Hearing him, some people in the room nodded their heads. Noticing their expression, the man couldn’t help but reveal a subtle grin of satisfaction.
He strongly believed that it was too early for Hiro to receive the prestigious award. After all, Hiro was only sixteen. Therefore, he thought that awarding Hiro with the prize would freёweɓnovel.com
diminish the league’s reputation.
To prevent that from happening he had to win the majority of the vote.
So, when he found others accepting the proposal put forward by him, he couldn’t help but feel elated.
Naoko, one of the brilliant analysts and sports journalists who was dressed in a cardigan stared at Kenshin who was vouching for Yuya Osako.
She wasn’t convinced by his words and her beliefs sharply contrasted to his. She believed that the award should go to those who deserved it.
Staring sharply at him, she refuted the claims he had spoken, “Why does age matter? If Hiro has played well then naturally he should be awarded. And even if age does matter then there’s more of a reason that award should go to Hiro.”
“After all, how often do you see a sixteen-year-old debutant outperforming the veterans?”
Upon hearing her argument many in the room felt convinced by her words. But Kenshin wasn’t convinced. Rather he felt even more irritated when he heard her. He felt as if his authority was being challenged.
How could a woman who has never played football know about football? He thought while gnashing his teeth.
For a while, the argument got even more heated.
Finally, after a while, a rather stern-looking man who had been seated with his hands locked together without participating in the debate unlocked his hands to speak, “What do you think about it Kazu?”
When that person opened his mouth to speak, immediately the room went silent. There was something unusual about him.
Even the air around him appeared rather dense.
Kazu Miura, also known as “King Kazu” was regarded as legend in Japan. With his long- standing career and experience across multiple generation of footballers, he had a rather extraordinary perspective on what it took to succeed.
Among all the people in the room, he was definitely the most fitted to be a judge. So, his words carried rather heavy pressure in them.
Despite his age, he looked rather fit.
When being questioned, Kazu turned to look at Moriyasu, the previous head coach of Japan. Then he revealed a rather complacent expression before speaking, “Hmm…, I think what Kenshin-san said is correct.”
Kenshin’s heart thumped with joy, his face turning bright. He was elated to hear that one of the most influential figure in the room agreed with him.
With this he believed that his proposal would pass without much opposition.
But Kazu was yet to be done. He hadn’t completely finished speaking.
“But I believe that the award should go to Hiro. Age has nothing to do with the performance. After all, they all are footballer and their value is determined by their performance rather than their age. So, the one who have performed well should be awarded.”
Kenshin’s face changed drastically. Losing the previous glow on his face, the previous
expression filled with elation was replaced by a gloom.
Although Kazu’s words managed to convince a lot of people, Moriyasu wasn’t entirely convinced. So, he asked in a deep voice, “But don’t you think it’s still too early?”
Once again, Kenshin’s heart jumped with joy and he felt relived again.
Kazu answered with a smile, “How old was Ronaldo when he won the ballon d’Or?” “21 years old.”
Someone answered.
Miura’s smile widened, “Exactly! He was 21 years old. Now, can you tell me who were the other two contenders beside him?”
Although many people struggled to remember, Naoko answered it almost immediately, “Predrag Mijatovi? from Real Madrid and Zinedine Zidane from Juventus.”
Naoko had the feeling that later Miura would ask their age. So, she answered it before he could ask, “Predrag was 28 years old and Zidane was 25 years old. Both of them had helped their team lift the league trophy.”
Even though she sounded normal, her eyes were telling otherwise- they were glistening with enthusiasm.
Kazu was amazed by her and so were others.
“Thank you, Naoko-san,” Kazu thanked her for providing the information. Naoko nodded but didn’t say anything in return. Kazu then turned to look at other, “If they had thought like us that season then the award would have gone to Predrag.”
“Now, some of you might even think that Ronaldo was already 21 years old but Hiro is only seventeen now. And there hasn’t been any teenager winning the award previously. But that’s not a reason to deny the person who deserves the prize. We have to change then only will our football change.” Miura delivered the thing he wanted to say.
With this many of them couldn’t help but ponder over what he had said. Their views changed drastically and they couldn’t help but think otherwise.
Kenshin, however, remained adamant about his decision. But even he couldn’t bring himself to argue anymore.
“Now then, shall we cast a vote?” Moriyasu’s deep voice penetrated the silence in the room.
After that everybody cast a vote. Kenshin until the end opposed to the idea of Hiro winning the MVP award. So, he voted against the decision.
Even so, he couldn’t eradicate the unsettling feeling inside him. He knew that most people would vote for Hiro.
After the meeting ended, people began to flock over Miura, complementing the ideas he had shared. Kenshin, however, couldn’t stop himself from glaring at him.
If it wasn’t for Miura, he would have convinced others.
The meeting adjourned and everybody left the hall.
********
The stage had been set and reporters were flocking over the venue. A red carpet had been laid on the floor outside the venue that led to the large hall inside where the award ceremony was
to be carried out.
Everywhere one looked, one could find either a name of a brand or their logo. The show
received a huge attention. So, it was only natural for it to be sponsored by a lot of brands.