During the time when Eric called her, she was in the kitchen preparing breakfast for her family. And as Eric introduced himself, Momo turned off the gas stove and sat down at the dining table.
“Hello Mr.Parker. How may I help you?”
“Thank you for your precious time Mrs.Takahashi. I’m sure by now you may have already guessed the reason behind this call. So I won’t beat around the bush and say it to you directly. I’m interested in your son and I’d like to sign him.” Eric stated bluntly without beating around the bush.
While talking with principal Miyamoto, Eric had learned from him that Hiro’s mother was a smart straightforward lady who was not fond of people talking in circles. Thus, he expressed his desire without delaying any further.
Hearing his reply, she paused for a while. With her brows drawing closer and face tightening, she began to think.
Even though she didn’t know much about football, she knew the meaning behind his words. She had been learning about football in her spare time to be of help to her son.
“I very well understand your interest towards my son Mr.Parker. But you know he’s still 10 years old, right? And he’s still attending elementary school. So isn’t it a bit too soon for that?” Hiro’s mother inquired. Even though she was a person who was very fond of money, she wasn’t the type of person who’d recklessly gamble her son’s future. She prioritised his wellbeing more than anything else.
“I’m very well aware of your concerns towards your son Mrs.Takahashi. And I’m well aware of his age too. But Mrs. Takahashi here in Europe exceptional players gets scouted by agent’s even before they make it to the professional stage.”
“But still…, Isn’t it a bit too soon for him to move to Europe?” Momo expressed her concerns.
She was hesitant to send her son away to some foreign country before his 18th birthday. However she was also very well aware of her son’s interest and talent in football.
Thus, despite her unwillingness to send him away, she was somewhat prepared to go with him, if it could help him elevate his career.
“Hahaha… No Mrs Takahashi you’ve got it all wrong. He won’t be moving to Europe until he turns 18. So you can be at ease regarding that matter. And there’s also this rule in Europe that forbids club to sign foreign players who have not turned 18. I only want to sign Hiro for now and help him elevate his career in Japanese football. And only after he’ll turn 18, I’ll present him to the clubs in Europe.” Eric laughed heartily and helped her clear her doubts.
Eric’s words convinced her. She was relieved to hear that he wouldn’t need to move to Europe right away.
“So Mrs.Takahasi would you be interested in my offer?” Eric added.
“Would it be possible for me to give you the answer after I discuss it with my husband and son? Since this concerns the future of my son, so I’d like to talk to him before giving you my answers.”
“You can take all the time you want Mrs.Takahashi. Since I’d be visiting Hiro’s school tomorrow, you can give me your answer tomorrow at the school.”
**** ****
Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
Nissan stadium
The grasses in the pitch were reflecting the golden rays of morning sun. Still relatively closer to the horizon, the morning rays of sun had casted a silhouette of the stadium at one end of the pitch. While the other end was lit with the bright illuminating light of the sun.
With one end of the pitch covered in the shade and another end engulfed in the bright rays of morning sun, a match was taking place in the stadium.
Group of players in red and green bibs were competing among themselves.
At the sidelines, a man in his early fourties was seen yelling at the players infront. Dressed in a comfortable green tracksuit, he wore a very stern expression in his face.
“What are you doing Shunta? You’re timing is way too slow. You need to move faster in order to shake off your mark.”
With a relatively short stature, he was about 5 feet 6 inches tall. And with a relatively tanned skin, his frenzy outgrown beard and messy medium length black hair gave away the impression of a homeless person.
His lush black eyebrows made his double lid eye even more appealing. However the eye bags under his eyes gave away the impression of sleep deprivation. As if he was deprived of sleep for days, the eye bags underneath his eyes were pretty intense.
While he was yelling at the players, another man in his mid thirties with a relatively average looking appearance made his way towards the pitch. Dressed in torquoise blue shirt and casual grey pants, he made his way towards the pitch while carrying a tablet in his hand.
Neatly combed hair and clean shaven face, he gave away the vibe of a typical Japanese salary man.
“Manager Tatsuya!! Manager Tatsuya!! I need to show you something.” The man exclaimed as he got closer to the man at the sidelines.
The man in the sidelines was the manager of the youth team of Yokohama F. Marinos.
Yokohama F. Marionos was a team which belonged to the first division league of Japanese professional football leagues. Having already won three league titles, they were one of the powerhouse football team of J-1.
And that man Tatsuya Kaido was the manager of the U-18 team of Yokohama F. Marinos. Still only 42 years old, he was one of the youngest manager in the league.
It was already impressive for him to coach such a big team at his age in Japan. Yet what was even more amazing was the fact that he had one of the highest level coaching license in Japan. He had a S class coaching license which allowed him to coach even the professional teams of J-1.
“What is it this time Haruki?” Tatsuya replied while sounding all annoyed.
The average looking man with the tablet in his hand was the youth scout ‘Haruki Mitsuya’ of Yokohama F. Marinos. Already in his mid thirties, he was a very enthusiastic man.
“You need to watch this…” He exclaimed as he played the video of the match between Ookami elementary school and Tokyo elementary school.
“What’s special in it? It’s just a bunch of kids running for the ball.” He exclaimed as he tried to shrugg him off.
“Tatsuya san!! Just watch this for once.” Haruki pleaded.
Hearing his plea, Tatsuya could no longer ignore him. And thus he began to watch the video of the match.
“That number 10 kid looks really good.” He exclaimed while watching the video. “His techniques, his dribble, his vision, the way he controls the ball and dictates the pace of the game. It feels like I’m watching prime Zidane himself.” Tatsuya mumbled in awe.
“It’ll get even more interesting. Just keep watching.” Haruki had compiled important highlights from the match between Ookami elementary school and Tokyo elementary school, so that Tatsuya wouldn’t need to watch the whole match. 𝙚𝙙𝙤𝒗𝒆𝒍．𝒄𝙤𝙢
“Woah!! Are these guys even students? That defender from opposing team is good too.” While the rest of the players were pretty average, he couldn’t stop himself from praising Akutsu and Hiro.
“No wonder you’re the coach of the U-18 team of Yokohama F. Marinos. You could spot the star players with a single glance.” Haruki mumbled in awe.
After watching the whole video, Tatsuya revealed a wide grin. Tatsuya suddenly grabbed Haruki’s shoulder and looked him in the eyes. “I want these two players Haruki. Get me these two players.” He exclaimed with great excitement.
“But Tatsuya san one of those players belongs to Tokyo elementary school.” Haruki excalaimed while trying to break free from his hold.
“Huh elementary school?” Tatsuya bewilderingly questioned.
“Yes Tatsuya san. The match you just watched is the final match of the national elementary school tournament.”
“Huh!! I thought they’d at least be in middle school. Has elementary school level football progressed this far already in Japan?” Tatsuya gave Haruki a perplexing look. “Then how old are these kids?”
“The defender is already 13 and he’ll be graduating elementary school this year. However the attacking midfielder you’re so interested in is only 10 years old. He’ll be graduating elementary school next year.”
“Huh only 10 years old? And he’s that good?” Tatsuya couldn’t believe that Hiro was only 10 years old after witnessing his gameplay. “At least we can still recruit the defender next year.”
“Uhh- about that! He’ll most like join the academy of Tokyo FC since he’s from Tokyo.” Haruki intoned.
“Damn!! We’ll face even more tough opponents next year. It’s kinda sad we won’t get to recruit him but still the future of Japanese football looks quite good.” Tatsuya exclaimed while revealing a smile on his face. “What about that kid? I’m sure we can recruit him in our junior youth team and promote him to the youth team within some year.”