Ethan stood in the manager's office, staring at the whiteboard. The squad list was a mess—aging defenders, midfielders with no stamina, and a striker who hadn't scored in six matches. CD Almazora was bottom of the table, morale shattered, and the board had given Elias Reyes—now Ethan—three matches to prove himself.
He had one shot.
The upcoming opponent, CF Castellón, was a juggernaut. Top of the league, unbeaten in 12 games, and playing a classic 4-4-2 with brutal efficiency. Ethan remembered them from his FIFA simulations. They pressed high, exploited the wings, and punished slow transitions.
But Ethan had a plan.
He scribbled furiously:
Formation: 3-4-2-1
Wingbacks: ultra-aggressive
Midfield: double pivot with a deep-lying playmaker
Attack: two shadow strikers behind a false nine
It was madness. No third-division team played like this. But Ethan wasn't just any manager—he had the tactical memory of thousands of simulated matches and the foresight of future football trends.
He called the players in.
They looked confused. Some skeptical. Others amused.
"Coach, we've never played three at the back," said Miguel, the captain.
"You've never had a manager who sees the game ten years ahead," Ethan replied, his voice steady. "Trust me. This isn't just a formation. It's a system. A philosophy."
Training was chaos. Players stumbled through positional rotations, mistimed presses, and misread passing lanes. But Ethan was relentless. He drilled them like a man possessed—because he was. Possessed by a second chance.
Matchday arrived.
The stadium was half-full, the air thick with doubt. Ethan stood on the touchline, arms crossed, heart pounding. The whistle blew.
Within five minutes, CD Almazora had won three turnovers in the final third. By halftime, they led 2–0.
The crowd was stunned.
Ethan smiled.
The game had changed.