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Son Jinho declared his revenge against Manchester United.

At that moment, Alex Ferguson was seriously reviewing Son Jinho’s play video.

Son Jinho’s play felt more like a veteran midfielder than a teenage prospect.

“…54 million pounds.”

Son Jinho’s estimated transfer fee is 54 million pounds.

Although there’s talk of inflated transfer fees lately, it’s undeniable that Son Jinho’s fee seems astronomical when recalling Rooney’s fee of 27 million and Ronaldo’s 12.4 million pounds.

While Ferguson splurges without hesitation for crucial signings, it felt burdensome to spend 80 billion on a teenage prospect, completely disregarding his three established acquisition principles.

– I know he’s the best player, but I have doubts about the durability of an Asian player.

The board’s concerns also somewhat influenced Ferguson’s worries.

Considering Shinji Kagawa’s unexpectedly poor performance at Tottenham this season and Park Jisong’s knee troubles, the board’s worries were understandable.

– Um… We have no money since we recently paid off the PIK loan.

Additionally, the loan taken by the Glazer family when acquiring the club was a hindrance.

If Ferguson were to continue managing, rebuilding the team regardless of overpaying for Son Jinho would be on the table.

However, he was contemplating stepping down from the Manchester United managerial position at the end of this season.

Since losing his sister-in-law last winter, his wife, Cathy Ferguson, often appeared lonely.

After losing his sister-in-law, who had been a friend, Cathy Ferguson was now in an emotionally isolated state.

It was time to declare retirement and spend time with his wife, who supported him through tough times, offering her the strength she needed.

Arriving home a bit earlier than usual, the only sound echoing through the quiet house was the TV.

Ferguson saw his wife staring blankly at the TV. The sight of her looking so forlorn made him resolve to retire once again.

“Cathy….”

The moment Ferguson called his wife, Mrs. Cathy Ferguson, to seek her permission for his retirement—

Brrring─!

Cathy’s phone rang, and her face brightened instantly as she checked the caller ID.

“Yeah. Is that Gyeouri?”

Watching silently, Alex Ferguson approached her as soon as Cathy’s call ended.

“I want to retire….”

“You said it’s me who decides your retirement.”

Seeing Cathy swinging her foot in mid-air, Ferguson couldn’t help but chuckle.

He was reminded of when he had been dreaming and kicked Cathy while napping back in the early 2000s when he was contemplating retirement.

“Still, let’s talk like today, earlier than usual.”

“Fine.”

That day, Alex Ferguson postponed his retirement in exchange for finishing work a bit earlier.

***

Dortmund traveled to Manchester to play all their matches in the Champions League Round of 16.

The day before the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16—

– Ho-woo: Gyeouri

After finishing adaptation training at Old Trafford, Manchester United’s home ground, I sent a message to Han Gyeouri.

– Gyeouri: Why?

A reply came instantly. It seemed she had been eagerly waiting for my message.

– Ho-woo: Hahahaha, that was super quick! Were you waiting for me?

– Gyeouri: (with a sulky bear face.)

– Gyeouri: (turning her head away like a cat.)

– Gyeouri: I wasn’t waiting!

– Gyeouri: Anyway! Why did you call me?

– Ho-woo: I did adaptation training at United today.

– Gyeouri: Uh-huh. And?

– Ho-woo: Ha… I’ve lost my confidenceㅠㅠ

It was a common joke that would become a running gag in the future, but since the non-reincarnator Gyeouri didn’t know this, she began to flail around like a flounder at the message.

– Gyeouri: Hahahahahahaha

– Gyeouri: Ah, have you realized the true power of the invincible Hwang-yu!?

– Gyeouri: ᕙ(⇀‸↼‵‵)ᕗ

If Gyeouri had pumped up my confidence, the nature of the joke might have changed; thankfully, her response didn’t deviate from my expectation.

– Mang-kyouri: Son Jinho! Don’t be disheartened for losing to the invincible Hwang-yu.

– Mang-kyouri: Losing to a strong team isn’t disgraceful!

– Mang-kyouri: Manchester United at Old Trafford is invincible! And Ferguson is a god!!

She was so excited that she sent messages without proofreading for typos.

– Ho-woo: No lol

After calmly reading her messages for a while, I revealed a cold truth to Gyeouri.

– Ho-woo: I’ve lost my confidence lol

– Ho-woo: I think Dortmund will win 3-0 lol

I sent the message and turned off the alarm from my phone that was ringing madly, then flipped my phone over and tried to sleep.

***

The next day.

As the match time approached, Dortmund boarded the team bus headed to Old Trafford, known as the Theatre of Dreams.

Seeing the infamous Old Trafford, also called the “Grave of the Away Team,” we slowly warmed up just before kickoff.

[Glory! glory, Man United!]

“Hyung!”

“Long time no see.”

With the passionate cheers of United fans as a backdrop, I exchanged simple greetings with Jisong-hyung and gradually took in the Manchester United players.

Though I had joked with Gyeouri that I had lost confidence, there was some sincerity behind it.

Compared to the golden era of Manchester United, the players’ caliber had significantly dropped.

How desperate must they have been to bring back the retired Scholes?

The individual abilities of the Manchester United players had deteriorated.

Although names like Ferdinand, Vidic, and Evra remained from their prime days, they were already well past their peak.

It was no coincidence that they had been knocked out of the Champions League group stage last season and lost to Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League.

“Wow. This is worse than I thought. How did they win with that squad?”

I suddenly realized how remarkable the original history’s Alex Ferguson had been.

It was a squad that should have started rebuilding long ago, but financial issues had hampered progress.

It might seem absurd to think, “How could Manchester United, splurging 140 billion on a top Brazilian player, say they have no money?”

But in reality, Manchester United’s finances crumbled alongside the Glazers’ takeover.

When the Glazers acquired Manchester United, they burdened the club with a staggering debt of 580 million pounds.

Had it not been for the monstrous manager named Ferguson, Manchester United might have become ‘Leeds’ all over again.

“Was this called the Manchester United era instead of the ‘Mangu’ era?”

Ferguson was that irreplaceable, essential coach for Manchester United.

However….

If there’s a ball, there’s also an excess.

Ferguson’s influence was significant when it came to the Glazer family’s ownership of Manchester United.

Due to the ownership dispute involving Ferguson and John Magnier over the racehorse ‘Rock of Gibraltar’, John Magnier, who had developed bad blood with Ferguson and Manchester United, sold all his shares to Malcolm Glazer, allowing the Glazer family to become the major shareholder.

Becoming the major shareholder, the Glazers secured loans from the bank against Manchester United’s profits to capture 98% of the shares.

Once Ferguson and CEO David Gill, who had carried Manchester United, retired, the club rapidly declined and formed the future ‘Mangu’ era.

Well. Anyway, that was before I reincarnated.

“Let’s put on a good match.”

“Yes.”

Suddenly, match time approached, and the game began with the referee’s whistle.

Having sent Manchester City home in the group stage, I was thinking of sending Manchester United back home in the Round of 16.

***

Manchester United adopted a 4-4-1-1 formation.

Due to a long-term injury, Vidic was excluded from the lineup.

Alex Ferguson selected Evans as Ferdinand’s partner in place of Vidic.

In the midfield, it was Carrick and Phil Jones, with instructions given for Jones to closely mark Son Jinho.

Perhaps due to this—

Dortmund’s attacks were blocked by Manchester United’s dense defense.

Phil Jones, who had always been criticized for his focus in defense, and Evans showcased peak form by successfully thwarting Dortmund’s assaults.

Then in the 32nd minute of the first half.

[Lewandowski’s strong press! Ah! Phil Jones desperately clears the ball towards Ilkay Gündoğan!!]

Phil Jones was startled by Lewandowski’s sudden strong pressing, leading to a horror show.

Ilkay Gündoğan immediately directed the ball to Son Jinho.

Before receiving the pass, Son Jinho scanned his surroundings, easily dodging Phil Jones’s sliding tackle, and passed it to Marco Reus.

With a smooth first touch, Marco Reus began to sprint down the line.

“Borussen!!”

The cheering of Dortmund’s away fans erupted.

Raphaël da Silva blocked Marco Reus’s path, but Reus dazzled him with a simple feint.

Successful in shaking off Raphaël, Marco Reus glanced at the penalty box, swiftly kicked the ball and sent a cross flying.

Though Lewandowski and Ferdinand competed for it, the ball slipped past everyone’s heads and floated to the back.

“No! Stop him!!”

With Son Jinho penetrating into the penalty box, De Gea’s cries rang out.

Evans rushed to obstruct Son Jinho’s shot, but—

Disregarding that, Son Jinho lightly trapped the incoming ball with his chest and took a powerful shot with his left foot.

David De Gea, who had been performing fantastically, was caught off guard by the unforeseen ball that zipped under Evans’s leg, failing to react in time.

Son Jinho’s shot rippled the net.

“Hoouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!”

Having scored, Son Jinho dashed straight to the corner flag to celebrate.

The seamlessness of his celebration flushed Alex Ferguson’s face in red, and he started chewing gum faster.

 

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