Three days had passed. It was now the day before the match.
The boys of the men's soccer team stood on the field, facing Coach Ishii and Coach Suzuki.
Coach Ishii scanned the players carefully. Then, in a firm, commanding voice, he spoke:"The game is tomorrow. I will now announce the starting lineup."
Tension hung in the air. Every player's heartbeat seemed to echo in anticipation.
"We'll play 4-4-2… Goalkeeper: Andou. Central defenders: Aoki and Noguchi. Fullbacks: right, Ueno; left, Sugimoto. Central midfielders: Ono and Tamura. Wingers: right, Shimizu; left, Tanaka… And our forwards: Nishimura, who will play slightly behind the striker… who will be—"
Kaneko's eyes locked on Coach Ishii without blinking."Aliberti," Ishii finished.
Kaneko let out a frustrated sigh, Noguchi watching quietly from nearby.
"Noguchi!"
Hearing his name, Noguchi turned toward the coach.
"You'll be the captain."
Noguchi froze for a moment. Then determination spread across his face."I'll do it!"
"Good. Practice begins!" Ishii barked.
As usual, the team left the training ground completely exhausted.
[Later, in the locker room.]
After showering, Kaneko grabbed his bag and quickly left, all eyes on him.
Noguchi followed.
"Kaneko!"
Kaneko stopped and turned. "What do you want?"
"You know… technically I could wear the captain's armband tomorrow… but as long as you're on this team, that armband is still yours."
"So what?"
"That means the team still needs you! Stay focused… you've still got cards to play!"
Kaneko sighed, annoyed."Ugh… who do you think you're talking to?" He started walking toward the exit. "Of course I'll take back the armband and my starting spot. This is my team!"
Noguchi couldn't help but smile faintly.He made me give that embarrassing speech for nothing…
Riccardo approached Noguchi.
"Kaneko!"
Kaneko heard him but didn't turn, continuing to walk.
"I'm never giving up this starting spot… If you want it, you'll have to give more than 100%!"
"We'll see!" Kaneko replied without slowing down.
Riccardo nodded, satisfied.
Noguchi placed a hand on Riccardo's shoulder and guided him toward the locker room."Let's go. Even if tomorrow is only a friendly… we face the best."
Riccardo nodded, following him."Yes…"
[That evening, Riccardo returned home.]
"I'm home!"
His mother's voice came from the living room."Welcome back!"
He entered and kissed her on the cheek."I'll be back later tomorrow."
His father emerged from his room.
"Why?"
He was about 1.78 meters tall, bald with a beard, and had dark green eyes.
"We have a friendly tomorrow. We're playing away."
His father sat on the couch."I see… who are you playing against?"
"Maebashi Ikuei. From what I've heard, they won the national championships last year."
His mother's eyes widened."That's going to be a tough match! I'll make a nice dinner for after the game!"
Riccardo smiled."Don't overdo it, though…"
He glanced around. "Did Cecilia go out with Sasha?"
"Yes… And I heard you convinced her to join the music club. Good job." His father turned on the TV.
"It wasn't hard… she has talent. It'd be a shame if she didn't share it."
Riccardo checked his phone and started walking down the hall."I'm going to my room. Call me when dinner's ready."
His mother watched him go."Okay."
Once in his room, Riccardo's mother turned on the stove under a large pot of water and settled onto the couch.
"Our children are full of talent…" she said with pride.
"Yes… Since moving to Japan, I can finally agree with you. The environment they had in Italy didn't help at all," his father added.
"It's especially good for Riccardo… I never liked the friends he had in Italy."
His father nodded."Luckily, he's always stayed out of trouble, like me. Though I'm sure he still misses Italy and his friends…"
Riccardo sat on his bed, controller in hand, playing a video game, trying to focus before tomorrow's challenge.