Chapter 114: Chasing the Midfield
Saturday, July 10, 2010
The morning sun clawed through Crawley's thick gray clouds, spilling a faint golden glow over Broadfield Stadium's muddy pitches.
Niels arrived early, his boots crunching on the gravel path, the sharp tang of wet grass and morning dew filling his lungs.
The transfer window was a relentless storm.
Luka Radev was deal done to Parma, his absence a fresh scar.
Max Simons had been wrestling with Levante's seductive La Liga offer.
His old backpack carried a notebook with creased pages full of plans and names Paul Pogba, James Dunne, John Lundstram circled in red, alongside a worn book on football psychology.
He ran his fingers over the worn note in his pocket, its message long memorized.
On the field, movement flowed around a central rhythm, Thiago's unpredictable brilliance, Dev Patel's darting runs, and Jamal Osei, the pivot, steady and unshaken, holding it all together.
