"…First of all, congratulations to all of you for making it to the finals. You are already the best twenty-three players in China at your age group. In the upcoming finals, I hope you can perform at your normal level, play well, strive to become the winner, and earn the qualification to represent China in challenging the youth teams of Europe's top clubs."

　　His words excited the children.

　　Going to Europe and competing against the youth teams of top clubs was exactly the goal these kids had fought so hard to reach this final for.

　　Now, they were just one step away from that goal—if they could perform well in this final and win the favor of the legendary national team player standing before them, their dreams could come true!

　　It's just that the elimination rate was a bit high… out of twenty-three people, only one could stand out in the end.

　　Of course, every young player was full of confidence, believing that they could be the best one.

　　Eric Grant continued, "Before the finals begin, let me say one more thing: remember, kids, football is a team sport."

　　After speaking, he swept his gaze across the field, taking in the expressions on the faces of all twenty-three boys.

　　The kids still seemed lost in their beautiful visions of the future, and after hearing his words, their expressions didn't change much.

　　He knew that these excited and nervous boys hadn't really taken in his last sentence.

　　So he waved his hand, "Alright, let Mr. Cooper come and divide you into groups."

　　With that, a slightly chubby middle-aged man standing nearby stepped forward. This was Mr. Miller.

　　Meanwhile, Eric Grant turned and walked with the others toward the grandstand at the edge of the field.

　　"Those selected from all over the country really are different. Most of them seem in high spirits and not at all stage-frightened…" said a man walking with him, who looked a bit younger than Eric Grant. "Maybe we'll really find some promising talent!"

　　Eric Grant replied noncommittally, "Let's wait and see, Little Olivia."

　　He took off the sunglasses clipped to his collar and put them on, then looked up at the sky. The blazing sun at four in the afternoon appeared bluish-green through the lenses, its glare softened, but the temperature hadn't dropped at all. The sunlight beat down on everyone's heads, making them feel like they were in an oven.

　　…

　　Eric Grant left, and Mr. Cooper clapped his hands at the side, "Alright, let's split into teams."

　　Only then did the boys reluctantly tear their eyes away from Eric Grant's departing figure and turn to Mr. Cooper.

　　"When I call your name, come up and get this." Mr. Cooper raised his hand, holding a red training vest with a white number on the back.

　　"Matthew Reed, Michael Bolton, Daniel Foster, William Thompson…"

　　Each boy whose name was called ran out of the line with a happy face to get his vest, while those whose names weren't called looked at the lucky ones with envy and longing, hoping their own names would be called next.

　　Unlike the various fancy selection methods in the open tryouts, the rules for the finals were actually very simple—twenty-three people split into two teams, play a match, and the player who performs best gets a spot on the reality show.

　　Eleven players were quickly chosen.

　　Next, Mr. Cooper picked up a blue training vest and said, "Those whose names I call, come get this."

　　This was the blue team.

　　"Andrew Foster, Ryan Baker, Sarah Thompson, James Foster…"

　　One by one, more boys stepped out from the crowd to take their vests.

　　With twenty-three people split into two teams, each with eleven players, that made twenty-two, so one unlucky person wouldn't get a chance to start.

　　When the coach finished reading the last name, David Carter was still standing in place.

　　He was stunned for a moment and raised his hand to ask, "Coach, what about me?"

　　"You're a substitute." Mr. Cooper glanced at David Carter and said.

　　A burst of laughter erupted from the crowd—out of twenty-three people, twenty-two got to play, and the last one was obviously the substitute. They laughed at David Carter for even asking, thinking he was just embarrassing himself.

　　No one was surprised that David Carter was the substitute. He had the lowest score in the national tryouts among the twenty-three, so if he wasn't the substitute, who would be?

　　David Carter seemed to understand this too, so after the coach said it, he just replied "oh" and didn't say anything else.

　　…

　　John Carter, who had been watching his son the whole time, also noticed that his son had become the only substitute.

　　When the players of the red and blue teams ran onto the field to get ready for the match, only his son David Carter turned and walked to the long bench at the side of the field, sitting down heavily.

　　John Carter remembered a conversation he had with his son after he made it to the finals.

　　At that time, David Carter had already made it to the national finals, which was beyond John Carter's expectations. Not wanting to put too much pressure on his son, he talked to David Carter about his expectations for the finals on the way to Beijing, telling him that just making it to the finals made him very proud and satisfied.

　　In other words, he didn't want his son to feel too much pressure.