Chapter 335: Decision (DanielPolo ko-fi)1/4

Marco’s lips curled into a knowing smile almost immediately.

Javi noticed it too.

"So that’s it then," Marco said softly.

Lukas didn’t answer directly.

But he didn’t need to.

Marco stood up from the couch, pulling his phone out already.

"I’ll arrange the call for tomorrow morning."

* * *

The next morning.

The conference room inside Rising Talent Agency was quiet again.

Only the faint hum of the air conditioner and the soft static from the laptop speakers remained after the call.

Lukas sat back in the executive chair with one side of the headset hanging loosely off his ear while the video call screen slowly faded to black.

On the screen just before it disconnected, Diego Simeone had smiled and leaned slightly closer to the camera.

"Espero verte pronto con nosotros en América."

The translator sitting beside Lukas immediately turned toward him.

"He says he hopes to see you with them soon in America. At the training camp."

Simeone gave one final nod through the screen.

"Adiós."

The translator translated again quietly. "Goodbye."

Lukas adjusted the headset slightly and nodded back toward the camera.

"I’ll get back to you as soon as we make a decision."

The translator relayed it in Spanish.

Simeone smiled one final time before the screen went dark.

The call ended.

For a few seconds, nobody in the room spoke.

Lukas slowly removed the headset completely and placed it on the table before leaning back into the chair.

Marco watched him carefully from across the room.

"So," he finally asked, "what did you think?"

Lukas exhaled through his nose and stared toward the ceiling for a moment.

"It was interesting."

That was putting it lightly.

As Simeone spoke during the call, Lukas could almost see the football in his head.

The movements.

The transitions.

The aggression.

The intensity.

Simeone had explained how he envisioned using him alongside Julián Álvarez in a fluid front two. Both attackers dropping deep into midfield to overload spaces before spinning outward again. Quick combinations. Sudden vertical attacks. Freedom to roam.

It was far more dynamic than the internet caricature people painted of Simeone’s football.

The Atlético coach had practically spent twenty minutes talking about transitional attacks alone.

About chaos.

About exploiting broken defensive shapes before opponents could reorganize.

About intensity without the ball and ruthlessness with it.

Lukas rubbed his chin lightly.

"It’s tempting," he admitted honestly. "Really tempting."

Javi sat nearby quietly listening.

"Simeone demands a lot," Lukas continued. "A lot of defensive work. A lot of running. But... the way he explained it..."

A small smile appeared on his face.

"He’s much more attacking than people think."

Marco nodded slightly. "That’s true."

"He talked a lot about verticality," Lukas continued. "Quick counters. Rotations. Freedom between the lines. It’s not just sitting back defending all game like people online pretend."

Javi crossed his arms quietly.

"But?"

Lukas looked toward him immediately.

Javi already knew.

Lukas leaned back deeper into the chair and sighed.

"But..."

A grin slowly crept onto his face.

"...I already spoke to Pep Guardiola."

Marco immediately pinched the bridge of his nose.

"There it is."

Lukas laughed quietly.

"It’s Pep," he said again, almost helplessly. "It’s literally Pep Guardiola."

The room fell quiet for a second.

Then Marco leaned forward slightly.

"Lukas," he said carefully, "I understand why you’re excited. Anybody would be."

He paused briefly.

"But are you sure this isn’t too early?"

Lukas listened silently now while slowly spinning the chair side to side.

Marco continued.

"I’m not doubting your ability. That’s not what this is. On the ball? Decision-making? Creativity? You’re already world class for your age."

"But the Premier League is different."

Lukas kept quietly rotating the chair while listening.

"The physicality is different. The pressure is different. The expectations are different."

Marco folded his hands together.

"They’ve already signed Tijjani Reijnders, and there are already rumors that City are close to signing Rayan Cherki too."

Lukas’ spinning slowed slightly.

"You’d have Reijnders there, Cherki, Foden, Bernardo Silva, Doku, Savinho."

He looked directly at Lukas.

"There are no guarantees."

Javi nodded slightly now too.

Marco continued speaking carefully.

"At Atlético, they’re offering guaranteed minutes when fit. Actual guarantees written into discussions."

"But City?" He shook his head lightly. "Nothing."

"If Pep wants you to play, you play. If he doesn’t, you could sit on the bench for a while."

"That’s it."

Lukas stayed silent.

Marco sighed and leaned back slightly.

"Honestly... if I had a choice, I probably wouldn’t even want you leaving Frankfurt this summer."

That finally made Lukas glance toward him.

Marco shrugged helplessly.

"You’re still very young."

"New country. New culture. New weather. New language every day. New dressing room. New expectations."

"You’d be moving away from your family. Away from everything familiar."

"And not just to any club."

He let out a short breath.

"To Manchester City."

"The expectations there are insane."

"They finished third this season and reached the FA Cup final but it’s being talked about like they had a disastrous campaign."

"You’re expected to win the Premier League every year."

"You’re expected to compete for the Champions League too."

"And if you do win? People act like it’s normal."

"But if you don’t..."

Marco spread his hands slightly.

"You become a flop overnight."

"The scrutiny will be ridiculous."

"If the team performs worse after you arrive, people will blame you."

"If you struggle physically early on, people will question whether you were overhyped."

"If you have two bad games in a row, social media will eat you alive."

The room quieted again.

Javi finally spoke softly.

"He’s right."

Lukas looked toward his father.

"You’re still young."

Javi’s tone remained calm.

"I know how talented you are. I know how special you are."

"But talent doesn’t remove pressure."

He paused briefly.

"And England..." he exhaled softly, "...England is different."

For a while, only silence filled the room.

Lukas just kept slowly spinning the chair.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Marco thought he was seriously considering everything they said.

Maybe even doubting himself.

Then the chair stopped turning.

Lukas sat still for a second before finally looking at both of them.

And slowly—

a smile spread across his face.

"That sounds like an interesting challenge though, no?"

Marco immediately closed his eyes.

"Lukas—"

But Lukas was already grinning now.

His eyes carried that familiar dangerous excitement again.

"The pressure."

"The expectations."

"The physicality."

"The noise."

He leaned forward slightly in the chair.

"It will always be there," he said as he stood up from the chair.

"I want to become the best... So I have to train with the best, compete for spots with the best and play against the best every week. Atletico Madrid might guarantee me game time, but I know I am good enough to earn that time in any team."

"They say the league is getting too physical and robotic... So let’s see if I can make it more exciting for them."

The grin widened.

"Let’s see if I can take them somewhere they haven’t reached yet."

* * * * * * *

A/N This Chapter is sponsored by DanielPolo! Thank you so much for the biscuits.

You can buy me a biscuit @ ko-fi (.)com/writ1 where 1 biscuit = 1 extra Chapter.

Love, Writ.

P.S: FUCK PAYPAL! THEY PERMANENTLY DEACTIVATED MY ACCOUNT AFTER I LINKED IT TO KO-FI. So now you can only support with card... I’m sorry y’all... Thank you for your support 🫂