Bologna. Casteldebole Training Centre.Friday Morning.
The takeover didn't happen in a boardroom. It happened on the pitch. A sleek black helicopter descended from the grey sky, kicking up a whirlwind of dust and cut grass. It landed just outside the touchline, its rotors chopping the air with a deafening thwup-thwup-thwup.
Coach Rossi stopped the drill, shielding his eyes from the debris. "What the hell is this? We are training!"
Three black SUVs drove onto the grass to meet the helicopter. Men in suits jumped out. They weren't carrying footballs; they were carrying server racks and biometric scanners.
Finally, the helicopter door opened. Tyler Stone stepped out. He was 35 years old, wearing a $500 hoodie, designer sneakers, and mirrored sunglasses. He didn't look like a football club owner. He looked like a Tech CEO about to launch a crypto-currency scam.
He didn't shake Rossi's hand. He walked past him, tapping his earpiece. "Rip out the old cameras," Stone commanded his team, pointing at the floodlight towers. "Install the 4K optical tracking system. I want data on every heartbeat, every sprint, every breath. Now."
Rio stood with Kenjiro near the center circle. "That's him," Kenjiro whispered, terrified. "Tyler Stone. The Liquidator."
The Auditorium.10:00 AM.
The entire squad sat in the media room. The mood was grim. Tyler Stone stood on stage. Behind him, a massive screen displayed a complex graph of dots and lines.
"I bought this club for €200 million," Stone started, his voice amplified by a microphone. "Not because I love Bologna. I don't care about your history. I bought it because I love inefficiency." He pointed at the screen. "You are all assets. Some of you are appreciating assets. Most of you..." He looked at the veteran players. "...are depreciating liabilities."
Stone clicked a remote. A picture of Kenjiro Tanaka appeared. Red text flashed: [HIGH RISK / LOW RETURN]. "We have a player with zero cartilage collecting a wage," Stone said coldly. "Inefficient. A sentimental signing."
Kenjiro shrank in his seat.
Then, the screen changed. A picture of Rio Valdes. The graph showed a vertical line shooting up like a rocket. Green text: [STATISTICAL ANOMALY].
"And then we have this," Stone said, looking directly at Rio. "Rio Valdes. Scored against Juventus and Roma. Beautiful goals. The fans love you." Stone smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "But my algorithm, 'The Oracle', says you are a fraud."
The room gasped. Stone zoomed in on the data. "Your xG (Expected Goals) is 0.04. You score from positions where scoring is mathematically impossible. You don't run enough. You don't press enough. You are a statistical outlier."
Stone leaned forward. "In data science, we have a rule: Regression to the Mean. Luck always runs out. Eventually, you will stop scoring wonder goals, and you will be exposed as a mediocre player."
Stone slammed his hand on the podium. "So, here is the plan. I am putting you on the Transfer List for January. We will sell you to a dumb English club while your hype is high. We cash out before you crash."
Rio stood up. His chair scraped loudly against the floor. The room went silent. "I am not a graph," Rio said, his voice shaking but clear.
Stone laughed. "Everything is a graph, kid. You are just a variance. A glitch."
"I am not a glitch," Rio said, stepping into the aisle. "I am the future of this club."
Stone raised an eyebrow. "Prove it." He pointed at the screen. "Sunday. We play Napoli. The defending champions. They press harder than anyone. My algorithm predicts you will have 0 Shots and 0 Key Passes."
Stone smirked. "If you beat the algorithm... if you beat Napoli... I keep you until the summer. I might even keep your crippled friend." He gestured to Kenjiro. "But if you fail... I sell you both in January. Deal?"
Rio looked at Adrian Vance in the corner. Adrian nodded slightly. Rio looked at Stone. "Deal."
The Data Lab (Formerly Adrian's Office).12:00 PM.
"He is right, you know," Adrian said, typing furiously on his laptop. The room was now filled with Stone's servers, humming loudly. Rio was pacing the small room. "Whose side are you on?"
"I am on the side of Truth," Adrian said. "Tyler Stone is an asshole, but his math is correct. You are overperforming. You rely on expensive Skills to score miracle goals. You don't have a sustainable base."
Adrian spun his screen around. "Napoli is a nightmare. Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. They score 3 goals per game. If we want to beat them, we can't just rely on a 'Del Piero Curl' or a 'Ghost Run'. We need to dominate the midfield."
"Kenjiro can do that," Rio said.
"Kenjiro is marked," Adrian countered. "Mourinho showed everyone how to stop him. Tyler Stone knows it too. That's why he wants to sell."
Adrian sighed. He opened a secure file on his computer. "There is one way to beat Stone's algorithm. The algorithm predicts human behavior based on past data. It assumes players are rational." Adrian looked at Rio. "We need to be Irrational. We need to do something the computer cannot predict."
"Like what?"
"Napoli plays a high line. But their set-piece defense is zonal. Stone expects us to keep the ball on the ground because you are short (175cm)." Adrian smiled. "We won't use the ground. We will use the Air."
Rio frowned. "I can't win headers against Rrahmani and Natan. They are giants."
"Not against them," Adrian said. "Against the fullback. Di Lorenzo. He marks the back post." Adrian pulled up the System Shop interface on Rio's behalf (metaphorically). "Rio, check the shop. Is there a skill for... Aerial Duels?"
Rio checked. [Skill: CR7 Leap (Cristiano Ronaldo)] - Cost: 30 Days. Too expensive.[Skill: The Salmon (Tim Cahill)] - Cost: 12 Days.
"12 Days," Rio muttered. "To jump high?"
"Not just jump," Adrian corrected. "To hang in the air. If you buy this... and we use Kenjiro's precision crossing... we can break the algorithm. Stone thinks you are a 'Finesse' player. He doesn't expect you to turn into a Target Man."
Rio looked at his lifespan. [328 Days.] If he spent 12 days, he would be down to 316. Almost at the 300-day danger mark.
"If I don't do this, Kenjiro gets sold," Rio said. "And I get sold."
"Correct."
Rio closed his eyes. "Buy it."
[PURCHASE CONFIRMED][Skill Acquired: The Salmon (Tim Cahill)][Effect: Increases Jumping Reach by 30%. Grants "Hang Time" ability (Gravity defiance for 0.5 seconds).][Remaining Lifespan: 316 Days]
Rio felt his calves twitch. The muscle fibers density increased instantly. He looked at the ceiling. I'm going to fly.
Sunday. Matchday 5.Napoli vs Bologna.Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
This was the temple of football. Naples. The stadium was a cauldron of blue noise. Tyler Stone sat in the VIP box, his tablet open, watching the live data feed. "Let's see the regression," Stone muttered to his assistants.
On the pitch, Napoli dominated. Kvaratskhelia danced past Bologna's defense like they were traffic cones. Osimhen jumped higher than the crossbar to score a header. Minute 20: Napoli 1 - 0 Bologna.
Stone nodded. "Prediction on track. Valdes has 2 touches. 0 shots. He is ghosting, but not in a good way."
Rio was struggling. Napoli's center-backs were aggressive. Every time he touched the ball, he was swarmed. He looked at Kenjiro. Kenjiro was deep, surrounded by blue shirts. But he gave a small nod. The Plan.
Minute 44. Bologna won a free kick on the left wing. 40 meters out. Too far to shoot. Perfect for an inswinging cross. Kenjiro stood over the ball. The Napoli defenders (Rrahmani and Natan) marked the tall Bologna defenders (Zirkzee, De Luca) in the center. That left Rio at the back post, marked by Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli Captain/Right Back).
Tyler Stone watched his screen. [Match-up: Valdes (175cm) vs Di Lorenzo (183cm)][Aerial Win Probability: Napoli 92%] "Safe," Stone muttered. "He won't win that."
Kenjiro raised his hand. He whipped the ball in. It wasn't a low curve. It was a high, hanging loop aimed at the back post. It looked like a bad cross. Too high for a normal player.
Rio took two steps back. He planted his feet. And he exploded upwards.
[Skill Activated: The Salmon]
Rio rose. He kept rising. Di Lorenzo jumped too, but he reached his peak and started to fall. Rio didn't fall. He reached a height that defied physics. His waist was level with Di Lorenzo's head. And then... he stopped. He hung in the air. While the defenders fell due to gravity, Rio stayed at the apex for half a second longer.
The Hang Time.
Tyler Stone dropped his tablet. "What the..."
Rio met the ball at the highest point. He snapped his neck muscles. Bang.
The ball flew into the bottom corner, past the frozen goalkeeper (Alex Meret).
GOAL.Napoli 1 - 1 Bologna.
Rio landed softly on the grass. He didn't celebrate with the fans. He looked up at the VIP box. He found Tyler Stone behind the glass. Rio tapped his head with his index finger. Calculate that.