The sun had barely risen over Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper, but the air was already tense. Not from nerves—but from hunger. Everyone knew what tomorrow meant.
The next league game. A strong opponent. A real test.
And Coach Rafa Márquez wasn't here to make it easy.
"I want intensity today. The last game is gone. The next one is war."
Luca tied his boots tight. He wasn't tired. He was obsessed.
Warm-Up – No Mercy
The usual jog and stretches were replaced with a brutal 10-minute sequence:
High knees
Quick feet ladders
Side-to-side shuffles
Sprint bursts
Push-ups between cones
By the end of it, shirts clung to their bodies, and sweat dripped down onto the turf. Luca's heart was hammering—but he liked it that way.
"Let's go again!" he said after finishing first in sprints.
Possession Drill – Chaos Box
Four teams. Small space. Two-touch maximum. One neutral floater.
It was wild.
Shouts everywhere. Passes zipping. One wrong touch, and possession switched.
Luca was the floater in round three—he made it count.
Backheels. One-touch triangles. Turns in traffic.
Even Rafa shouted, "¡Sí, sí, Luca, like that!"
He danced in tight spaces, finding the open man every time.
Barberá whispered, "Bro, are you connected to Wi-Fi or something?"
Luca grinned.
1v1 Combat – Fight to Score
The pitch was divided into small 1v1 channels.
Coach Márquez stood with a whistle. "Winner moves up. Loser drops. Make it count."
Luca faced Aleix Garrido in his first duel.
First play: shoulder-to-shoulder. Garrido pushed him hard.
But Luca spun off, dragged the ball with his sole, and chipped it past.
Next round: a defender with more strength. Luca used his low center of gravity, dipped a shoulder, cut in, nutmeg, finish.
One by one, he climbed up the ranks.
Full-Team Tactical Scrimmage
Márquez finally blew the whistle.
"Form up! Red vs Yellow. Full pitch. Game situation."
Luca was on the Red Team, alongside:
Gk: Astralaga
Defenders: Faye, Cubarsí, Garrido, Hernández
Midfield: Casadó, Luca, Román Vega
Attack: Rodríguez, Barberá, Darvich
They faced their own teammates like it was a real match.
The intensity? 100.
No one backed off. Slide tackles flew in. Quick pressing. Long balls. Switch plays.
Luca ran his lungs out.
Minute 12: He intercepted a pass, drove through midfield, chipped a diagonal to Darvich who volleyed it past the keeper.
BOOM.
Then came the reverse.
Casadó pressed him hard, took the ball, and nearly scored.
Coach Márquez shouted from the sidelines.
"Luca! They'll come for you. You need to be stronger! React faster!"
Luca nodded, fists clenched.
Final Sequence – Sprints & Finish
Everyone lined up.
20-meter sprints to cones, then turn and shoot first-time off a moving ball.
Luca refused to lose speed.
He flew down the line. By the third rep, his legs were burning—but he still finished top bins.
One assistant coach whistled, "He's a damn machine."
Wrap-Up & Word from the Coach
The team huddled around Rafa Márquez.
"This isn't just about technique. It's about obsession. It's about wanting it more than the guy in front of you. Tomorrow? Show them who you are."
Luca wiped the sweat off his brow. His calves were on fire. His lungs burning.
And yet, he smiled.
"Tomorrow," he whispered, "they'll know."
System Notification
[Training Intensity Rated: A+]
➤ Stamina +1➤ Strength +1➤ Composure +1
Mini-Boost Active: All physical attributes gain +2% in next match due to high-performance training.