Kuroko no Basket: Honored One

Chapter 471 - 173: The Choice and the Premier League

"There are 100 days until the U-20 World Cup begins. If you were to play as you are now, victory would be absolutely impossible."

Ego Jinpachi wasn't trying to crush the players' confidence; he was stating a fact.

The current powerhouses of world football are strong in every aspect, ranking at the top in all age groups.

This is because their football culture is so fanatical that it continuously produces one genius after another without interruption.

Defeating them would be no easy task.

"I've considered a method for you to evolve rapidly," Ego began, first posing a question. "For you, what is the most important factor?"

"It is the awakening of ego, the resolve to turn your latent abilities into weapons!"

"But what draws these things out is, without a doubt, the environment of Blue Lock!"

The so-called environment refers not only to the football atmosphere but also to the style of football.

Take England, for example.

Due to the perennial weather, Premier League players used to always keep the ball flying in the air.

This was because such tactics were more conducive to scoring goals.

Of course, that was the England of the past.

With the influx of major capital and the arrival of the world's top managers in the Premier League, the richness of its tactics and playing styles is now unparalleled in the world.

Ego suddenly mentioned this because it was related to what he was about to say next.

"Next is the second phase of Blue Lock. I've decided to thrust you into the even more scorching hellfire of the world."

"You will throw yourselves into the highest peak of world football: the top five European leagues!"

"You must decide which environment you want to be in and make a choice from these five leagues."

Despite being in his 30s, Ego Jinpachi's speech still carried a thick air of chuunibyou.

"First, let me give you some references. The Premier League, characterized by speed and physical battles, emphasizes physical ability." (I'll just use the names of the top five leagues here. Even though the manga wrote countries, it's clearly the teams of the leagues, which is strange.)

"Next is La Liga, which pursues technique and creativity, viewing football as an art form. It's a gathering place for players with flamboyant styles."

"Serie A favors cunning tactics and once promoted the aesthetic of the 1:0 victory. It combines absolute individual ability with organizational skills, giving rise to a brand new tactical style."

"Ligue 1, from which a large number of new stars in Europe are born every year. In recent years, it has seen huge investment with the goal of becoming the world's number one league. It can now be called a scorching battlefield."

"And the last one, the Bundesliga. Football is a sport of shooting as much as possible. This philosophy is carried out to the end, along with pursuing victory in a rational and even ruthless manner. On top of that, the man known as the world's number one striker, Noel Noa, is here."

That was the situation.

But most of this was based on Ego Jinpachi's (or the manga author's) personal understanding.

At least in Tendou's mind, the idea of Ligue 1 becoming the world's number one league was nothing short of a pipe dream.

Ligue 1 was an even more extreme league than the Bundesliga. For PSG to win the Ligue 1 title was no more difficult than drinking a glass of water.

In today's Ligue 1, besides the owner of Paris Saint-Germain who continuously invests money, other teams do not invest much each year, which has led to a talent drain.

Without spending money on transfers but still wanting to maintain competitiveness, they can only develop players themselves.

AS Monaco, which also has a wealthy owner, ended up as one of Europe's most famous "selling clubs."

Cristiano Ronaldo even said in an interview that the Saudi Pro League is no worse than Ligue 1.

Of course, the whole world knew CR7 was exaggerating. Since he played in the Saudi league, he naturally had to speak up for it.

No matter what, Ligue 1 was still one of the top five leagues and was much stronger overall than the Saudi league, not to mention it had the behemoth that is PSG.

"Those of you not aiming to be strikers, make your choice based on your position. You will engage in a new competition there."

"This is the final selection for the U-20 world stage. From now on, you will be immersed in the environment of the world's peak."

"If you want to keep winning, you must concretely prove your own originality. A weapon or talent that stands out in Japan can instantly be demoted to mediocrity on the world stage..."

Blah, blah, blah.

Ego Jinpachi said a lot, but most of it was just hype.

To sum it up in one sentence:

The next phase of selection meant they would have the opportunity to join the youth academies of teams from the top five leagues to train.

And these five teams were:

Manchester City from the Premier League, FC Barcelona from La Liga, Paris Saint-Germain from Ligue 1, Bayern Munich from the Bundesliga, and Juventus from Serie A.

Next was the players' time to choose.

They didn't have much time, only 90 minutes to think.

The players began to discuss among themselves.

"Where are you going, Otoya?" Karasu Tabito asked his old partner.

"I want to go to Barça. I feel like it will be very passionate there," Otoya didn't hide his choice. "What about you, Crow? Where are you planning to go?"

"Me?" Karasu thought for a moment. "I plan to go to Paris Saint-Germain. In Ligue 1, it's easier for new players to make a name for themselves. It's more suitable."

This choice was very important for them.

The next 100 days would allow them to familiarize themselves with the "local customs" of that league in advance.

A giant club was good, but the competition was fiercer.

"Ligue 1? I'm going to Serie A," Aryu Jyubei interjected, brushing back his bangs. "The cathedrals of Florence are calling to me!"

When the trendy guy spoke, he was accompanied by a sparkling effect.

"What a bunch of idiots. Making a choice based on subjective impressions without even hesitating," Chigiri Hyoma grumbled.

He then turned to Tendou. "What about you, Tendou? Where are you going?"

He felt that Tendou would most likely go to the Premier League.

On one hand, he had already garnered the attention of Pochettino. On the other hand, the Premier League was the world's number one league. Given Tendou's personality, he would most likely choose the Premier League as well.

"The Premier League."

As expected.

"Just as I thought. Then we can play together again," Chigiri said. He had also chosen the Premier League.

He wanted to test his speed in that kind of environment.

"What a coincidence. I also plan to go to the Premier League. I feel like it reeks of money over there," Mikage Reo said with a smile, walking over.

Isagi Yoichi, however, was conflicted for a long time. On one hand, he also wanted to go to the Premier League, but the Bundesliga had his idol, Noel Noa.

After a moment of consideration, he finally chose the Bundesliga.

And then.

90 minutes passed. Time was up. With different goals in mind, the Blue Lock players set off in different directions.

Tendou, Chigiri, Reo, and others who chose the Premier League embarked on their journey together.

Passing through a large gate, they arrived in a brand new room.

A pre-recorded projection of Ego Jinpachi activated the moment they entered.

He told Tendou and the others that they would now be joining Manchester City's youth academy for training.

"Eh? We're joining Manchester City right from the start?" someone exclaimed in surprise.

The sky over Manchester used to be red.

But after the Old Sir retired, and following the acquisition by the tycoon from Abu Dhabi, the sky over Manchester was dyed blue.

Especially after Guardiola joined, Manchester City reached a stunning 100 league points in one season to powerfully claim the top spot, becoming the champions of the Premier League.

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