Seven months had passed since Tyler's system had awakened. He had followed the system's training plan and the changes were quite evident. Tyler stood in front of a mirror, his top half bare and stared at his physique, admiring his very defined biceps and six-pack abs. He flexed a little bit.
"Bro, I swear to god if I see you in front of this mirror again, I'm calling a nuthouse on you". Jason said as he pushed Tyler away from the range of the mirror.
In the seven months that passed, the system encouraged Tyler to join a grassroots academy, and that was exactly what Tyler did. He joined the Rising Stars Academy, a football academy that wasn't too far off from his house. He had been training with them for quite a while now and had made lots of friends in the locker room. Jason was one of them.
"If your body looked half as good, you would do the same". Tyler smiled as he changed into his training wear.
The Rising Style Academy, even though it was a grassroots academy, had facilities that was comparable to some clubs in the championship. It was obvious that whoever built it put in a lot of effort. For one, they trained both boys and girls and even had a school that the players enrolled in the academy went to so that they could be in an optimal environment for football training.
They had branches scattered about in the country, but this was their main branch, and obviously so. They were quite reputable when it came to the development of young talents, with several clubs around Europe often coming to shop from them.
It was also quite expensive. Fortunately for him, his youth club history was enough to allow Tyler get admitted on a scholarship which depended on his performance. Luckily, he performed well enough and the coaches were astonished by his hard work and rapid improvements. He quickly became one of the starters of their under eighteens' division.
The only down side about everything for Tyler was the fact that the academy required everyone to live inside dormitory facilities. He didn't want to stay away from his grandma but it was the only way,
It was once again time for training, the assistant coaches were busying setting up training cones and dummies on the smaller pitches which surrounded the main training pitch where the head coach was waiting in the center.
Tyler and Jason walked out of the locker room and onto the pitch, joining those who had already arrived, standing in front of the head coach. Within two minutes, the squad was complete.
"Alright everyone". James, the head coach started. "The next game is against a very tough opponent, Valhalla Academy. They're one of the best teams in the state, and they're the hurdle in our way to the final of the Next Gen competition".
Tyler's jaw clenched when James mentioned the name of the competition. The Next Gen competition was a tournament organized by various English clubs. Its aim was to help grassroots academy players gain exposure. They had scouts from clubs all over Europe as well as quite a few local scouts. It was like a once in a lifetime opportunity for the players here even with Rising Stars Academy's exposure.
This had the potential to be Tyler's big break. If he did well enough, then he could be scouted by a top club and with the system assisting him, he was very sure that he'd do very well. At least, he wouldn't be released again.
"I need you all to remember that this competition could very well be your ladder into the world of professional football. I look at every one of you in training and I think that each and every single one of you has what it takes to make it as a pro. But for not it doesn't matter what I think, what matters is what the scouts that watch you think". James continued talking. "So in a week, when we take on Valhalla Academy, I need each and every single one of you to go out there and show them what you've got. Not for me, but for yourselves".
And then after a few seconds, he added. "Plus the academy needs the funds from the compensation so..."
His remark at the end of the speech earned a few chuckles from the players.
After he finished talking, everyone split into four groups; goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and forwards.
The way James focused on preparing them for the match, he focused more on positional drills than training collectively and tactics. He felt that the priority for them at the stage they were in was to master the basics, rather than cramming a lot of tactics.
The forwards did basic sprint drills, dribbling drills, crossing drills and then attacking scenarios to test their finishing and decision making in the final third.
Tyler excelled at all the drills that they were made to practice. The training plan that the system tailored for him made it so that he was very good at repetitive training exercises. At a point, it was like muscle memory to him.
After he signed with the Rising Stars Academy, it adjusted the training plan and removed most of the drills that he would still do during training and focused on developing him physically. Thanks to the routines, he was one of the most physically developed players in the team, and it helped him a lot during the tournament.
When everyone had completed their respective drills, James called them back to the center and divided the squad into five five-a-side teams, working on their ability to retain the ball under pressure while trying to build squad chemistry. He also believed that player chemistry was very important. No one could play well with teammates they didn't know.
After the five-a-side games, the training session was concluded. James gathered everyone at the center of the pitch and after another pep talk, he dismissed training.
Tyler went back to the locker room and took a shower. After he finished, he wore his clothes and went back to his dorm. As soon as he entered his room, he dropped his training bag on the floor.
"System, I want- what the..."