The moment Tendou passed the ball, the players of Team Y instinctively thought he was looking for Bachira on the left wing. Niko and Team Y had studied Team Z's match, watching it at least five times. They ultimately came to one conclusion: there was an inexplicable chemistry between Tendou and Bachira.
Plus, Tendou's dominant foot was his right, so no matter what, the probability of him attacking their left flank was the highest. Therefore, Niko had prepared for both possibilities early on. It would be best if they could stop Tendou; if not, then they would contain Team Z's dribbling king, Bachira.
Who would have known.
The pass Tendou sent out drew a beautiful arc in the air before landing in front of Kira Ryosuke on the right wing. This pass was simply magnificent. When Kira received the ball, there was only one defender in front of him. He accelerated into the penalty area. In this position, the opponent wouldn't dare make any rash moves; a foul would mean a yellow card and a penalty.
This made Kira even more daring in his actions. After creating a shooting angle, he decisively sent the ball into the net, scoring his first personal goal in Blue Lock.
"Beautiful!"
"The ball's in!"
"Yosha!"
The players of Team Z cheered and jumped for joy. While Isagi Yoichi was pumping his fist in celebration, he also felt it was too incredible. This pass was unbelievably slick, like it was precision-guided. Even a midfielder couldn't make such a pass, yet now a center forward had done it.
The world of football is too magical!
In the control room, Anri Teieri covered her soft lips with her hand. This pass was absolutely world-class. Five people had been sent to chase and block him, and with his line of sight almost completely sealed off, he still delivered such a soul-stirring pass. In all her life, she had never seen such a fierce "little brother."
After all, the current Lamine Yamal was still leveling up in Spain; he hadn't even entered La Masia for training yet. In a few years, fans would know just how monstrous a "little brother" could be when he got fierce. The Golden Boy award would be nothing; he'd be aiming for the Ballon d'Or from the start.
Ego Jinpachi said nothing, just continuously replaying that last segment. After watching it repeatedly, he was certain. Tendou had only lifted his head to observe at the very moment he passed. And he wasn't looking at Kira Ryosuke's position, but at the ball's final landing spot. The right side, just outside the penalty area!
Calculating based on the physical test data, that position was almost the absolute limit of where Kira could reach. To be this precise, it could no longer be explained by chance.
"He even calculated his teammate's running limit."
"What a monster."
Ego Jinpachi felt like he was truly about to produce a football prodigy. This was the most typical football genius. After all, this guy used to play basketball and had never received professional football training. He had achieved this step relying entirely on talent. A week ago, Tendou was just a newcomer with only athletic ability, who would kick the ball 10 meters away when trying to power dribble, with abysmal technique. But a week later, he could actually make such a precision-guided curveball pass.
This somewhat exceeded Ego Jinpachi's understanding. But it also proved what he himself had said: those first-class strikers in history were just that unreasonable.
The match continued. In less than ten minutes, Team Z had already scored. Some of the "happy bean" players in the bullet comments even joked with phrases like, "Wuhu, another easy win."
The frustrating thing was, this group of people knew more about football than most viewers.
This goal didn't have many special effects. Viewers who only watched the anime but not football felt it was just okay, not as awesome as when Tendou was sprinting. But these "happy bean" players could see the technical skill and brilliance of this goal at a glance. After all, if you don't watch football and don't understand it, you're going to lose your "beans"!
While other viewers were still anticipating more exciting goals, this group of football fans was already having a serious discussion.
'Isn't the curve on that ball a bit too fierce? I feel like even De Bruyne couldn't kick that.' 'He could probably kick it, but if he did, it would be a "Goal of the Season" contender.' 'It looks a bit like Beckham's curveball. The landing spot is just as precise, bypassing the defensive center of gravity to find an open teammate.' 'And now he's on par with KDB and Becks?' 'It's just an analogy. Of course, there's artistic license in anime. Could anyone in real life pull off Captain Tsubasa's moves?'
These guys were throwing out star players' names one after another, spouting professional terminology, leaving the ordinary viewers both confused and impressed. They didn't understand what it meant, but it seemed to be saying that Tendou's pass was ridiculously good.
Fanshi was also following the episode. Seeing the viewers' confusion, he explained, "This pass really is that awesome, even though it doesn't have the air-tearing special effects of Tendou's sprints."
"So where is it so good? Look at this curve, look at this landing spot. This kind of pass is very difficult to make. It's a long distance, with a lot of power, and it's easy to kick a 'hospital ball,' the kind that's very difficult to control."
"But look here. Kira Ryosuke doesn't even need to trap the ball. The ball bounces once on the ground and stops right in front of him, allowing him to charge into the box."
"If a 16-year-old player like this appeared in the real world, the European clubs would probably make a move that very night. Look again on the third day, and he'd be in a European youth academy. They'd spend a few hundred thousand euros on a lottery ticket. If they hit the jackpot, in a few years, they could sell him to one of the football giants for ten, twenty times the profit."
...
"The prodigy Loki in this show is based on Mbappé, everyone remembers, right? He's just like that."
"The team he played for before was Monaco in Ligue 1. He signed a 4-year contract for 18 million euros. Later, he was loaned to the powerhouse PSG. After PSG 'tasted the tea' and liked it, they spent 180 million euros to buy him out!"
"And look again, Tendou made this pass while being surrounded by four players. That's just too insane. The De Bruyne, Beckham, Xavi, and others mentioned in the bullet comments are all legendary-level stars."
"If you still don't get it, I can put it this way: if a 16 or 17-year-old player in the real world made this pass in a match, his transfer value would start at 500,000 euros, minimum. If he can continue to perform consistently, that's another price altogether, rising to several million euros."
After hearing his explanation, the audience finally woke up. No wonder their new "waifu," Anri Teieri, was so surprised, and the four-eyed Ego Jinpachi needed to watch it repeatedly. And when they heard the numbers Fanshi mentioned, they still felt it was a bit outrageous.
Signed for 18 million, sold for 180 million, and in euros! No wonder there are so many "selling clubs" in European football; it's just too profitable.
...
While they were chatting, the match resumed.
After the kickoff, Team Y's offense became more aggressive. Niko's plan for this match was to lure the snake out of its hole as much as possible, try to steal a goal from Team Z, and then defend the lead until the last moment. Although it sounded cowardly, it was the most effective method for a weaker team against a stronger one. Small teams are always so humble, even having to steal their goals.
But now, plans had changed. Their long-premeditated counter-attack had failed, and instead, the opponent had scored against them. To advance, they had to at least draw this match.
13th minute.
Team Y completed their first shot of the match. Okawa Hibiki received a cross from a teammate on the wing and took a long shot from just outside the penalty area. This top scorer from Kumamoto Prefecture had exquisite shooting technique; his long shots were powerful and accurate.
Raichi Jingo, who had just been mocked by Tendou, bravely blocked the ball with his body. The shark-toothed kid had a short fuse, but when something needed to be done, he was truly daring. For something like blocking a cannonball shot with his body, he didn't even blink, he just did it.
...
Get 30 chapters ahead on - P.a.t.r.e.o.n "RoseWhisky"