The ball evaded the wall as it curved into the top right corner of the goal.
Nobody moved. Not the goalkeeper. Not the coaches. Not the other players.
The silence was broken by the applause of one person — João.
He walked up to Lukas who was still looking at the ball with a smile on his face.
"Bro, you really are a completely different player from before. How did you do that?" João asked as he put his hands around Lukas’ shoulders.
"I practiced like hell." Lukas responded with a smile as he shook off João’s hand.
"C’mon. Tell me the secret—I want to be as good as you." João asked, teasingly.
"Trust me bro, you will be." Lukas responded as he thought back at João’s career in his previous life.
"If someone like him had gotten the system, how much farther would he have gone?"
"Oh don’t patronize me. I know myself. I’m not that good." João said as he rolled his eyes.
"Keep training, and you’ll definitely be better." Lukas said, seriously.
And João immediately knew that Lukas meant what he said. It’s not like he didn’t believe in his own abilities, but João knew his limits. Or rather, he thought he did.
But Lukas had seen the player João became, and was quick to dismiss any thoughts of being untalented.
By the time João had retired, he was recognized as one of the best defenders in the world, and was definitely the best from Portugal as per a poll conducted during his final season as a player.
"Lukas, can I speak to you?" A voice came from behind Lukas and João who were still having a discussion about how Lukas had scored the free kick.
They both turned around to find coach Patrick approaching them.
"Yes coach, I hope there’s no problem." Lukas responded.
"I’ll leave you guys to talk." João said as he stepped out.
"No problem at all Lukas. I just wanted to talk to you about the chances of rejoining the academy." Patrick began the talk he had been wanting to have from the previous training session.
"But sir, isn’t the club still talking about cutting losses after the way the previous season ended?"
"Yes. Leave that to me. I will explain to them that losing a player like you will be the real loss for the club."
"I will think about it sir."
Lukas had not forgotten the love he’s had from the club. A club which had been his home since he was 7. For close to a decade.
But he also had not forgotten about the heartbreak when he was dropped. And the way most of his previous life had started going downhill from the time he was dropped — though mostly his fault.
But the main point, was deciding if joining the U17 team at SV98 was the best move for his career. He had a connection to the club, and made friends in his many years at the club. But if he wanted to achieve his goals in this second life, the first consideration would be his footballing career.
And he had to answer the question ’is rejoining SV98 the best move for his career right now?’
And at that moment, the answer to that question didn’t seem to be a resounding ’YES.’
"If you keep up this level for the upcoming season, I could get you into the reserves—you might even get some first-team football before the end of the season." Patrick added as he studied Lukas who was in deep thought.
Lukas wasn’t dumb. He knew Marco was watching. He knew Marco was connected to several clubs’ academies.
With his current performance, he knew he could comfortably play at the U19 or U23 levels in top Bundesliga academies. Or even be a starter for a Bundesliga team at the lower end of the table.
But he had ambitions. He wanted to be a part of something big. TT had brought him hope, so he wanted to prove that it wasn’t wasted on him.
"Thank you for your interest, sir. I will definitely think about it and also talk to my father, and my new agent, about the best move for me." Lukas replied as he pointed to Marco Kasten who was now walking towards the duo.
"What are you guys discussing so intensely?" Marco said in a playful tone and a smile as he walked up to them.
"None of your business Marco. I am just coaching my player."
"Well, he is not your player Pat. He is my client." Marco replied with a grin.
"Oh? So he’s my agent now huh? Cunning old man." Lukas thought as he looked at Marco.
"No he’s not your client Marco, and even if he was, it’s not like I’m trying to steal your client. I am just trying to get him back into the club." Patrick chimed in.
"Did you give him a reply yet?" Marco asked Lukas.
"No, I said I’ll think about it."
"Good." Marco said to Lukas, then turned to Patrick.
"I’m assuming today’s training is over, right? I have a lot to discuss with my client."
"Yes it is, for Lukas at least. We have to do some tactical analysis and training. But unfortunately Lukas can not be a part of that."
"Okay that’s good. Luke, go freshen up, let’s find a place to iron out the details of our deal." Marco said as he faced Lukas.
"Alright, I will be back in about twenty minutes." Lukas responded as he walked out to training ground.
"Hey Lukas! Wait up!"
A voice called out his name from behind, as the sound of cleats on grass grew closer.
Lukas stopped mid stride and turned around to see who was calling.
"Wesley? What does he want with me this time?" Lukas thought.
"Hey Luks. What you did back there was sick man!"
"Luks? When did I get that nickname? And when did Wesley and I become friends?"
He had known Wesley for a longer time in his present life than he has’t, but Wesley had never called him anything other than ’Lukas.’
But now, after a couple great training sessions, he was called ’Luks.’
"Hey Wesley. What’s up? Is there a problem?"
"No, there isn’t, bro. I just wanna apologize for the things I said in the previous training session."
Lukas looked at him for a few seconds in silence.
"It’s alright. No hard feelings."
"Really? Thanks a lot man. I don’t know what made me say all those things."
"Yeah, really—it’s fine. Things like these happen, especially when adrenaline is pumping. Don’t sweat it."
Although Wesley showed unsportsmanlike behavior in the previous training session, he was the captain of the team for a reason. And worse of all, he was still a kid—at least when compared to Lukas who was mentally 20 years his senior.
"Alright bro. By the way, where are you going? Won’t you stay for the tactical training?" Wesley asked Lukas.
"Yeah I’d love to, but unfortunately I am not a member of the academy anymore."
"I’m sure coach Patrick is already thinking of ways to communicate to the academy manager to bring you back in. Because if even you can’t make it into the academy, then we’re all screwed."
"Haha.. Thanks for the compliments. We’ll see about if I will be back. Marco is waiting for me, I gotta go take a shower." Lukas responded as he walked off.
"Hey Lukas." Wesley called out.
Lukas turned to look at him.
"We’ll be happy to have you back in the team."
Lukas headed to the locker room.