Kumiko’s words were enough to snap everyone’s attention immediately. Well, what could she say? Other than the information, which was indeed something that everyone had been waiting for, they were all just teenagers here. Their attention span was so short that they forgot immediately what they had talked about earlier just in a snap.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Shishida-senpai?! Come on, bring it on!" Hiroshi urged her quickly.

Kumiko felt the corner of her lips twitching involuntarily. ’This is a little bit too easy, right?’ She couldn’t help but feel amused, especially since all the boys were staring at her eagerly. She also gave a little nod at Usami as the boy smiled gratefully for being saved here.

Still, Kumiko didn’t lie here. Indeed, after checking all the non-technical things, she wanted to share the new intelligence about their first opponent with the whole team. So, when everyone was so eager like this, the girl didn’t wait twice, leading them to the club’s room before turning on the projector, connecting it with her laptop.

"Okay, sit down, everyone!" She raised her voice, enough to attract her players’ attention. "This is something that I researched for a long time, and some of the information here will be important to give you an idea of what to expect. So, listen carefully, because I will only tell you once, okay?!"

The others nodded solemnly, straightening their back in a second. Although they knew that Kumiko was just bluffing and she would still tell them again if they asked, the firsthand information was still important to give them an idea of their opponent.

"So... Toin Gakuen..." Kumiko showed the first slide, which was a group photo of the team with purple jerseys before the game began. "They are the second-best team in Kanagawa, straight behind Toko Gakuen from Kawasaki. Yes, Hiroshi-kun?" She pointed at the boy who was gulping while raising his hand.

"The second-best team? Does that mean Kanagawa has two teams representing them, just like Shizuoka?"

"A good point from Hiroshi-kun." Kumiko nodded in acknowledgement. "In fact, not only them, but in total, there are five prefectures that have this special right to have two teams here. Those are the five most successful prefectures in Japan when it comes to football, which are Kanagawa, Tokyo, Shizuoka, Osaka, and Ibaraki. You can expect that all the teams coming from those places are good. At least, they are a traditional powerhouse team here."

This brought the atmosphere down to the cold one, as the players finally started to get an idea of what they were about to face three days later.

"Their most common formation is 4-2-3-1, with Naoya Takahashi, their captain, being the anchor in the middle." The girl pointed at player number 6 on the screen.

Both Hiroshi and Kenji straightened their posture instantly, knowing that this was going to be important for them.

"Well, just as I said in the past, you can expect all the good qualities regarding defense to be on him. However, I will add one thing here. He is good at a clean tackle that is also intimidating the opponent, and he also likes to target the opponent’s strongest opponent. So, get ready, Hiroshi-kun." She warned her attacking midfielder.

The boy in question gulped slightly. No matter how motivated he was by the challenge, being told that he would be targeted was definitely enough to shake his confidence even a little.

"Uh... Well, Takaaki-kun and Usami-kun will be there to protect me, right?" He asked his two friends weakly.

In return, the glasses boy just nodded slightly at him. "Don’t worry, Hiroshi-kun, we will be around." Usami also gave a thumbs-up, at least enough to give the boy reassurance.

"Well, those two are indeed going to be around, but you still need to be careful," Kumiko warned the boy. "Honestly, he has a sharp nose, so when he smells your lack of concentration or unfocused state, he will pounce at you like a hungry beast. So, don’t lower your guard at all."

"... Yes, Ma’am." In the end, that was the only thing that he could utter in this situation.

"As for their offense, I have to say that we are going to face something new here." Kumiko changed the topic, and this time, all the defensive lines leaned forward eagerly for the next information. "While on paper, it is a normal three-tops, but in reality, once they are going for an attack, the center forward will drop into the ten area, while the two wingers will try to spread wide. Not only that, but their two full-backs will also be there, so expect to get bombarded on the flanks."

"So, they are trying to overwhelm us with numbers, huh?" Denji muttered under his breath.

"Not only that, but you can see the distance between the flank and the center here." Kumiko pointed out at one play on the screen. "See? Their center forward even shifts toward where the ball is, adding more to the flank. As for the blank space in the center, two of their midfielders are often running from behind, occupying the most strategic space in the penalty box to catch the opponent off guard. Not only that, but the other winger will also be ready whenever he needs to infiltrate the middle, so you can expect at least five to six players in our penalty box."

This time, even Makino himself frowned, somehow remembering a bad memory of when the team was just a few minutes away from beating Sapporo Otani in the prefectural final. At that time, the penalty box was swarmed by at least seven of the opponent’s players, limiting what he could do there. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration for him to say that it was the hardest time in his life as a defender.

"However, that doesn’t mean they have no weakness," Kumiko smirked a little, enjoying the sudden gasps from her players.

"Really?! A top team like them has a weakness?!"

"Come on, Kumiko-chan! Don’t be so secretive like that!"

"Yeah! This is going to be our lifeline!"

The girl smiled a little before finally revealing the secret. "Why do you think those two midfielders dare to make a run forward like that? Because they are confident that no matter how the opponent tries to send a counterattack, Naoya Takahashi will always be there to protect everything."

"So..."

"So, take away their confidence in Naoya Takahashi, and BOOM!" She clapped out of the sudden, startling the players nearby. "Then, their attack will crumble instantly."