Mid October.
Nike's advertisement was finally released to the world and immediately became a major sensation.
The project carried the core message, "How far can human limits go?" It drew intense attention and gained overwhelming popularity among internet users.
[The global sports brand Nike has released an intriguing advertisement featuring world class sports stars. The 2 minute 15 second commercial is divided into two scenes. In the first, Ho-young and Rafael Nadal face each other in a tennis match. In the second, the setting shifts to a football stadium where the two compete in football. The advertisement ends with both acknowledging each other's abilities and shaking hands.
According to Director Michael, who led the project, "The filming was the greatest experience a human could witness." He added that viewers would understand why if they watched the making film. Meanwhile, the sequel will feature sports stars from other disciplines...]
The advertisement, uploaded to various media outlets and video sharing platforms, became a massive hit.
As word spread over time, its daily views surpassed Shakira's South Africa World Cup theme song "Waka Waka," exceeding four million views within a week.
There were even predictions that it would surpass the iPhone 4 advertisement by the end of the year.
[Wow. I got goosebumps the entire time watching that commercial. Nadal and Ho-young together. I couldn't stop smiling.]
└ Nike really did a great job this time. Their sales must be going up.
└ Neither Nadal nor Ho-young gets overshadowed. I knew Nadal was good at football, but I didn't know Ho-young was good at tennis.
└ What are you talking about? That's not tennis. That's tennis played with feet. If he had a racket he would be even better.
└ Pfft. Why are people getting emotional over a CG-filled advertisement?
└ Even with CG, you still need incredible skill to produce scenes like that, you idiot.
└ Typical Ho fanboys. Getting excited over CG. It's like cheering for Captain Tsubasa. You could probably film a random alley cat and get something similar.
└ Got you, you Barça troll.
The world split into three groups.
Ordinary viewers who simply admired the commercial.
Then the Ho fanatics who defended Ho-young unconditionally.
And the Ho haters who criticized him relentlessly.
They launched into keyboard wars as if their lives depended on it.
But before long, the documentary style making film was released, and the haters disappeared almost instantly.
[Where did all those people who said it was CG go?]
└ Wow. I have no words except that it's amazing. That rally actually happened.
└ Nadal got flustered at the end and unleashed his finishing move. He must have forgotten it wasn't a real tennis match.
└ Spain's football federation really missed out by letting a player like that slip away...
With the project becoming a massive hit, the recognition of both Nadal and Ho-young skyrocketed.
Then Rafael Nadal posted a message on social media, putting the final touch on the hype.
[Shooting the advertisement with Young was a mysterious experience. He's someone who goes beyond what I thought was possible. As a fellow athlete, I realized there are still many things I must achieve.]
Nadal, who usually expressed small complaints about commercials, was surprisingly very satisfied this time.
Nike also benefited greatly from the advertisement's success, exceeding their expected revenue.
[Nike's resurgence, dominating the football equipment market in October and overtaking Adidas once again in football equipment sales]
After the World Cup, Adidas had benefited greatly from advertising effects. Their sales increased sharply in June, July, and August, allowing them to narrowly surpass Nike.
However, only two months later, they lost that position again.
The sports industry was experiencing a shift.
But this was only the beginning.
Late November.
Just days before El Clásico, Ho-young received a piece of good news.
[Field-Dominating Versatility (W+3)]
[Among your possessed talents, all talents closely related to Field-Dominating Versatility can be integrated into one.]
[List of talents that can integrate with Field-Dominating Versatility (W+3)]
• Immaculate Playmaking (W)
• Maestro's Build Up (SU)
• Flawless Press Resistance (SU)
• Midfield Domination of the Buffalo on the Field (U)
• Astonishing Press Resistance (S+2)
The range of talents that could be integrated was broader than expected.
'They all share the trait of controlling and dictating the game.'
There was nothing to think about.
He attempted the integration immediately.
[Integrating talents closely related to Field-Dominating Versatility (W+3).]
[Potential of SS grade or higher is required to integrate into a single talent.]
'Damn.'
It required time.
Still, there was something to ease the disappointment.
[Coveting Marvelous Dribbling (SS+3).]
[Marvelous Dribbling (SS+3) has successfully fused with Fantastical Foot Skills (W+).]
[Fantastical Foot Skills (W+2) ↑]
The process only required ten days.
'If I covet Messi's dribbling as well, integration will be possible immediately.'
Since integration required SS grade potential or higher each time, he would need to gather potential in advance.
The problem was finding the right opportunity.
The only suitable stage was El Clásico.
November 29.
La Liga Round 13 El Clásico began at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Real Madrid was once again powerful.
Barcelona came prepared with various defensive approaches, but they were helplessly shattered.
Ho-young scored again that day and celebrated with a tennis serve motion using an imaginary racket, welcoming Nadal's visit.
He added one more goal and one assist. By the time victory was secured, he was able to covet the talent Monarch-Level Body Rotation (SU).
'Rotation.'
It felt unfamiliar, but with enough time to adapt, he believed he could soon use it in real matches.
However, there was one regret.
He had expected something special from this final El Clásico, but the chance to gain potential did not appear.
But then.
[Copa del Rey Round of 16 draw: Real Madrid vs Barcelona. The two giants will clash again on December 15.]
His connection with Barcelona was not over.
Time passed quickly.
Morning of December 15.
Camp Nou president's office.
Before the match between Real Madrid and Barcelona began, Mourinho had a meeting with President Sandro Rosell.
Sandro Rosell.
He had been an opponent of former president Laporta and was elected two months ago with the highest vote count in the club's history.
Most importantly, he did not like Mourinho.
"Would you like a coffee?"
"No."
"Suit yourself."
Rosell showed no interest in Mourinho.
Barcelona's recent performance was not disastrous.
1. Real Madrid, 13 wins, 2 draws, 41 points, 50 goals scored, 12 conceded
2. Barcelona, 8 wins, 6 draws, 1 loss, 30 points, 28 goals scored, 9 conceded
Second place in the league.
A familiar position.
But the problem was not the numbers.
Hope.
There was no hope of catching up.
The gap with Real Madrid was already eleven points.
Moreover, Rosell disliked Mourinho's tactical approach.
Eight wins, six draws, one loss.
Instead of flashy and entertaining football, Mourinho preferred safe football that avoided defeat and secured points.
This frustrated Rosell greatly.
On top of that came internal divisions, controversies, and constant protests from the socios.
Considering all this, keeping Mourinho was difficult.
Three years still remained on his contract, but Rosell already wanted him gone.
And Mourinho himself did not seem particularly passionate either.
"Why exactly did you come to Camp Nou?"
"I told you. To win."
"But this is not a situation where you can win."
"You seem very impatient. It's still the early middle part of the season. The Copa del Rey remains."
"That damned Copa del Rey."
"Didn't we agree? That within two years I would show you how to defeat Real Madrid."
"Who has time to wait two years? By then Real Madrid will have seven consecutive league titles!"
"Then we will win the next eight."
"You speak recklessly since it's not your club."
"Rosell, you speak recklessly because you don't play on the pitch. The players on the field feel pressure far greater than you do. And I am the manager. Defeating a monstrous team like that requires at least that much time."
Mourinho, who had been resting his chin on his hand with a blank expression, stood up.
"If the owner of the ship does not trust the captain, what can I do?"
"Well."
"If you have nothing more to say, I'll leave. The match is about to start."
With that, Mourinho left the president's office.
He gazed through the window at the pitch with a melancholy expression, slipped his hands into his pockets, and sighed quietly.
"Damn it. I'm starting to miss that bald bastard."
Perhaps he would not last until next year.
For a moment, he began to miss the Premier League.
Camp Nou.
The phrase "hell for visiting teams" had long become outdated.
This place had practically become Real Madrid's sacred ground.
Since 2008, there had been nine El Clásicos.
Five league matches and four Supercopa de España matches.
The result was nine defeats in nine matches.
Barcelona had lost every single one.
Perhaps because of that, the stadium atmosphere was extremely tense even before kickoff.
9 p.m.
All 99,300 seats were filled.
Of those, 98,600 tickets belonged to Barcelona fans.
Only 700 seats were allocated to Real Madrid supporters.
Considering that away teams usually received three to five thousand seats, seven hundred was absurdly small.
Barcelona was risking everything for victory today.
In fact, something had already happened that morning.
[Barcelona fans caused a disturbance in front of Real Madrid's hotel early this morning. Around 4 a.m., they sang loudly for two hours, disturbing the players' sleep.
The songs included mocking lyrics such as "Ho-young's banana kick is strong because he loves bananas," and "Ronaldo is just a second star hidden behind an Asian player." They even insulted Ho-young's girlfriend Monica, calling her a terrible mixed breed with no traceable roots.
The greater controversy is the suspicion that the Barcelona city police responded slowly and may have effectively cooperated with the disturbance.]
The match was already heated before it began.
Barcelona fans mocked and intimidated the 700 away supporters confined to a corner on the third tier.
Fortunately, police were guarding the area.
If a riot broke out, it could easily turn into a disaster.
Everything felt serious.
The players were the same.
Barcelona's players stepped onto the pitch with grim expressions.
Their eyes were filled with determination.
They looked ready to risk everything for victory.
"I hope he doesn't get hurt..."
The guest section remained relatively quiet.
Monica had recently returned after finishing a world championship and winter training camp.
The seats were usually reserved for corporate executives, business partners, or famous guests, but thanks to Lucci's help she was able to sit there.
Her family was with her as well.
"He looks just as handsome as he does on television."
"Our son-in-law, good luck!"
"Dad!"
"Hahaha."
Monica's parents, who had flown in from Brazil after receiving Ho-young's invitation, watched him with warm smiles.
But Monica bit her lower lip nervously.
Only five minutes after kickoff, two yellow cards had already been shown.
Whenever Ho-young touched the ball, harsh tackles flew in from all directions.
"That's awful!"
To make matters worse, the referee seemed unusually lenient toward Barcelona.
Then something happened.
"Oh."
Ho-young's face appeared on the giant stadium screen.
Surprisingly, he was smiling faintly.
It looked as if he was enjoying the match.
Lucci leaned over slightly and spoke.
"Miss Monica, you see him smiling over there?"
"Yes. Why is he like that?"
"I think today might be one of those days."
"One of those days?"
"Ho-young is very skilled at controlling his condition."
"I see..."
"He once told me that sometimes there are days when his concentration and match sense reach extreme levels. On those days his mind and body reach their limits. When that happens, he unconsciously smiles like that. It's a form of self suggestion."
"Wow. That's amazing. So today..."
"Yes. Just looking at him, he seems especially light on his feet today."
"But I heard there was a disturbance in front of the hotel early this morning."
"Perhaps he's in good condition because you came to see him after such a long time."
"Oh... hehe."
Monica's pale cheeks turned red.
At that moment.
Smack.
"WOOOOOOOOOOO!"
The deafening boos of nearly one hundred thousand spectators echoed through the stadium.
It happened the moment Ho-young touched the ball.
(To be continued.)