The journey to Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture from Naha was quite far. I had to take a plane for 1 hour and 45 minutes across the ocean because Naha is far from the main island of Japan. Departing from Naha, I arrived at Matsuyama International Airport, then rushed from the airport to the club by taxi. The atmosphere of Matsuyama city reminded me of Milan, a very fashionable city.
***
Arriving at Ningineer Stadium at 3 pm Matsuyama time, from the outside, I saw a beautiful small stadium. Although it could not accommodate many spectators, the grass field was well maintained, according to FIFA standards. For now, there is nothing to change in this stadium, considering the number of fans is not too many. Alright, time to check the club's finances.
The club's finances turned out to be quite bad, all the club's sponsors left because of the club's performance. The last league showed that the club was in 17th place in the J2 league standings, which almost dropped them to the J3 league. In addition, the staff and players also left the club, leaving only the club's treasurer. Now I found out the real reason why the previous club owner sold the club.
Maybe I should start by recruiting staff. However, I thought for a moment, why don't I monopolize this club. I called my father and mother to come to Matsuyama to organize the club's management. I did this to reduce unnecessary club expenses. Now the coaching staff, there are some big names who can become coaches, but there is one problem. Their fees are expensive! I contacted my friend in the Japanese national team again.
"My brother, I have a problem here, why are all the football coaches so expensive?", I said.
"Then why don't you try to be a coach?", he answered.
His words are true, with all the experience of being trained by the best coaches in the world, I have gained a lot of knowledge. Is it time to return to football but not as a player? Yes, maybe it's time, as a coach I have to get my coaching team, starting from the assistant coach. The problem is, no one wants to join this club that is almost relegated to the J3 league. Then, I thought why not my friend in the Japanese national team that I just called?
He is known as the "Eagle Eye of Asia". This nickname is not without reason, he plays football not with individual techniques, but with the brain. His vision as a footballer is unquestionable, although he eventually retired due to an ACL injury. I called him back.
"What else do you want?", he asked.
"Hey, Ryu, you know what? I have decided to become a coach, but I haven't found an assistant coach yet", I said.
"Then?", he asked again.
"Do you want to be my assistant coach?", I asked
The answer he gave was "yes" and we discussed the salary. He agreed to a salary of 8.5 million yen per year. Yes, I think this number is quite good and my money is not drained because of this. After that, my friend immediately left Hiroshima for Matsuyama and signed the work contract. I discussed with him again and asked whether this coaching team needed an additional coach or not, but he said that the two of us could advance this club.
***
The transfer market is now open, considering that all Ehime FC players have left the club, we need to buy a lot of players.
"Who should we buy?", I asked
"I think this player!", Ryu said it out loud.
To be continued...