Chapter 3 - CHELSEA VS ARSENAL PT 1

Mike bolted toward the locker rooms.⠀He muttered a quick excuse about a bathroom break to avoid raising eyebrows, as standing completely frozen in the center of the pitch during a lull in training was definitely not normal behavior.⠀Once safely locked inside a toilet stall, he wasted no time.⠀System, open stats.⠀/PLAYER STATS/ INFO⠀Name: Mike Wager⠀Status: Youngster with good future prospects.⠀Defense: Lvl 40⠀Midfield: Lvl 51⠀Attack: Lvl 52⠀Speed: 4/10⠀Stamina: 3/10⠀Strength: 3/10⠀Vision: 7/10⠀Skills: No skills acquired.⠀Mike stared at the semi-transparent screen floating before him.⠀For a split second, he felt a wave of disappointment at how low the numbers looked.⠀But then, cold logic kicked in.⠀He was currently only thirteen years old.⠀For that specific age group, these stats were not just good; they were actually elite.⠀Curious to know more, he tapped the INFO section blinking in the top right corner.⠀/INFO/⠀Defense, midfield, and attack stats range from LV 30 for those without any talent to LV 100 for soccer legends.⠀Speed, stamina, strength, and vision, on the other hand, are core attributes ranging from 1 to 10, with 10/10 representing the absolute human limit.⠀After memorizing the data, he quickly switched over to the quest log to see what he was working with.⠀/OBJECTIVES/⠀Complete training with the team.⠀Reward: 2 points in soccer.⠀Just one mission for now, Mike noted.⠀I probably need to clear this basic tutorial quest to unlock the real system functions and start farming points efficiently.⠀He jogged back onto the pitch, viewing the world through a completely fresh perspective.⠀Having already lived through the future, his eyes scanned his young teammates like a high-tech radar.⠀He could immediately identify the true generational talents in the squad: Josh Acheampong, a defender born in 2006 who radiated raw potential, and Charlie Holland, a midfielder born in 2009 who already displayed superior class despite being just eleven years old.⠀Mike knew for a fact that Charlie would go on to captain the U14s before earning a massive promotion straight to the first team in 2026.⠀"Hey, Skip! Finally finished your business? Get over here, we are starting the tactical drill!" Charlie shouted out, waving him over with a grin.⠀That is right, I am the captain, Mike reminded himself, a surge of pride washing over him.⠀The one with the most skill and the brightest prospects.⠀If it had not been for that career-ending injury in my past life... Mike aggressively shook the dark thought out of his head.⠀There was absolutely no point in dwelling on the past.⠀He was back, he had the system, and this time, he was going to rewrite history.⠀It was time to get to work.⠀After completing a grueling training session, he headed straight home.⠀The rich aroma of a home-cooked dinner and a familiar, comforting warmth greeted him the moment he stepped into the kitchen.⠀"How was training, honey? Did you have fun?" his mother asked gently as they all sat down at the dining table.⠀"The usual, Mom. You already know my future is looking incredibly bright," Mike replied with a confident smirk.⠀The three of them laughed together, but Mike knew deep down that his words were far from a joke.⠀Back upstairs in his room, he locked the door behind him, eager to finally explore the system SHOP.⠀The moment the lock clicked, a crisp notification pinged in his mind.⠀[+5 points: Soccer training objective completed!]⠀/SHOP/⠀Speed increase: 100 points⠀Endurance 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 pts⠀Okocha turn: 100 pts⠀Flip-flap: 150 pt⠀Rainbow flick: 150 pts⠀Seal dribble: 150 pts⠀Whipped cross: 50 pts⠀Lofted cross: 50 pts⠀Driven cross: 100 pts⠀First-time cross: 100 pts⠀Trivela cross: 150 pts⠀Curled shot: 50 pts⠀Whipped shot: 100 pts⠀Trivela shot: 100 pts⠀Dipping shots: 150 pt⠀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% MASTERED. EVEN THE MOST CLASSIC AND SIMPLE SKILLS, IF 100% MASTERED, CAN BE ABSOLUTELY DEVASTATING ON THE FIELD. **⠀Carefully analyzing the pricing structure, Mike realized that the cost of physical attributes scaled dynamically based on his current level.⠀Boosting his stamina from a low 3/10 was relatively cheap.⠀However, the system mechanics clearly dictated that once an attribute crossed the 5/10 threshold, the cost doubled automatically, which explained why upgrading Speed and Vision already required a massive amount of points.⠀Keeping these calculations in mind, he closed his eyes and fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.⠀The next morning, a sharp system notification woke him right at dawn.⠀Daily Goal:⠀Complete 50 push-ups⠀Complete a 5km run⠀Complete a 10-minute plank⠀Reward: 5 pts⠀I will handle this tonight after dinner, Mike thought, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.⠀But starting tomorrow, I am forcing myself to wake up an hour early.⠀Balancing school and a top-tier football academy is hard enough as it is.⠀Trying to crush these daily quests after a full day of team training is absolute suicide.⠀From that day on, he adopted an iron-clad, militaristic routine: wake up at 7:00 AM, complete the grueling daily goal, head to school by 8:30 AM, grab a quick nutritional snack, arrive at Chelsea training by 5:30 PM, eat a calculated dinner, and head straight to bed.⠀The only variation to his strict schedule occurred on Sundays: the day of reckoning in the high-stakes regional matches.⠀Four months flew by in a flash.⠀"Mike, wake up! It is the big day!"⠀He snapped his eyes open instantly.⠀It was the first Sunday in May.⠀The highly anticipated U14 National Cup Final had finally arrived.⠀Chelsea vs. Arsenal.⠀A fierce London Derby that Mike was absolutely not prepared to lose.⠀He packed his official match kit bag and ate a light, carb-loaded breakfast.⠀"Mom, you are coming to watch the game, right? It is the final," he asked, looking over at her.⠀"Of course, honey. I would not miss it for the world. I will be up in the stands cheering the loudest for you!"⠀Upon arriving at the stadium grounds, Coach James Simmonds immediately pulled his captain aside for a tactical chat.⠀"Mike, you are starting on the left wing as usual. I need you to track back and support the defense when we are under pressure, but the moment we transition into attack, I want you to do what you do best. Create magic. I am counting on you to lead the boys today."⠀"Got it, Gaffer," Mike nodded, his expression completely serious.⠀He shared a hard high-five with Charlie in the tunnel, and after the official pre-match handshakes were completed, the ultimate battle began.⠀"Welcome to the U14 National Cup Final! On one side of the pitch, we have a relentless Arsenal squad led by their heavily praised prodigy, Ethan Nwaneri. On the other side, a dangerous Chelsea team fueled by the sheer flair and creativity of Mike Wager. This London Derby is bound to be electric!"⠀Arsenal came out swinging from the very first whistle, employing an ultra-aggressive, suffocating high press that immediately choked Chelsea's build-up play.⠀The Blues desperately tried to play out from the back, searching for any pocket of space.⠀Charlie Holland received the ball in the final third, slickly nutmegging his marker to look for an overlapping run.⠀It looked incredibly promising, but the Gunners' recovery pace was absolutely clinical, swarming the ball and winning possession back in an instant.⠀By the 30th minute of the first half, the score remained locked.⠀I have to break this deadlock myself, Mike thought, his heart pumping heavily.⠀There are only five minutes left until the half-time whistle.⠀If we head into the locker rooms at 0-0, the second half is going to turn into a brutal war of attrition.⠀In youth football, matches were short, intense 70-minute sprints.⠀Every single second that ticked away felt like a heavy weight pressing down on his shoulders.⠀Since the midfield was struggling to find him through Arsenal's compact lines, Mike decided to aban