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“I’m always grateful and love my wife, Gyeouri, who came to Germany with me at such a young age.”

“Whah….”

Han Gyeouri began to cry as she watched Son Jinho’s Ballon d’Or acceptance interview.

“Daddy! Daddy!”

Seeing her dad on TV, she hugged Haeun, who was smiling brightly.

– Gyeouri: Jinho, when I think back to our childhood, it always feels like you were by my side. Congratulations on winning the Ballon d’Or, and let’s live happily in the future.

She deleted the message she was writing while reminiscing about her memories with Son Jinho.

Then, she decided to write a completely new one and posted it in the group chat.

– Gyeouri: Ugh… If only Jinho, who chased after me when he liked me as a kid, hadn’t happened, what would have happened to Korean football?

– Cheolmo: ???

– Cheolmo: Gyeouri, don’t you have any conscience?

– Cheolmo: You were the one who chased Jinho first!

– Father-in-law: I still remember how you came home crying because Jinho wouldn’t play with you.

– Gyeouri: When did I ever do that!

– Father-in-law: Oh ho, raising your voice to your dad!

– Cheolmo: Don’t raise your voice… Han Gyeouri.

– Father-in-law: ;;;

– Father-in-law: I was about to deliver a line.

***

Though it was somewhat disorganized, it was all the more touching, and with that, Son Jinho’s acceptance speech concluded, marking the end of the 2013 Ballon d’Or ceremony.

[Son Jinho’s unforgettable acceptance speech, leaving hearts forever moved.]

└ Even mentioning every single Dortmund staff member gave me chills.

└ For real;; how does he remember all those people?

[Daniel Schmidt from the Dortmund equipment management team mentioned Son Jinho. “He was always a humble and kind player.”]

[Success in winning the Ballon d’Or! Son Jinho, making history for Asian football!]

└ Wow, damn! He won by just a 1% margin over Messi.

└ It was a nail-biter;;

[Manchester United posted a congratulatory message for Son Jinho’s Ballon d’Or win on SNS.]

As congratulations flowed in from various places, including South Korea.

[Despite Son Jinho’s Ballon d’Or win, the Football Association remained silent.]

└ An association panicking in real-time over Son Jinho’s Ballon d’Or win is just a thumbs down, lol!

└ For real, what will these guys do now?

The South Korean Football Association broke into a cold sweat and maintained their silence.

“Chairman, what should we do now?”

“Why are you asking me?!”

“You said you’d take responsibility if Son Jinho won the Ballon d’Or.”

“If I knew he’d actually lift the Ballon d’Or, I wouldn’t have said that!”

Public opinion began to heat up.

[The Football Association will do their best to support Son Jinho’s return to the national team while congratulating him on the Ballon d’Or win.]

└ Damn, just bury your heads in the ground, idiots.

└ These guys need a beating…

***

– Mino Raiola: Jinho, congratulations on winning the Ballon d’Or!

A message arrived from Mino Raiola after the Ballon d’Or win.

As I sent my reply, I received a call from him.

“Ha ha! From the moment I first met you, I knew you were going to be the best player!”

Mino Raiola spoke with a voice full of drunken bravado.

Apparently, he was worried about not having a Ballon d’Or winner among his recent clients.

“Mino, take care of your health and drink in moderation. Let’s chat again when you’re sober.”

“Wow, caring about my health? Are you some kind of angel sent to me by God?!”

In any case, starting with a heavily drunk Mino Raiola, a variety of congratulatory messages poured in from many people.

– Gi-hyun Choi: (Thankful Grand gesture .jpg)

Gi-hyun Choi sent a photo imitating the grand gesture from a famous webtoon to express gratitude for being mentioned in the speech.

It seems he looked up the webtoon to communicate better with the kids.

[Bold ambition announced by a new member of Parliament. “Like Son Jinho’s football skills, I will become a top-notch politician.” declaration.]

[Local government pushing for Son Jinho Road.]

└ ?? Aren’t we from Seoul?

└ That’s right.

└ But why are they making a fuss about a road in the countryside?

└ I have no idea, damn it lol!

Politicians trying to get their names out there mentioned me, and even local governments with no ties declared plans to create a road for tourism promoting me.

– Jinho, it’s Seung-a, your classmate. Remember?

Even congratulations poured in from friends I hadn’t even talked to, who were from the same class.

– Son Jinho, I have a great business idea, and I want to offer you an investment opportunity. My investment proposal is only for a select few, and now that you’ve won the Ballon d’Or, you qualify!

Even more people slid into my DMs saying they had amazing business ideas they wanted me to invest in.

Hmm. The world seems filled with remarkable people capable of making money.

‘Well, have I regressed about three times?’

Anyway, a ton of different proposals started pouring in.

I firmly blocked all those messages.

And focused on the match against Ronaldo.

– Seongdong: I hope you know that your winning the Ballon d’Or was possible because of your teammates’ sacrifices. You should respect me more.

I didn’t budge an inch against Ronaldo.

– Ho-woo: If I win the Ballon d’Or next year, I’ll think about it.

This was inevitable.

In war, yielding is defeat, and the increasingly demanding Ronaldo would ask for even greater concessions from me.

– Seongdong: !!!

– Seongdong: The next Ballon d’Or is mine, Son Jinho!!

With that, a massive wave of messages began to stack up in the chat.

***

Time flowed quickly.

Things seemed to have changed after the Ballon d’Or ceremony, yet some remained the same.

If anything had changed, it was probably how people looked at me?

My name now carried the title of Ballon d’Or winner, and I began to gain attention as a player to lead the football world after Messi’s era.

[Son Jinho, resetting the highest market value for midfielders.]

Based on the Transfer Market, my market value rose rapidly, and I jokingly demanded a new contract from old Man Ferguson, only to get my head knocked in.

Well, other than that, my life remained unchanged. I still trained at Carrington and went straight home to watch Haeun grow.

Just yesterday, I witnessed Haeun performing the miracle of standing on her own two feet against the wall for the first time.

If I had gone to that party, I wouldn’t have seen that miracle.

Thus, on January 18th, a day similar yet unique.

[Kevin De Bruyne confirms transfer to Dortmund.]

└ He had great passes; seems like he’ll have good synergy with Hongmin.

Kevin De Bruyne’s transfer to Dortmund was confirmed.

In the original timeline, he headed to Wolfsburg and later transferred to Manchester City after shining there.

[Was Kevin De Bruyne’s transfer to Dortmund thanks to Son Jinho’s strong recommendation?]

[Even the great Jürgen Klopp praised Son Jinho’s insight. “Jinho has an excellent eye for recognizing players.”]

However, this time, he headed to Dortmund thanks to my active recommendation.

Perhaps someday, I could unite De Bruyne with Manchester United instead of City?

– Ho-woo: De Bruyne.

– Kim Deok-bae: ???

– Kim Deok-bae: Deok-bae? What’s that?

– Ho-woo: Deok-bae is you.

– Kim Deok-bae: Hmm. A nickname? Anyway, thanks, Jinho. You rated me well.

– Ho-woo: It’s all true. You’re immensely talented.

I slowly began to show my favor towards Deok-bae.

And that evening.

This time, someone began to show their favor towards me.

[Wayne Rooney acknowledges Son Jinho in an interview. “Jinho deserves the Ballon d’Or.”]

Wayne Rooney, who scored a multi-goal performance against Real Betis, acknowledged me in what seemed to be an interview.

[Wayne Rooney talks about the Real Madrid trade. “It wasn’t about complaints over Jinho earning the same wage as me; I just disliked playing as a midfielder.”]

└ ????

└ This guy still plays as an attacking midfielder, doesn’t he?

└ Heard that Carlo Ancelotti praised only you for fulfilling a role only you could perform.

└ Damn Ancelotti, lol.

└ Our old man seems a bit authoritarian.

└ Haven’t you seen him insisting on raising his wage rather than letting someone earn more than him? LOL!

└ For real, lol.

Despite Rooney having an excessively strong competitive spirit and a fiery temper, he was rather gentle outside the pitch (?).

As he sent me a gesture of apology, our relationship quickly advanced.

[Son Jinho respects Wayne Rooney. “Wayne Rooney is an undeniable legend of the Premier League.”]

[Wayne Rooney follows Son Jinho on SNS.]

In the courteous exchange of kind remarks, we acknowledged each other and showed respect, while reporters reported on rumors of Rooney’s return to Manchester United.

[Wayne Rooney, who conveyed his apologies to Son Jinho, signaling a return to Manchester United?]

‘…How does this connect to that?’

The tremendous imagination of reporters bloomed with the disappearance of the reliable topic, the Ballon d’Or.

***

[Facing Manchester United in the Round of 16 of the Champions League, Schalke 04 cites Son Jinho as their most concerning opponent.]

[Preview of Premier League Round 22: Chelsea vs. Man Utd.]

[Chelsea’s Mourinho: “Manchester United is a very difficult opponent. However, it won’t be easy for them to face us at Stamford Bridge.”]

[Shifts in power occurring within the Football Association? Offering Choi Gi-hyun the position of Head of Strengthening Strategy.]

 

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