Reincarnated As A Wonderkid-Chapter 517: Carabao Cup Final

Alex sat on a mat. He closed his eyes.

He saw the ball. He saw the net. He saw the goalkeeper diving the wrong way.

"Now," Dr. Mind whispered. "See the obstacle. See the wall. And see yourself breaking through it."

Alex tried to visualize a wall. But all he saw was a giant pizza.

He opened one eye.

Mark was sitting next to him. Mark was also meditating. But he was making chewing noises.

"Mark," Alex whispered. "Are you eating in your mind?"

"I am visualizing a pepperoni feast!" Mark whispered back. "The cheese is melting! It is glorious!"

"You are supposed to visualize victory, Mark."

"Pizza is victory!" Mark argued. "A delicious, cheesy victory!"

Maya was sitting on the other side. She looked serene.

"I am visualizing the probability distribution of a penalty shootout," Maya said calmly. "It is a beautiful bell curve."

The session ended.

Alex packed his bag.

Visualization.

He would need it.

Tonight was the Carabao Cup Final. Arsenal vs Liverpool. Wembley Stadium.

It was the first trophy of the season. A chance to start strong.

But Liverpool were hungry. They had lost the league last year. They wanted revenge.

Alex walked out to the car park.

Milo was waiting.

Milo was dressed as... a Hypnotist.

He was wearing a swirl-patterned suit and holding a pocket watch on a chain.

"LOOK INTO MY EYES!" Milo chanted. "YOU ARE GETTING SLEEPY! ALEX! I AM THE MIND MASTER! I AM SELLING CONFIDENCE! IT IS JUST WATER IN A FANCY BOTTLE! BUT IF YOU BELIEVE IT WORKS, IT WORKS!"

"Milo, you are making me dizzy," Alex said.

"THAT IS THE TRANCE!" Milo yelled. "YOU ARE NOW A TIGER! ROAR!"

"I am a footballer, Milo."

"A FOOTBALLING TIGER!" Milo corrected. "VERY RARE!"

They drove to Wembley.

Steve, the manager, was waiting.

"Liverpool," Steve said. "They are intense. Klopp is leaving at the end of the season. They want to give him a send-off. They will run through walls for him."

He looked at the team.

"They play with emotion. We must play with ice."

He looked at Alex.

"Professor. When the heat rises, you cool it down. When they scream, you whisper."

"I will be the silence," Alex said.

Wembley Stadium. The Final.

The atmosphere was electric. Red smoke filled the air.

Alex stood in the tunnel.

Mohamed Salah stood next to him. The Egyptian King. He looked focused. He looked like he was visualizing goals too.

"Ready for a race?" Salah asked.

"Always," Alex replied.

"I am faster this year," Salah winked. "New boots."

"I have new logic," Alex smiled.

Mark stood behind Alex. He was staring at Darwin Nunez.

"You look like a pirate," Mark said to Nunez (who had a ponytail).

"I am a chaos pirate," Nunez grunted. "I steal goals."

"I am a speed ninja," Mark countered. "I steal time."

The whistle blew.

The game started.

It was fast. Liverpool pressed high. They didn’t let Arsenal breathe.

In the tenth minute, Diaz got the ball. He ran at Ben White.

Diaz did a trick. He flipped the ball over White’s head.

He crossed.

Nunez was there.

He volleyed it.

It hit the bar.

CLANG.

The stadium shook.

"Chaos!" Nunez yelled. "I told you!"

Arsenal struggled to keep the ball. Liverpool were everywhere.

Alex tried to calm the game down. But Mac Allister and Szoboszlai were hunting him.

"They are swarming!" Rico shouted. "Like angry bees!"

Thirty fifth minute.

Liverpool scored.

Trent Alexander-Arnold hit a long pass. Salah ran onto it.

He cut inside. He curled it.

Top corner.

Goal.

Zero one. Liverpool.

Klopp punched the air. The Liverpool fans sang Allez Allez Allez.

Alex stood in the center circle.

Zero one down in a final. Again.

"Visualize," Alex thought. "See the solution."

He closed his eyes for a second.

He saw the pitch from above. Like a chessboard.

Liverpool press high. Their defensive line is high.

Space behind.

"Mark!" Alex yelled. "The channel!"

Arsenal restarted.

Alex didn’t pass short. He waited for the press.

Mac Allister came running.

Alex spun.

He hit a long, raking pass.

It went over Van Dijk’s head.

Mark was running.

He was fast. But Van Dijk was fast too.

It was a race.

Mark got to the ball. He was on the wing.

He looked up.

There was nobody in the box. Nketiah was too slow.

Mark stopped.

He waited for Van Dijk.

Mark did a "Fake Rabona".

He pretended to cross with his back leg. Van Dijk slid to block.

Mark chopped the ball back to his front foot.

He ran inside.

He was on the edge of the box.

He saw Alex arriving late. The Professor’s Run.

Mark rolled the ball back.

Alex ran onto it.

He didn’t shoot. He saw Alisson moving.

Alex passed the ball into the goal.

He side-footed it gently into the corner.

Goal.

One one.

Alex ran to Mark. "The fake rabona! That was art!"

"I learned it from a video game!" Mark laughed. " Cheat code!"

Halftime. One one.

Steve was calm.

"They are emotional," Steve said. "They are desperate to win for Klopp. Use that emotion against them. Make them frustrated."

He looked at Rico.

"Rico. Dribble. Make them foul you. Stop the game."

"I will be annoying," Rico promised. "Very annoying."

Second half.

The game became stop-start.

Rico dribbled. He fell over. Free kick.

Rico dribbled. He was pushed. Free kick.

Liverpool got angry. They shouted at the referee.

Seventy fifth minute.

The game was tied. Extra time loomed.

Alex had the ball.

He was tired. But his mind was clear.

He saw the pattern. Liverpool were pushing too many men forward.

He saw a gap.

He drove into it.

He ran past Szoboszlai. He ran past Endo.

He was thirty yards out.

He saw Saka on the right.

Alex passed.

Saka cut inside. He shot.

Blocked by Konate.

The ball bounced out.

It came to Alex.

He was on the edge of the box.

He could shoot.

But he saw something better.

He saw Mark.

Mark was standing behind the goalkeeper.

Wait. That was offside.

No. Mark was behind the goalkeeper, but there was a defender on the line. Robertson was on the line.

So Mark was onside.

It was a crazy position.

Alex didn’t shoot. He chipped the ball.

It went over Alisson’s head.

Mark was there.

He didn’t head it. He didn’t kick it.

He chested it down.

He trapped the ball on the goal line.

He turned to the crowd.

He smiled.

Then he tapped it in with his heel.

Goal.

Two one. Arsenal.

Mark ran to the corner. He did a "Mic Drop" celebration (dropping the corner flag).

"BOOM!" Mark screamed. "THE PHANTOM GOAL!"

Alex ran over. "You stayed onside! How did you know?"

"I didn’t!" Mark laughed. "I was just resting near the post! I got lucky!"

"Luck is probability!" Alex shouted. "You increased the odds!"

Liverpool threw everything forward. Alisson came up for a corner.

But Arsenal held on. They were ice.

The final whistle blew.

Arsenal 2. Liverpool 1.

The Carabao Cup winners.

Alex fell to the grass.

Another trophy. Another medal.

Salah walked over. He looked sad.

"You are fast," Salah said. "And smart."

"You are a King," Alex said. "Respect."

Milo ran onto the pitch. He was holding a silver cup (a plastic one).

"THE CHAMPION!" Milo screamed. "WE DRINK FROM THE CUP OF VICTORY! ALEX! I AM SELLING SIPS! ONE SIP FOR FIVE POUNDS! IT TASTES LIKE GATORADE AND GLORY!"

"Milo, that is just water," Alex laughed.

"IT IS HOLY WATER!" Milo insisted.

They walked up the steps.

Odegaard lifted the trophy.

Alex lifted it.

He looked at the crowd.

He saw Maya. She was holding a sign. ’TROPHY CABINET CAPACITY: CRITICAL. NEED NEW SHELVES.’

Alex laughed.

He looked at Mark.

Mark was wearing the trophy on his head (it was becoming a tradition).

"Hey Professor," Mark said.

"Yeah?"

"I visualized this."

"You did?"

"Yes," Mark said. "In my mind, there was also a pizza in the cup. But this is okay too."