2025-02-20, 08:58 AM - Word count: 544
A disaster. That was the only thing Predrag could say as his opinion on the Stockholm match. To say the team failed would be an understatement, but more than that Predrag felt responsible that he couldn't produce anything in attack, not even a goal to reduce the severity of the loss. Predrag was now desperate to get revenge against Stockholm but that would have to wait, he had a match against Jakarta to look forward to now. Jakarta is a good side, they were honestly unlucky do not produce any results so far, so Predrag couldn't count them out even if they were bottom of the league currently.
Predrag threw himself into a new training plan, he cut back the hours of game watching to a minimum so that he could only focus on physical development. It was clear to him that he simply wasn't good enough as a player to try to outthink his opponent, he could only try to outplay them. The team as a whole revised their game plan, all trying to focus more on exactly what they could bring to the team so that they could all work together perfectly.
Predrag wouldn't admit it to his teammates but he felt small in comparison to his partners on attack. He thought both Davidović and Dohbra would do a better job as goal scorers than him. He wanted to turn in his number 9 to play on the wing instead and offer the position to one of them, but he couldn't. That would reflect poorly on the club, they chose him after all and he needed to repay that.
The only option left was for Predrag to improve drastically as a player as fast as possible and for the club to reevaluate its tactical choices. The team was almost complete now, the only thing they were missing was a final defender option, but as a whole they were good enough to top the league. So they needed to try. It wasn't about looking good for the upcoming draft, they wanted to win the Academy league because they knew they were good enough.
Predrag showed up at the training pitch earlier than anyone as always but something different was on his mind. Despite trying to repress the memory of that horrible Stockholm match, one thing flashed inside his mind. A young Istanbul fan asked him for his shirt. Predrag was confused to say the least, to ask for his shirt after such a horrid performance was odd in his mind. He didn't even give it on the first match day when he won the Player of the Match award. He looked at the young fan and put on his best smile as he gave him the jersey and thanked him for the support. He normally never gave out shirts because he was an Academy player, so that would be going out of his own pocket, but in that moment he couldn't disappoint a fan even more.
Predrag made a vow to Istanbul and all their fans to never let a humiliation like that happen again. He had no ill will towards Jakarta, but they were about to be a victim in his journey of revenge.
Predrag threw himself into a new training plan, he cut back the hours of game watching to a minimum so that he could only focus on physical development. It was clear to him that he simply wasn't good enough as a player to try to outthink his opponent, he could only try to outplay them. The team as a whole revised their game plan, all trying to focus more on exactly what they could bring to the team so that they could all work together perfectly.
Predrag wouldn't admit it to his teammates but he felt small in comparison to his partners on attack. He thought both Davidović and Dohbra would do a better job as goal scorers than him. He wanted to turn in his number 9 to play on the wing instead and offer the position to one of them, but he couldn't. That would reflect poorly on the club, they chose him after all and he needed to repay that.
The only option left was for Predrag to improve drastically as a player as fast as possible and for the club to reevaluate its tactical choices. The team was almost complete now, the only thing they were missing was a final defender option, but as a whole they were good enough to top the league. So they needed to try. It wasn't about looking good for the upcoming draft, they wanted to win the Academy league because they knew they were good enough.
Predrag showed up at the training pitch earlier than anyone as always but something different was on his mind. Despite trying to repress the memory of that horrible Stockholm match, one thing flashed inside his mind. A young Istanbul fan asked him for his shirt. Predrag was confused to say the least, to ask for his shirt after such a horrid performance was odd in his mind. He didn't even give it on the first match day when he won the Player of the Match award. He looked at the young fan and put on his best smile as he gave him the jersey and thanked him for the support. He normally never gave out shirts because he was an Academy player, so that would be going out of his own pocket, but in that moment he couldn't disappoint a fan even more.
Predrag made a vow to Istanbul and all their fans to never let a humiliation like that happen again. He had no ill will towards Jakarta, but they were about to be a victim in his journey of revenge.
![[Image: KYA7aL7.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/KYA7aL7.jpg)
