the Juventus players and then headed for an interview.

“Son Jinho, here, take this pasta.”

As I was moving for the interview, Cristiano Ronaldo handed me some pasta, but—

“I’m good.”

I didn’t take the pasta. I didn’t want to witness an awakened Juventus fuming over broken pasta.

After all, nothing is more foolish than an unnecessary action that strengthens the opponent’s resolve.

As I headed to the interview room, I thought, ‘Huh…? But why does Cris have pasta?’

I felt something was off suddenly, but it was already too late to turn back and ask.

Anyway, once the M.O.M interview started.

“Juventus is a great team with a rich history.”

I presented a very polite demeanor in response to the reporters’ questions.

Of course, throughout the interview, my mind was constantly occupied by the sight of the pasta Ronaldo had handed me.

***

[Manchester United snatches a valuable victory against Juventus on the road.]

[‘1 goal, 1 assist’ Son Jinho, selected as M.O.M, creates a stir with humble remarks… “I was lucky.”]

[When asked what’s on his mind, Son Jinho replies, ‘Pasta… I want to eat it.’]

[AS Monaco shocks the giant Manchester United, losing to Bayer Leverkusen after fierce competition.]

[“Could it be a cursed connection?” Arsenal loses to Dortmund again in the group stage.]

└ At this point, isn’t Dortmund like Arsenal’s school bully?

└ Fr, lol

└ But Dortmund is really strong, right? They’re doing great in the league too.

└ What’s their squad like?

└ Kevin De Bruyne – Marco Reus – Son Heung-min – Robert Lewandowski.

└ Let’s exclude Hongmin, honestly, isn’t that too national pride-y?

└ ?? What nonsense, Hongmin plays great too.

***

[Son Heung-min seals the deal, saying he’s “learning a lot from Dortmund.”]

[‘The man of loyalty’ Robert Lewandowski talks about re-signing with Dortmund for another year… “Kloppo asked me to stay for one more season, and I accepted.”]

└ Wow… damn, that’s loyalty.

└ But why is Lewandowski so dead set on Bayern? I wish he’d come to Manchester United.

└ My late father was a Munich fan.

└ Ah, I see;; well, can’t blame him.

***

[Man of the Match Kevin De Bruyne, says he’s “happy at Dortmund.”]

└ How many names does this guy have?

└ Fr, lol, some even call him Kevin the Bruining.

***

[Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola loses to Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid.]

└ Pep, at this point, this is embarrassing, right? Losing to a rookie manager? LOLOL

└ Pep is just riding Messi’s coattails.

└ Pep is totally being a Messi fanboy, haha.

└ Seriously, for him to prove he’s not relying on players, I think he should just manage the Korean national team.

└ If he wins the World Cup with the Korean national team, he’ll be regarded as the best manager in football history, no doubt LOL.

└ Isn’t that just a god?

***

[Manchester United in distress? Son Jinho excluded from the Swansea City match roster due to injury….]

└ I panicked when I saw that headline; turns out it’s just for rest, damn.

└ That title’s pretty clickbait-y;;

└ Reporter 10Bird, long live!^^

***

I felt pain while blocking Pogba’s shot, so I underwent a detailed examination as soon as I returned to Manchester.

Being in a job where my body is my tool, I had to be sensitive even to the slightest pain I felt.

If I focused on the area with pain, I would naturally lose my balance.

“You’ve only got a slight bruise.”

Regardless, the detailed examination concluded it was just a minor bruise.

Since it wasn’t an injury, I could play normally, but—

Given that there was still a long season ahead and the team had enough leeway,

Alex Ferguson ordered me to take a break.

If my position in Manchester United was unstable, I might have been anxious about Ferguson’s rest order.

But I was an irreplaceable asset in Manchester United, right?

[This is caster Hwang Seong-jae, reporting on the Manchester United vs. Swansea City match.]

I decided to relax with a comfortable mind.

“Daddy! City! City!”

While watching the match on TV, my little sister, Haeun, approached me wearing the toddler-sized Manchester City jersey sent by them.

Behind her, I saw Han Gyeouri with a bittersweet smile and my mother-in-law smiling brightly.

“Here… there’s also a Manchester United jersey.”

I could hear Gyeouri’s whining voice,
but honestly, Haeun’s personal color is sky blue, so she looked cuter in the City uniform.

[Cristiano Ronaldo—! Shoot! Ah!]

Anyway, the match between Manchester United and Swansea City was underway.

“Manu, you’re weak!”

“Not, not weak!”

My daughter, Son Haeun, teased her mom with a bright smile.

“Puhuh─!”

And my mother-in-law, watching them, burst into laughter.

Hmm.

She seems genuinely happy.

***

With Son Jinho absent, Manchester United failed to break through Swansea City’s two-line defense and couldn’t secure victory.

The match ended in a 0-0 draw,

[The absence of Son Jinho felt painfully obvious in this match! Manchester United draws with Swansea City!]

[English media states Son Jinho’s influence is tremendous….]

The Manchester United fans who watched the match painfully felt the absence of Son Jinho, who connected both offense and defense and sometimes scored himself.

– Bangbutu: Son Jinho.

But no one felt his absence more acutely than Cristiano Ronaldo.

Suddenly left alone after losing Robin van Persie and Son Jinho from their trio.

Was it like Liu Bei sending away Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to fight in Yi Ling?

– Bangbutu: This starting lineup is wrong! Son Jinho, you could’ve played!

The once lonely Ronaldo sent Son Jinho a message that evening, lamenting about Alex Ferguson’s player selection issues.

Son Jinho, who responded affirmatively, forwarded Ronaldo’s message to Alex Ferguson directly.

And the next day.

“Cris, stand at attention.”

Alex Ferguson summoned Ronaldo to the coaching office for a private meeting.

“Do you have a problem with the lineup I made?”

“No, I don’t!”

***

While Ronaldo was being disciplined by Alex Ferguson, time sped by.

The home match against Tottenham Hotspur in Round 7 of the Premier League was approaching.

With Son Jinho perfectly recovered from his previous match’s rest, his starting appearance was expected.

Manchester United welcomed Tottenham Hotspur to Old Trafford, utilizing their maximum manpower except for the injured Van Persie.

On the other hand, Tottenham Hotspur was undergoing a transition with Mauricio Pochettino just hired as their new manager after Southampton.

Tottenham’s legend, Harry Kane, known as the future’s king of no trophies, was still seen as a promising youngster.

‘A G.O.A.T. who has been the top scorer across three tournaments but has never lifted a trophy.’

Son Jinho gazed curiously at the young Harry Kane sitting on the bench, while Kane looked at Son Jinho, who won the Ballon d’Or at a younger age, with admiration.

‘Join Manchester United?’

‘…Me?’

As Son Jinho and Harry Kane exchanged glances—

“Son Jinho.”

“Did you win the coin toss?”

“Hmm. Of course I lost.”

“Good for you, kid.”

***

The results of the coin toss came in.

The victorious Tottenham Hotspur chose to receive the kickoff, starting the game.

[Manchester United immediately applies strong pressure, successfully gaining possession of the ball!]

Right from the start, Manchester United aggressively pressed Tottenham Hotspur.

“Ho-woo.”

“SIU.”

“Ho-woo.”

“SIU.”

Son Jinho, while passing back and forth with Ronaldo, shook up to Tottenham’s defensive line. He then directed a pass towards Sadio Mané.

“Run!”

“Ma, mawu—!”

Swish─!

Mané calmly scored his debut Premier League goal.

***

“Mawu—!”

After scoring, Sadio Mané dashed to the corner flag, performing a ‘ho-woo’ celebration that made him reflect on his past.

Since joining Manchester United, he struggled to get accustomed to the tempo of the Premier League.

– Ohohohohoho─!

– SIUUUUUUUUUUUU─!

The strange cries echoed in his ears, leading Mane to temporarily speculate that Ronaldo and Son Jinho’s secret to their game performance was in that cry.

‘Ah, it can’t be that.’

The intelligent Sadio Mané shook his head at the ridiculous thought, yet—

[Poor performance from Sadio Mané, booed by home fans.]

[Son Jinho defends Mané, saying “He needs time. I hope they can be patient and wait a little longer.”]

As someone craving success as a football player, he acknowledged that his thought was absurd but still imitated Ronaldo and Son Jinho’s cries during the Champions League match against Juventus.

And perhaps it was just a coincidence.

“Ma, mawu—!”

Sadio Mané shouted ‘Mawu’ against Juventus and recorded an assist, followed by scoring in the match against Tottenham Hotspur.

“Run!”

“Maewu—!”

He was genuinely shouting ‘Mawu’ now.

***

“…Another fool has joined the ranks.”

Alex Ferguson looked at Sadio Mané, who was dashing towards Tottenham’s side, making absurd cries, with a grim expression before nodding his head.

If losing a bit of language ability traded off for improved football skills, it didn’t seem like a bad exchange.

Anyways, the match continued, and before the end of the first half, İlkay Gündoğan added another goal.

Then came the second half.

Tottenham Hotspur made an impressive substitution 20 minutes into the second half with Harry Kane, who had just returned from injury, but they failed to convert it into a goal.

“Hmm. Not bad.”

Alex Ferguson looked at Harry Kane with greedy eyes.

Manchester United secured all 3 points to reclaim the top position in the league.

***

[Manchester United retakes the lead with a victory against Tottenham Hotspur….]

[Son Jinho on Mané’s success… “What he needed was time, and now he’s ready to soar.”]

[Manchester United’s next opponent is away against Leicester City.]

***

[Manchester United achieved a resounding 4-0 victory against Leicester City away.]

Manchester United triumphed in the ensuing Round 8 of the Premier League, decisively defeating Leicester City.

[Is Sadio Mané soaring? Scoring in back-to-back matches.]

[Did Son Jinho predict Mané’s success?]

After the match ended, Sadio Mané became the center of attention.

After scoring back-to-back goals following the Tottenham match, a strange wave began to rise among the promising players at Manchester United’s Carrington training ground.

“Counterattack!”

As Son Jinho directed the players during their internal practice match at Carrington training ground—

“Daewoo—!”

“Rawuuuu—!”

“Yayouuu—!”

Danny Welbeck, Marcus Rashford, and Adnan Januzaj screamed strangely as they charged forward.

“SIUUUUUU—!”

“Maowuu—!”

Just like that, Ronaldo and Sadio Mané responded, making the practice match intense.

At the same time,

Recovering from injury and just returning to the match, Robin van Persie was…

“…What is going on?”

He couldn’t conceal his startled feelings at the sight of his teammates losing their ability to communicate.