Mike first ran back to the locker room, saying he had to use the bathroom so as to arouse suspicion by standing in the middle of the stationary pitch.
When he got to the bathroom, he immediately looked up his soccer points and saw that they were 10.
He then opened his player stats.
/PLAYER STATS/ info
/ Name: Mike Wager.
Status: Youngster with good future prospects.
Defense: Level 40
Midfield: Level 51
Attack: Level 52
Speed: 4/10
Stamina: 3/10
Strength: 3/10
Vision: 7/10
Skills: No skills acquired.
/
Mike looked intently at his stats, initially surprised by how low they were, but then he remembered that he was 13 years old, and stats like that were considered high for his age.
He opened the info section in the top right and a screen with all the necessary information appeared before his eyes.
/Info/
/ Defense, midfield, and attack stats range from Level 30 for untalented players to Level 100 for football legends.
Speed, endurance, strength, and vision are attributes that range from 1 to 10, with 10/10 representing the human limit. /
Immediately after reviewing the stats and memorizing them, he opened the goals section.
/GOALS/
/ Complete practice with the team. 2 points in soccer. /
*Hmm, so for now I only have one goal, I probably need to complete this one to make another one appear and earn more football points*
He immediately returned to the pitch to train with his teammates.
Having seen the years to come, he immediately identified his most talented teammates.
He hadn't thought about it until this moment that he was about to train with Josh Acheampong, a defender born in 2006, and Charlie Holland, a midfielder born in 2009, only 11 years old, who later became captain of the under-14 team and then promoted to the first team in 2026.
"Hey, captain, you're finally back from the bathroom. Come on, come to training," Charlie said as soon as he saw him.
*It's true that right now I'm the captain of this team and I'm the one with the most skills and the best future prospects. If it hadn't been for that stupid injury...*
*Well, there's no point in thinking about it, now I'm back here on the pitch and I can change in the future, let's train* thought Mike. After practice, he went home to eat with his parents.
"How did practice go? Did you have fun?" his mother asked him as they sat at the table eating.
"As always, Mom, you know I have a bright future."
The three of them laughed.
After finishing their meal, he went back to his room, as he was super excited to see the store section of the system.
/+2 points soccer training objective completed/
/SHOP/
/
Speed increase: 100 points
Stamina increase: 40 points
Strength increase: 40 points
Vision increase: 160 points
Croqueta: 50 points
Ronaldo chop: 50 points
Cruyff turn: 80 points
Step-over: 80 points
V move: 80 points
Rabona: 100 points
Marseille roulette: 100 points
Okocha turn: 100 points
Flip-flap: 150 points
Rainbow flick: 150 points
Seal dribble: 150 points
Whipped cross: 50 points
Lofted cross: 50 points
Driven cross: 100 points
First-time cross: 100 points
Trivela cross: 150 pts
Curled shot: 50 pts
Whipped shot: 100 pts
Trivela shot: 100 pts
Dipping shots: 150 pts
Knuckleball: 150 pts
Physical challenge: 50 pts
Standing tackle: 50 pts
Cutting passing lines: 100 pt
Anticipation: 150 pts
Slide tackle: 150 pts
/
/EVERY SKILL PURCHASED WILL BE 100% LEARNED. EVEN THE MOST CLASSIC AND "SIMPLE" SKILLS CAN BE DEVASTATING IF 100% LEARNED./
Mike analyzed the store page and realized that the cost of the four attributes (speed, stamina, strength, and vision) depended on their scores listed on the player stats page. For example, 3/10 stamina cost 1 point in soccer 40 points.
However, when stats exceeded 5/10, the cost was double, as were speed and vision. He immediately went to sleep.
The next day he woke up and immediately received an objective notification.
/ Daily Goal: Complete 50 push-ups Complete a 5km run Complete a 10-minute plank 5 pts /
*I have to complete this goal tonight after dinner, and starting tomorrow I'll wake up an hour early to complete it because school takes up half my day. Doing it after dinner every day is unsustainable because I'm already tired from training.*
After school, he had a snack as usual, headed to training, and completed the daily goal after dinner.
From the next day, Mike adopted the same routine: wake up at 7 a.m., complete the daily goal, school at 8:30 a.m., snacks, Chelsea training at 5:30 p.m., dinner, and then off to bed.
The only change was Sunday, which was the day of the Category 1 Academy regional group matches.
FOUR MONTHS LATER
"Mike, wake up, you have to get ready for the game."
He woke up; it was the first Sunday in May, and today was the final of the Premiere League U14 National Cup, a crucial match against Arsenal that Mike couldn't afford to miss.
He packed his bag for the match and ate a quick breakfast.
"Mum, you're coming to watch the match, right? It's the final," he asked.
"Of course, my love, I'm coming. I'll cheer you on. Come on, Mike."
They set off in the car, headed for the final. "Mike, you'll play left wing, as always.
As I've always told you, try to drop back into defence as much as possible, and in attack, do what you know how. I trust you."
"Thanks, coach," Mike replied to James Simmonds.
Before entering the pitch, he gave Charlie a high five.
After greeting the referees and the Arsenal players, the match began.
Welcome to the U14 National Cup final.
The two finalists are Arsenal, with their super midfielder Ethan Nwaneri, and Chelsea, with their left-wing magician Mike Wager.
This match promises to be a heated and hard-fought affair.
And here's the risk at the start.
"Arsenal immediately pressed after kick-off. What an aggressive press, spectators. Chelsea moves the ball around.
Holland has the ball, faces the man, and beats him. It could be a chance for Chelsea."
"It goes without saying that Arsenal wins the ball back.
Chelsea midfielder Charlie Holland, who just created this wonderful chance for his team, is looking like a star midfielder."
Minute 30, first half:
*I have to score, there are only 5 minutes left until halftime. If we remain 0-0, it looks like a tough match.*
Yes, readers, U14 matches last 70 minutes in total.
Since the team couldn't provide Mike with a dangerous opportunity, he decided to create one himself.
The ball returned to the center of the pitch in Arsenal's possession.
Mike, thanks to his high vision, was able to predict a direct pass to Nwaneri and sprint down the left flank.
"Wager intercepts a powerful ball in midfield and sprints.
Nwaneri chases him, what a challenge this is between these two phenomenal players.
The Arsenal winger tries to catch him with a slide tackle."
"Wagerrrr, how he outdid him, this little champion is a monster. Wager is very close to the penalty area, but Nwaneri has recovered him. He quickly moves inside and shoots."
"Goollllllllllllllllll, Wager, the Chelsea captain, with a beautiful shot gives Chelsea a 1-0 lead."
After running to the corner to celebrate, Mike was immediately knocked to the ground and covered by his teammates.
After everyone celebrated together, Mike headed towards his mother's seat in the stands, who immediately gave him a happy thumbs-up.