Statistic

Arghana stared intently at the numbers on the report sheet. The data wasn't just a list of statistics—he saw patterns.

He closed his eyes for a moment, recalling the course of the matches.

How his body felt lighter in the final minutes. How his mind grew sharper as time passed.

How his decisions became more precise in crucial moments.

And now, after considering it from both a physical and mental perspective, he began to find a common thread.

His ability didn't just appear out of nowhere. There was a price to pay.

Every match with his best performance had one thing in common: high physical expenditure.

He noted the number of sprints, total running distance, intensity of pressure, even heart rate data.

Everything pointed to one conclusion: He had to work harder before reaching his "trance" state.

Arghana exhaled, accepting the reality with calmness.

"Lazy players don't deserve to shine on the field."

Competitive football demands relentless effort. To play, one must run first.

However, this awareness brought a new dilemma.

If his "trance" required a huge energy expenditure, how could he activate it if he was just sitting on the bench?

If he hadn't played from the start, how could he reach that point?

And more importantly—did a substitute player truly deserve such a privilege?

Go Ahead Eagles had just been promoted to Eredivisie.

The club would surely bring in a quality striker to compete at the highest level. If that happened, he could be sidelined.

He clenched his fists. There was no other choice.

If he had to start the new season as a substitute, then he had to fight to regain his starting spot!

After finishing his training, Arghana walked to the city center, heading to the nearest bank.

He checked his account balance, then was surprised to see the amount: €8,500.

His base salary was €3,300, plus match bonuses, goal and assist rewards, and the club's promotion bonus.

Without hesitation, he immediately transferred €5,500 to his father's account.

He withdrew the remaining amount for daily expenses, while the rest he saved. Now, his personal account balance was nearly €5,000.

On one hand, this money was the result of his hard work.

But on the other hand, he knew full well that his parents had sacrificed so much for him over the years.

This was just the beginning. He had to continue to grow.

===

The Eredivisie season had just ended.

Ajax emerged as the champions, three points ahead of PSV Eindhoven.

At the bottom of the table, the three teams that survived relegation—Excelsior, Heracles Almelo, and Fortuna Sittard—were busy analyzing their weaknesses.

At sc Heerenveen's office, sports director Van Borough and head scout Keiman were discussing new recruits.

On the computer screen, a video compilation of goals was shown.

"Pay attention to the timing of each goal," said Van Borough calmly.

Keiman watched the footage with intense focus. Each goal was replayed three times.

The longer he watched, the more excited his expression became.

"This has to be the young striker the media's been talking about, right?" he said, tapping the table.

"Dribbling, long-range shots, chip shots, headers, left foot, right foot—all perfect!"

"Eleven goals in ten matches! This is amazing!"

He looked at Van Borough. "Do you think we have a lot of competitors for getting him?"

However, instead of answering right away, Van Borough looked hesitant.

"Don't rush. There's one more video you need to see."

Keiman furrowed his brow but kept watching the screen.

A new video started playing. He watched it eagerly. But after a few minutes, his expression changed drastically.

From full of excitement to confusion.

"This... is this the same player?" he muttered.

There were no standout actions. No real threats.

The player appeared to be working hard on the field, but nothing really impressive.

"Are you sure this is the same player?" he asked.

"Yes," Van Borough replied.

Keiman became even more puzzled. "How much time difference is there between these two videos? A year? Two years?"

"No." Van Borough shook his head. "All these clips are from the same season. Even from the same ten matches."

Keiman fell silent.

He looked back at both videos, this time side by side. One showed a deadly striker. The other showed a regular player who wasn't very remarkable.

They were the same person.

He swallowed hard. "This doesn't make sense."

Van Borough leaned back in his chair. "That's the problem. This kid... he's like a ticking time bomb."

The conversation between the director of sc Heerenveen and the head scout was not an isolated incident.

A similar situation was happening at over five Eredivisie clubs, all starting to take notice of Arghana.

Scouts were struggling to accurately assess Arghana.

However, his performance in the last 10 Eerste Divisie matches with 9 goals made it hard for them to dismiss him.

Smaller clubs hoped to find a hidden gem, but they also feared getting a player who only performed occasionally and wasn't consistent.

Essentially, smaller clubs had limited budgets, so every decision had to be carefully calculated.

Outside of the Netherlands, clubs from other leagues were also starting to eye Arghana.

This was triggered by local media reports highlighting the miracle of his 10 matches and 9 goals that helped Go Ahead Eagles get promoted to Eredivisie.

Unknowingly, the transfer battle was slowly beginning to take shape.