"Blue Lock" is a super popular work that completely overturns the concept of soccer manga. This time, I would like to thoroughly explain the early episodes. (※Contains spoilers‼)
About "Blue Lock" and Ego Jinpachi
Ego Jinpachi is a special coach hired by the Japan Football Association to help Japan win the World Cup. He proposed "Blue Lock," an experimental facility to create the world's best forwards. With 300 promising forwards under the age of 18 from all over the country, "the craziest soccer manga in history" begins now!
About Isagiyoichi
In the final match for the national tournament, second-year forward Isagiyoichi has a chance to tie the score. One-on-one with the opposing goalkeeper, he doesn't shoot, but passes to a free teammate... The teammate misses the shot and the team loses, and it seems like his dream is over, but then he receives an invitation to "Blue Rock."
Dorm entrance test: Oni gokko ①
The players are brought to "Blue Rock," a mysterious building built deep in the mountains, and are divided into rooms of 12 people each. They were given special suits and were asked to play Oni, a test to test their egos. The time limit was 136 seconds, and 12 players were in a rectangular room. If they were hit by the ball, they would become Oni, and if the time was up, the Oni would be eliminated. This was the start of a simple yet cruel test.
Dormitory entrance test: Oni play ②
"If you lose, you will lose all your national team qualifications." While the players were still shaken and confused, the balls were provided and the test began. Several players continued to hit each other with the ball, and with one minute left, Kiyoshi became Oni. At first, Kiyotaka aims for a player with a hedgehog head who looks like a weakling, but the moment the player's leg cramps and he can't move, he turns around and changes his target to the strongest player among them, in a situation where he can avoid the Oni by hitting him with only a few seconds left.
Dorm entrance test - Oni play③
To change who he was, to change who he was when he chose to pass at a decisive moment, he chose to beat someone stronger than him. Contrary to the time remaining, Kiyotaka was filled with egoistic feelings that he had never had before. With just one second left, Kiyoto volleyed the ball into the face of the most skilled player among them, Ryosuke Kira, a candidate for the U18 national team, and was accepted into the dormitory.
Explanation of Oni-gokko
At first glance, Oni-gokko may seem like a game or a simple warm-up, but the rectangular room is the same size as a PA (penalty area) at 16.5m x 40.32m, and the time limit is 136 seconds, the average time that a player has the ball in a 90-minute match. Oni-gokko itself was a test that simulated a decisive moment in soccer, testing basic soccer skills such as interpersonal awareness and tactics with the opponent. The depth of thought and original ideas of Eshin Jinpachi, who prepared this test, will be of great interest in the future.
First selection begins!
The 11 players, excluding Kira who dropped out, will all take part in the first selection as a forward team. As the 11 players with the lowest abilities among the 300 players of Z Team in Building 5, the first selection was a round-robin group league match against the other five teams in Building 5. After four matches, the top two teams and the top three scorers from each team will advance to the second selection, and another tough trial has begun.
First Match VS Team X①
"This is a battle to create soccer from scratch," as Eiko said, and we start by thinking about how to play soccer with a team that only has forwards. The opponent is Team X, and when the game starts, because all the players are forwards, a ball-shaped soccer game begins with elementary school students crowding around the ball to score a goal. It is Barou Shouei from the opposing team who steals the ball from the crowd.
First Match VS Team X②
Barou used his large physique to force his way through the defense, and with his skillful individual skills and controlled shot with his right foot, he easily scored a point. Team Z became increasingly impatient and disintegrated in front of his overwhelming force, while Team X had grown into a team that entrusted the ball to Barou. Barou's play became the team's guideline, which meant that this was his overwhelming individual ability to turn 0 into 1. However, with the score difference now at 5-0, it was Kiyo and Bachirameguru who had not yet given up.
First Match VS Team X③
Hachiraku, who has the best dribbling skills among the team, cuts in forcefully and passes the ball to Kiyo. All that's left is the goalkeeper, but standing in his way is Barou, who has come down from the front line. Just as Barou is about to take the ball from him, Kiyo somehow makes a lob pass backwards. Waiting there is Kunikami Rensuke, who is known for his large mid-range shots. His shot shakes the net and somehow manages to score a point. Kiyo was surprised that he had chosen to pass before he even understood that he was about to shoot, but whether this was a lack of ego or something else, the first game ended with a 5-1 loss, and it remains a mystery.
Game 2 VS Team Y①
Inspired by the results of the first game and the individual strengths of Barou, the members of Team Z focus on honing their own weapons and strengths. At the suggestion of Wataru Kuon, the team's leader, they decided to do the "Next Me 9 Strategy," in which each member plays a forward for a set period of time and the other 10 members support what the forward wants to do. Although they created scoring opportunities with Hagaraku's super solo dribbling tactics and Gagamaru Gin's unreasonable early crosses, they were countered by Team Y and conceded a goal.
2nd Match VS Team Y②
Immediately after the start of the second half, during a corner kick, Kiyoshi felt something was off and ran to mark Niko Ikki of Team Y. Niko was the starting point and the central figure behind the counter soccer they were aiming for, and Kiyoshi had a wide field of vision and the ability to sense the scent and smell of the goal. From there, Futako and Kiyoto began to crush each other's starting points, and Kiyoto Yoichi, who had a slightly better nose, scored a goal and won the match. Kiyoto literally kicked his opponent down and won, and he began to feel his first step as an egoist.
3rd Match VS Team W①
Kyoto's abilities, his eyes with a wide field of vision and his brain that can sense danger, began to blossom, and he entered the third match. Team W has a strong forward, the Wanima siblings, but this time they will take on the "3x3 (Sazan) All-Star Strategy" by switching a group of three people who have good compatibility as forwards. We expected them to be a tough opponent, but when the game started, they ended the first half with a big 3-0 lead with Kuon's hat trick. However, in the second half, things started to look ominous with Kuon's simple mistake and two goals conceded.
Third Match VS Team W②
Kiyo feels uncomfortable with the development that doesn't seem to lead to a goal, but Kuon's mistake again allows the tying goal. "Kuon... are you... betraying us...?" By the time Kiyoshi realized, it was too late, and the strategy and the characteristics of the players had been exposed by Kuon, and Kuon himself had been spying in order to pass the selection alone as the top scorer. Team Z was forced to play soccer at an overwhelming disadvantage of 10 to 12 because of the traitor. They continued to lose additional points, and the score became 3 to 4.
Third Match VS Team W③
Three minutes of overtime. It was Chigiri Hyoma who was inspired by Kiyoshi's play that did not give up in a cliff-edge situation. Even after his serious knee injury he has recovered, he is still afraid of injury and is unable to play at his best. Chigiri starts running, imagining his time as a speedy forward and Kiyoshi's desperate play. Chigiri's feet run up the opposite side faster than anyone else, back to the time when he honestly dreamed of becoming the world's best striker.
3rd Match VS Team W④
Chigiri suddenly wakes up, and Kiyoshi's eyes certainly sense the scent of a goal there. He forcibly crosses to the opposite side where no one is now. He is fast enough to get past the opposing defenders, but he only seeks his own strength and ego, picks up the ball and scores the tying goal. The match ended in a draw thanks to the outstanding performance of the speedy striker Chigiri Hyoma, who keeps running until his legs break.
Match results so far
Team V is in first place with a perfect record, and Team W, made up of the Wanima siblings, is in second place with five points. Team Z has four points. With only their final match remaining, it is now certain that they will not be able to become one of the top two teams due to goal difference unless they win the final match. Awaiting them is Team V, who has also won all their matches. They will finally face their greatest enemy.
Final Match/Match Preparation
Team Z will face the final match with 10 players, excluding Kuon who betrayed the team, but their opponent is the formidable Team V, who has been undefeated up until now. In preparation for this battle, which requires more evolution than ever before, Kiyoshi heads to Team Y's ace, Barou Teruhide. While forcing a one-on-one with him, he notices his specialty, a controlled shot with his right foot. Although this technique seems like it can be scored from anywhere at first glance, the distance and angle from the goal, and the position from which the shot is shot are clearly defined, which is why he is able to mass-produce goals with high reproducibility.
Team V Player Introduction
Team V has three absolute scorers. Tsurugi Zantetsu, who pretends to be smart but is actually an idiot. Mikage Reo, an all-rounder who is also good at assisting his teammates. And Nagi Seishiro, a genius with super-sensation who is impressive for his god-like traps. Reo is the heir to a large company, but he was bored with his life that has everything. Then he saw the World Cup on TV, and when he tried to start playing soccer despite his parents' objections, he met Nagi. Reo, who appreciated Nagi's good athletic ability, invited him, and after six months of playing soccer, he became skilled enough to be invited to this "Blue Lock."
Fourth Match VS Team V①
Kiyoto, who understood the secret of Barou's strength, thinks of situations where he can utilize his spatial recognition ability, which is his weapon, and makes an effort to improve the reproducibility of goals. And the final match with Team V begins. Team Z, which blocked Reo's pass work, Kenjo's favorite course, and passes to Nagi using the collected data, gradually gets the flow. However, Team V, which has won all games up to now, easily allows the first goal with Nagi's super trap from the sharp pass of the all-rounder Reo, and then loses two points in a row, and it's 3-0 in no time.
Fourth Match VS Team V②
Without any strategy, in a hopeless situation, and losing their fighting spirit one after another, the only one who was laughing was Bachira Maki. In order to beat the enemy, you have to evolve during this match, exceeding your limits is a must, a mentality that gets excited before you get scared. His true abilities are on full display. Bachira executes ideas that come to mind on the spot, such as super-fast scissors, roulette, and aerial elastico, and passes the opponent's DF, and succeeds in scoring a point with his fun and egoistic soccer.
Fourth Match VS Team V③
Inspired by Hakke's fun-loving play that goes beyond the limits, Team Z awakens one after another. First, Kunikami's super long no-spin shot from a farther distance than usual, Chigiri's dribbling breakthrough with re-acceleration, these add two points and bring the score to a 3-3 tie. Individual awakening and adversity force them to evolve, challenge and achieve. However, it was Nagi from the opposing team who was inspired by the team's aggressive mood.
4th Match VS Team V④
Their otherworldly play and the pressure of defeat caused the genius Nagi Seishiro's body to start moving on its own. He was also forced to evolve, and lost a point with a superb technique of a volley shot from a back trap. Once again, in the midst of adversity, Kiyo awakens. He reproduced the pass to Chigiri and Kunigami's goal just as he had imagined it in his head, tying the score at 4-4. He filled in the weak points of the play he had imagined in his head, and with his eyes and brain, he surpassed Team V, and finally won with his own direct volley.
Summary
What did you think? What next challenge awaits the Team Z players who have successfully passed the first selection? I'm curious to see how things will develop in the future. The story of the manga covers up to the middle of volume 5, so if you're interested, please check out the anime and manga to see what happens next.
