92 – The End of the Fairy Tale
092
Looking at Jo Jaeshin peering at his smartphone screen, his expression blurred, it seems he’s reminiscing about that day again.
“Wow… this came out really well. Where was this taken? From the stands? Or did a reporter take it?”
Mumbling to himself with a hazy expression, chuckling, he doesn’t appear entirely normal.
Joo Jitae simply clicked his tongue at the pitiful spectacle, a result of perhaps indulging in too much of whatever substance he had taken.
The high of victory wasn’t a curable illness as circulated by those around.
“Jooji, how’s this picture? Didn’t it perfectly capture the moment I raised the Meister Chalice? Looks so good.”
“Stop it already. You’ve been obsessing over your name searches all day since yesterday. Aren’t you sick of it?”
“Sick of it? Sick of this?”
In response to Joo Jitae’s sarcasm, Jo Jaeshin raised his eyes wide in disbelief.
“Are you sick of this? It’s not just any victory, it’s the Bundesliga victory, the Meister Chalice. This isn’t some middle school championship cup… Well, that time was good too, but this is different. Winning a cup right after my debut, and you’re saying you’re sick of it? Why? Why are you tired of this? It’s always so new, exhilarating.”
In his earnest inquiry, Joo Jitae shook his head disapprovingly.
If he were simply celebrating the victory, it’d be understandable, but this guy—
“Is this sense of novelty and exhilaration from the community’s response? Tone down that self-promotion. It’s really irritating.”
Not only endlessly searching his name or related keywords on the community but also shamelessly self-praising, honestly, it was… no, extremely pathetic.
“Look at the titles. ‘Jo Jaeshin, Sensational Debut, Jo Jaeshin Scores Double Digits Right After Debut, Jo Jaeshin’s Most Shocking Debut Season Ever, Jo Jaeshin Raises Meister Chalice Right After Debut as a Royal Loader… And look at the variety in the repertoire. What’s this? Jo Jaeshin meme? Ugh, disgusting. Aren’t you embarrassed?”
Jo Jaeshin was unabashed.
“Embarrassed? Not at all! What nonsense am I talking about? It’s all pure facts, pure facts. I base my writing strictly on facts. Nowadays, it’s the era of self-PR. What’s there to be embarrassed about.”
Joo Jitae sighed at the sincerity in Jo Jaeshin’s voice.
‘And this is the pinnacle of Korean football output…?’
Truly, the true face of the greatest player ever produced by Korean football made one’s heart swell with pride.
Where did it all go wrong?
“Ha… I don’t know.”
—
“By the way, you’ve been quiet lately?”
At the unexpected question from his friend, Ju Ji-tae responded indifferently.
“What’s up?”
“You used to go out alone at night, but these days, it’s quiet.”
He then mumbled to himself as if talking to himself.
“Indeed, it’s my sister Yeo-jin. I believed it.”
“….”
* * *
Although he had mocked Jo Jae-shin, it was clear that the Bundesliga victory had also given Ju Ji-tae a great thrill.
“Touching Victory! TSV 1860 Munich Takes the 1st Division Title in 68 Years”
“The completion of Munich’s fairy tale, with victory as its end.”
“(Photo) Captain Daniel Rout and Vice-Captain Matthias shedding tears.”
“The lion flag waving in downtown Munich! How did 1860 Munich become the hero of Meister Schale?”
Suddenly, as he snapped back to reality, he realized he was browsing through the victory articles himself.
‘A victory.’
Just now, he had criticized Jo Jae-shin, but in reality, wasn’t he no different?
With a bitter smile, Ju Ji-tae lay down on the ground.
‘Is it already 17 years?’
Starting from the Netherlands, through Spain, England, Germany, and back to Korea.
A career spanning 16 years, passing through many leagues and teams.
Even in the era of sports becoming more scientific, with players retiring later, a 16-year professional career was enough to boast as a veteran.
However, even in this long career, Ju Ji-tae had no connection with victory in the first round.
No, to be precise, he did have a winning record. It was a victory in a European league.
From Noble mtl dot com
‘That was in my second year at Chelsea.’
During his time at Chelsea, in his second year, he achieved victory in the Premier League.
However, the problem was that the number of games he played in his second year was less than 10. Not to mention the league alone, he played only single-digit games, including cup competitions.
Even the moment of victory, he was watching it on TV from the rehabilitation facility, so from Ju Ji-tae’s perspective, it didn’t feel like a real victory career.
He couldn’t even claim to have contributed to the victory as he hadn’t played much.
But this time was different.
No matter what anyone said, he was the protagonist of this victory.
As the protagonist of the team, the sense of achievement leading the team to victory was truly resonant. Though not as fanatical as Cho Jaeshin, it was evident that Ju Jitae also experienced a profound thrill, raising his spirits with Maestro Chale’s upliftment.
Even for the dry Ju Jitae, who was not easily moved, it was a subtle tremor that made even his heart flutter. The romantic excitement he thought had now cooled down.
“When I first came to this team, it was just a stepping stone…”
Yes, romance.
While football has significantly grown riding the waves of commercialization and globalization, the concept of romance has become increasingly elusive in the face of the harsh reality. Players no longer remain loyal to the club, and the club views players strictly through a business lens, not clinging to romance.
Romance, crushed before the walls of science, rationality, capital, and reality, still persists in a corner of the hearts of many football fans, refusing to disappear.
“The quality of the squad is terrible. The training facilities and stadium are subpar, and the salaries are mere crumbs. A club like this, one year is more than enough.”
Thanks to Coach Willem, he could freely soar from the debut, but well…
Would it have been different with another coach? Certainly, it would have. A coach who pays attention to and respects young players like Willem is not so common in Europe. However, if it weren’t for Ju Jitae’s skill, he wouldn’t have been able to fly freely as he does now, taking on crucial roles anywhere.
…But, it wouldn’t have been easy.
He wouldn’t have been able to change tactics as he pleased during the game or run away freely.
Was it due to the challenging physical condition?
Or perhaps the result of winning with his own strength was so sweet.
Lost in a strange thrill—
“…Emotions are temporary.”
Ju Jitae was still a dry person.
Unable to surrender to romance.
While Ju Jitae was contemplating between romance and reality, there were also others pondering between romance and reality.
“Oh, true. The fairy tale ends, and harsh reality hits right away. The fairy tales I’ve seen weren’t like this.”
“That’s because fairy tales quickly come to an end. The more the epilogue continues, the less beautiful it becomes.”
It was none other than the board members of 1860 Munich.
“Darn it. The season hasn’t even ended, and there are already transfer inquiries.”
“…It’s a sad reality that we want to stop but can’t. This must be the fairy tale in real life.”
The fairy tale of winning the Bundesliga immediately after promotion from the second division was undoubtedly beautiful, but Bodin had no time to be enchanted by the fleeting dream of the fairy tale. The fairy tale hadn’t even ended, but the harsh reality was already rushing in.
“How many players have inquired?”
“Up to now, three.”
“This won’t be the end, will it?”
“After the season, even the clubs we were watching will come running. There are too many players to watch, and there’s not much we can do.”
It had only been two days since Maître Chalé was introduced.
Board Jin’s joy couldn’t last more than two days.
“…Can we keep Ju and Jo?”
“Difficult. Very difficult.”
“There’s still plenty of contract time left, so if we reject—”
“Tsk. Is that even possible? It’s just hurting the players’ feelings for nothing. Besides, they have buyout clauses. Rumors spread quickly, too.”
“In that case, what about top-tier salary treatment and a certain percentage for transfer fees! This should be enough…”
“….”
“…I see.”
It was the limitation of financially struggling small and medium-sized clubs, and the cold reality that had erased the romance from the football world didn’t wait for a fairy-tale ending.
The era of romance was over.
But even though it was over—
“Still, we have to try until the end. Let’s hope the players appreciate our sincerity.”
Even so, it was a reality that one had to grapple with.
Two days since Maître Chalé was introduced.
The board of 1860 Munich had to reluctantly shake their heads with a bitter smile.
* * *
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