The All-Around Center Forward

"Did you see my shot? How was that angle?"

Perišić started to show off.

After all, he was still young, and this was his first goal for the national team, so naturally he got excited.

But before he could celebrate for long, Dujmović started furiously ruffling his hair.

"What are you doing!"

Perišić shouted in displeasure.

Dujmović finally let go with a serious face and said, "We have a rule here—no showing off after scoring!"

"What about Šuker?"

Perišić retorted.

Dujmović replied, "He doesn't count! You score a goal every game, no need to show off, even I admit you're awesome!"

Perišić was left speechless after that comeback.

Others laughed as they looked at Dujmović.

"Nice goal,"

Šr­na came over, patting Perišić's shoulder, "Don't mind Tommy, he's just jealous. You played great, keep it up."

Hearing this, Perišić brightened again.

He even turned to make a face at Dujmović, making the latter howl in frustration.

"Damn! Why don't I get that treatment?" Dujmović muttered as he retreated.

To join the national team had been his dream, yet most of the time, he was a substitute.

Looking at Perišić, who had just joined the national team and already got a starting spot and a goal, Dujmović felt bitter.

"Don't think about it. That guy just joined Club Brugge in Belgium's top league, debuting as a substitute, with an assist and a goal! Showing his talent—that's why he gets the chance."

Mandžukić shook his head.

Dujmović disagreed: "But I joined Lyon—what's the difference?"

Šuker calmly said, "The difference is Perišić knows where the goal is."

Modrić joined in.

"The difference is he won't score an own goal on his debut like some people."

Pfft!

Pfft!

Šuker and Modrić's words pierced Dujmović's heart like two swords.

"Damn!" Dujmović recalled his own performance and admitted he might not be up to par.

"Ivan Perišić, an excellent goal!"

"The young player got a start today and quickly scored. That shot was so composed!"

After praising Perišić, Kraušić continued:

"Of course, we still look forward to seeing Šuker score!"

Just then, after a series of Croatian passes, Mandžukić dropped back to hold the ball and passed toward a gap on the left rear.

Šuker appeared like a ghost on the flank, cutting diagonally into the penalty area.

"Here he comes! Šuker!"

Kraušić shouted.

In front of goal, Šuker was incredibly calm. He raised his left foot as if to shoot, tricking the Belarusian defender into stretching out his leg to block.

But Šuker suddenly pulled the ball back, letting it roll to his right side, took a step to adjust, then unleashed a right-footed shot.

The ball slid between the goalkeeper and the near post into the net.

Swish!At 15 minutes, Croatia scored their second goal.

With a two-goal lead, Croatia's advantage grew.

The goal also dealt a huge blow to Belarus's morale.

They were already barely qualified theoretically and unable to match Croatia; now two goals down, their confidence shattered completely.

As for Šuker, he ran to the corner and spread his arms to embrace the roaring crowd.

The thunderous cheers rolled over Maksimir Stadium.

Šuker! Šuker! Šuker!

Perišić watched Šuker's back with a mix of hope and confusion.

Hope for his own future performance.

Confusion whether Šuker's standard was set too high.

So high it might be unreachable in a lifetime.

At that moment, he finally understood.

The difference between showing off and being truly awesome.

"Truly amazing!"

Even proud Perišić couldn't help but exclaim.

In just 15 minutes, Šuker had an assist and a goal, dominating the game.

This was the '100 million euro man,' the strongest striker in football.

"After two goals, Croatia finally slowed their attack rhythm, giving Belarus some relief to counterattack—but only if they still had fighting spirit."

But Belarus players became confused and lost their match rhythm.

Mistakes increased, and many goals were lost without contest.

All proving Belarus were in a very lost state.

They couldn't find any attack points.

Strong players of old seemed powerless against Croatia.

Meanwhile, Croatia's occasional attacks kept the Belarus defense scrambling.

Omeriyanchuk looked disheartened.

His job was to limit Šuker, and obviously he failed.

But there was no way—no one in football could stop Šuker one-on-one.

So psychologically, it wasn't heavy pressure, but a helplessness about losing the match.

Exactly.

Though the match wasn't over, they'd lost confidence.

Throughout the first half, Croatia slowed down, and Belarus played aimlessly, quickly burning time.

After halftime, Croatia again exploded into a fierce attack within 10 minutes.

Two consecutive corners led to goals by Mandžukić and Simunić.

Croatia led Belarus 4-0.

The match was basically decided.

At 67 minutes, Van Stoyak subbed off Šuker and Mandžukić, switching from attack to defense.

No more need for attack.

"Played great!"

When Šuker came off, Bilić actively hugged him.

Šuker looked surprised.

Their relationship should have been bad—Šuker was the core figure who undermined Bilić.

Since the European Championship, Bilić was just a puppet.

More of a 'news announcer' role than a coach.

At meetings, press conferences, logistics—all had Bilić's presence.

But during matches, Bilić was invisible.

As a coach, Bilić had a hard time.

Meanwhile, Germany's coach Löw, with Lahm, Schweinsteiger, and Podolski, led a revolt to oust Ballack from the national team and took control of the locker room.

But Croatia was not Germany, Bilić not Löw, and their locker room was completely different.

Bilić wanted to start a revolt but the whole locker room belonged to Šuker's faction—who could he unite?

So Bilić just gave up.

Šuker sat on the bench watching the match.

His eyes fixed on Šr­na.

Šr­na shouted hoarsely, commanding the defense.

Under his leadership, Croatia's defense was rock solid.

Against Belarus's forward runs, Šr­na was fierce and decisive.

Every tackle and positioning was key.

He even coordinated pressing defense with teammates.

Usually, center backs direct full backs since they stand further back with broader vision.

But sometimes, full backs direct center backs—like Maldini.

That's decided by absolute strength.

Maldini was strong enough to command the whole defense.

Similarly, Šr­na was the defensive cornerstone for Croatia.

In the original timeline, Šr­na mostly played in Ukraine, not even strong enough for the big five leagues.

But now, after setbacks at Juventus, he became tougher.

He got to play at Inter Milan and now served as a full back under Mourinho.

Mourinho's demands for defenders were extremely high.

Šr­na's firm position at Inter proved his ability.

Bang!A clean tackle by Šr­na stopped a Belarus threat.

Getting up, Šr­na tightened his captain armband and shouted fiercely:

"Get your shit together! The game's not over! Not a single goal can be conceded! If one goal's lost, you all run extra fitness training after the match! Heard me?"

Croatian players shuddered slightly.

Šr­na now radiated the aura of a captain.

Wiping sweat from his forehead, his gaze locked onto the opponents.

"Come on! If you dare, come at me, you bastards!"

Belarus launched another attack down Šr­na's flank.

Šr­na charged, first disrupting opponents with physical contact.

At the slightest mistake, he decisively slid to steal the ball.

"Šr­na! Got the ball!"

After the tackle, Šr­na passed immediately to Modrić.

Modrić gave a one-two pass back.

Šr­na, once a winger, was very fast.

Carrying the ball down the wing at speed, he cleverly changed pace sideways while keeping his eyes on goal.

"Wow!"

Šuker exclaimed, "He's going to shoot!"

Bang!Sure enough, Šr­na didn't hesitate and blasted the ball.

The shot was low and fast, flying toward the far corner.

The keeper dived and just tipped the ball, but couldn't prevent the goal.

At 81 minutes, Šr­na's long run ended with a brilliant goal.

Roar!!!!!!!

Šr­na tore at his jersey, shouting with excitement.

"Damn you, Capello!"

"Just wait!"

Šr­na's goal was the last one.

Croatia crushed Belarus 5-0.

Belarus couldn't shake Croatia despite going all out.

Šuker already broke their mentality.

Croatia's stamina was too much for them.

This was the strength of European champions.

Belarus tried their all but still couldn't win.

"The full-time whistle blows, Croatia wins 5-0 against Belarus."

"This victory puts us in a stable position to challenge for first place."

"The next match is on October 14th, away at England.

We will reclaim Croatia's pride and proudly march toward the 2010 South Africa World Cup!"

Kraušić said excitedly:

"Go, lads! This is your time. We'll witness a glorious history together."

"Have you taken drugs?"

Šuker joked after the interview, arm draping over Šr­na's neck.

Šr­na's performance in this game was perfect.

Solid defense, sharp attack.

Several times, he showed organizational talents.

Šr­na said:

"Do you think I've been playing for nothing all these years?

I've learned full back skills from Zanetti, watched Maldini's videos, and McDonald's dribbling and timing gave me a lot of inspiration."

Then, seriously:

"But still not enough!"

"England has Rooney, Lennon, Defoe—strong forwards.

I need the ability to mark them one-on-one."

Šuker looked at Šr­na's serious face and said:

"Arent you putting too much pressure on yourself?"

Šr­na turned seriously:

"What if you're stuck on the bench for a whole season by some bastard?"

"Hit him!" Šuker said bluntly.

"Exactly! Hit him!" Šer­na agreed.

That night, Šr­na returned to Milan.

The next day, arriving at the training base, he didn't go straight to the field but went to Mourinho's office.

At Inter Milan, few players dared enter Mourinho's office.

The Portuguese was extremely strict, demanding perfection in defense down to agonizing details.

His idea of fun was torturing defenders with training.

Being called to the office meant special training was about to begin.

But this time, Šr­na came on his own initiative.

"Good morning!"

Mourinho sat curiously, "What's up?"

He was surprised—players usually feared one-on-one talks with him.

Šr­na stood before Mourinho, serious:

"Boss, I know you're a defensive master and expert at refining players.

I don't know if I'm qualified for your coaching, but I want to get stronger.

There's a lot I want to improve—individual defending, team defending, leadership, even some attacking skills.

I hope you can teach me."

Šr­na's expression was clear.

Even Mourinho was stunned.

This was the first time a player actively sought him out, clearly stating their attitude.

No coach dislikes a hardworking player.

Even less one who deeply understands himself.

Mourinho leaned back in his chair seriously:

"Šr­na, what brought you here with this request?"

Šr­na took a deep breath and said firmly:

"To take revenge on a bastard!"

Mourinho had expected answers about future, dreams, or money.

But revenge?

This answer was unexpected.

But it was exactly Mourinho's style.

"Interesting as hell," Mourinho smiled.

"Now tell me—what are your short-term and long-term goals?"

"Short-term, I want to mark Rooney one-on-one!"

Mourinho speechless.

Rooney's not an easy mark!

That should be a long-term goal!

But Šr­na immediately praised Mourinho:

"Your Chelsea achievements are well known.

Even Manchester United was suppressed by you for two seasons.

You are one of the coaches who know Rooney best.

So I want to learn from you."

Looking at Mourinho directly, "Teach me, a top coach!"

Flattery never fails.

For anyone wanting to get stronger, Mourinho never refuses.

Especially when flattered so well.

"Start early training at 7 a.m. tomorrow.

I'll create a personalized training plan.

Trust me—I'll make you capable of marking Rooney."

Šer­na was stunned.

"You'll train me personally?"

"Who else but me?" Mourinho proudly corrected himself:

"Not 'a' top coach, but 'the only' top coach!"

Šr­na left the office.

His heart suddenly brightened.

Mourinho accepted his request.

He looked forward to the coming hard training.

Not just because of the training itself.

During the European Championship, Šr­na felt the weakness of Croatia's squad.

That tough match against Spain was almost lost.

If not for Šuker's breakout goal and the sacrifices of Vukčević and Rakitić, they wouldn't have advanced.

The reason was their defense wasn't strong enough.

Šr­na couldn't allow this to happen again.

Croatia had Šuker, a top striker.

Their midfield had Modrić, a master in the making.

But a too weak defense was a hidden danger.

Šr­na was captain; he had to bear responsibility.

He had to get stronger to shoulder that responsibility.