Soccer System: All the Skills, One Player!

The coach of Chelsea's under-20 team was a middle-aged woman who greeted Alex with such a big smile that he was embarrassed, and the boys started teasing their colleague, whispering that the milf was watching him.

The assistant was a little disconcerted by the jokes and told the Brighton boys to focus on their warm-ups, because Chelsea was the favorite of winning the Youth Premier League.

That was also why Lucas was determined not to miss the game. Yes, it was only their second game as a team, and they were Team-B, but that didn't mean they couldn't do well and beat a great team. To prove it, Lucas was ready to give it his all on the pitch.

'I've got to make better use of the passes to complete when I'm able to do so. But I also have to remember that I'm an attacking midfielder.' he thought to himself.

Lucas was so preoccupied with warming up that he didn't even realize there were already a few eyes on him.

The Blues' coach, Marie Jones, and her principal assistant, a young adult called Oliver, were talking about Lucas.

"Is that kid the No7 that Mr Ferg told us about?" asked Marie, standing on the edge of the pitch.

Oliver fixed his glasses on his face and nodded. "Yes, ma'am. Lucas Tanaka is his name."

Mr Ferg was the coach of the Liverpool under-18s and had taught a subject at the academy where Marie Jones had studied to become a youth coach. Also, with so many years in the youth ranks, Mr Ferg had already worked at Chelsea too, including at U20 level.

"If I remember correctly, Mr. Ferg said he had a lot of attacking potential. But, he helped a little in defense." Oliver continued, complementing his previous answer.

"OK, that's being expected from such a young midfielder. Polarity is very common. If he was good defensively and offensively at the same time, every youth team in England would look for him," said Marie.

Though Marie seemed calm, she was curious. A random boy from Brighton's B-Team had caught Mr. Ferg's eye. Her old teacher had mentioned him in a casual phone call.

"All right, lads. Come forward!" said Eddie, clapping his hands, and they did as he asked. "That's it. Throw your waistcoats in this bag. Let's get ready to start the game."

As Brighton only had one color of kit left, Chelsea gave them the privilege of playing in their main kit: a blue shirt with white stripes and white shorts. Meanwhile, Chelsea played completely in black, which was the team's secondary uniform that season.

Once they were in position, Lucas looked around for his teammates.

Daniel was in defense, adjusting his socks as he always did before a big game.

Anton, the goalkeeper, was hitting the posts repeatedly, as if it were a ritual to diffuse the tension.

Raphael and Miguel warmed up on the flanks, while Denis stood next to Lucas and Arthur further forward.

The whistle blew loudly, announcing the start of the match. Chelsea against Brighton, and Lucas was right in the middle of it all. It was almost a dream.

"Focus, Felix," said Felix, adjusting the improvised armband Alex had given him before the game. "This is the moment."

Then, they placed the ball in the center of the pitch.

Eddie, their coach, shouted from the sidelines:

"Come on, Brighton! This is about attitude! Let's win!"

-:-

The first few minutes were intense. As expected, Chelsea started by pressing high. It was their style.

Their coach, Marie Jones, gestured a lot on the sidelines. She told the players to close their lines and stop Brighton's fast breaks. Lucas could see that they were organized: compact, fast, ferocious.

He dropped back to pick up the ball, but every time he did, there was an opposing midfielder to pressurize him.

Felix, the midfielder, tried to keep possession and turn the game, but his pass was too short. Mason Mount intercepted it with ease and took off towards the Brighton penalty area.

"Close it down! Close it down!" shouted Denis, retreating quickly with his eyes fixed on Mason.

Mason, however, was a different player. He didn't rush forward. Instead, he slowed down, waited for his teammates to move forward, and then made a perfect diagonal pass to Chelsea's left winger.

Loki went to cover, but his opponent's speed overcame him. A player sent a low cross towards the center of the box. Luckily, Anton was alert and rose to grab the ball before an opponent could head it in.

"Yes, Anton!" shouted Lucas.

The clock seemed to run faster than they would have liked.

Within ten minutes, Chelsea had already had two shots on goal, both saved by Anton, who was playing like never. On Brighton's side, however, they still hadn't found a way through the opposition defense.

Eddie gesticulated from the bench.

"Faster! Move! You're standing like cones!"

Lucas knew he was right, but it was easier said than done. When the ball came to him, for the first time with some space, he took a deep breath.

'Lucas, calm down. Use your head.'

He played it to Miguel, who was on the right. Miguel pulled the ball into the middle and tried to return it, but, again, the defense was strong. Lucas picked up the ball and was forced to play it back to Felix, who soon lost possession. Felix wasn't having a good game for some reason.

Chelsea counter-attacked more calmly. This time, Mason didn't have to make the pass; he took the shot himself. The ball went narrowly wide of the post, and the few spectators exhaled a collective sigh of both relief and frustration.

"Hey, Lucas," said Arthur when they met in the middle of the pitch. Arthur was sweating, but like Lucas, he hadn't had any chances yet. "They're good, but not invincible. We're giving them too much space to play further back. Try shooting from a distance sometimes and they'll focus more on you, giving us more opportunities."

Lucas nodded. He was right. They needed to impose their game and try to confuse the defense in some way.

So instead of waiting for the ball, Lucas moved around more, looking for the gaps. Little by little, Brighton regained their confidence.

Loki got in a dangerous cross from the right that almost found Miguel and Arthur in the box.

"That's it!" shouted Eddie. "Let's go! Keep pressing!"

Halfway through the first half, Brighton finally had their best chance. Arthur stole the ball in midfield and quickly played it to Lucas.

He looked ahead and saw Loki shooting from the right again. Lucas launched a deep pass.

Loki ran like lightning, reaching the ball before the Chelsea center-back. He crossed low, and Miguel, in the center of the box, deflected in a first-time shot.

For a second, time seemed to stop. The ball seemed destined to go in. However, the Chelsea goalkeeper made a spectacular save, stretching to push the ball away.

The save was incredible.

All the Brighton players, including Lucas, stopped for a moment in disbelief.

Miguel, who had already raised his arms in celebration, lowered his head in frustration.

"Come on! Get your heads up! We're getting close! Put pressure on them!" Eddie shouted.

As the Chelsea players reorganized themselves to take the goal kick, Lucas noticed Felix, the team captain, walking with his head down. He was panting, his face red not only from exertion, but something else seemed to bother him. Felix wasn't like that. Normally, he was the team's anchor, the one who kept his cool even under pressure. But that day, he seemed distant, unfocused.

Lucas approached him while the game was still at a standstill. "Hey, Felix. Everything okay?"

Felix glanced at Lucas, but quickly looked away. "I"' fine, Lucas. Just a bit tired."

"Yeah... But it's only the first half. You don't seem like the same guy who always shouts at us. Did something happen?"

Before Felix could answer, the whistle blew, signalling the resumption of play. He just shook his head and returned to his position, but his expression remained etched in Lucas' mind. Something was wrong, and this wasn't just about football.

The next few minutes were an intense battle in midfield. Chelsea seemed to want to slow the game down, while Brighton tried to push the pace.

Denis, who was playing alongside Lucas, whispered as they both ran towards the ball.

"Have you seen Felix? He's acting strange today, isn't he?"

"I don't know what it is, but it's affecting the way he plays. And he's our security guard."

"Try talking to him again at half-time. He'll listen to you more."

Lucas nodded, but the conversation was interrupted when Mason Mount received the ball. He swiveled with a first touch, breaking clear of Arthur's marking. Denis and Lucas ran to close the space, but Mount had already played the ball to the right winger, who took off at speed.

The cross came high into the center of the Brighton box.

Daniel rose well to head away from the danger, but the ball fell to a Chelsea midfielder on the edge of the box. He didn't think twice and shot low.

Anton stretched to his left and tipped the ball away for a corner.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Yes, Anton!" shouted Aidan as he clapped his hands.

Brighton cleared the danger after taking the corner.

Raphael tried to start a counter-attack, but was dispossessed. Possession returned to Chelsea, who resumed their build-up play.

Brighton didn't have any worse players, but they needed something, a spark, a chance.

It was then that Lucas spotted Felix misplacing another pass. It was a silly mistake, but a telling one. A wrong gear was affecting the entire team, which already had little experience together.

The opponent intercepted with ease, and Felix didn't even try to run back to correct it.

Lucas ran to cover, but it was too late. Luckily, Luiz intercepted the attack before they got close to the area.

"Felix!" Eddie shouted from the sidelines. "What's wrong with you, kid? Wake up!"

Felix just raised his arm in a gesture of apology, but said nothing. Eddie looked at Alex, the assistant, and exchanged a few quick words. Lucas couldn't hear what was said, but Eddie looked worried.

He was too. If things went on like this, Hillebrand would come on in place of Felix and that meant Lucas or Denis would have to play center back.

Brighton went in at half-time, still level on points, but the feeling was bittersweet. The team had had some good chances, but Chelsea was still more organized and dangerous. What they lacked was luck, and Lucas didn't even know what Brighton needed to impose themselves against them.