Three days have passed; it is now the day before the game.
The boys from the men's soccer team are on the field, with Coach Ishii and Coach Suzuki in front of them.
Coach Ishii watches them carefully.
In an authoritative voice, he says, "The game is tomorrow... I will now announce the starting lineup!"
Tension fills the air among the players.
"We will play 4-4-2... The goalkeeper: Andou. Central defenders: Aoki and Noguchi. Fullbacks... on the right: Ueno; on the left: Sugimoto. The two central midfielders will be Ono and Tamura. Wingers: on the right, Shimizu; on the left, Tanaka... and finally, our forwards: Nishimura, who will play slightly behind the striker, who will be..."
Kaneko stares at Coach Ishii without blinking. "Aliberti."
Kaneko sighs in disappointment, with Noguchi watching him.
"Noguchi!"
Hearing his name suddenly called, Noguchi turns to Coach Ishii.
"You'll be the captain."
Noguchi is stunned for a moment.
"Unless you want..."
Noguchi's expression changes to determination.
"I'll do it!"
"Good. Practice begins!"
As usual, the boys leave the training ground exhausted.
Later, in the locker room, after showering, Kaneko grabs his bag and quickly leaves, under everyone's watchful eyes.
Noguchi follows him.
"Kaneko!"
Kaneko stops and turns to Noguchi.
"What do you want?"
"You know... on paper, I could be the captain of this team tomorrow... but as long as you're on this team, that armband is still yours."
"So what?"
"That means the team needs you too! Stay focused... you still have cards to play!"
Kaneko sighs, annoyed.
"Ugh... who do you think you're talking to?" Kaneko starts walking toward the exit. "Of course I'll take back the armband and my starting spot. This is my team!"
Noguchi is struck by Kaneko's words, then smiles a little.
"He made me give that embarrassing speech for nothing..." Noguchi mutters to himself.
Riccardo approaches Noguchi.
"Kaneko!"
Kaneko hears Riccardo's voice, but doesn't turn around, continuing to walk.
"I'll never give up this starting spot to you... if you want it, you'll have to give more than 100%!"
"We'll see!"
Riccardo looks at him satisfied with the answer.
Noguchi puts a hand on Riccardo's shoulder, guiding him towards the locker room.
"Let's go. Even if tomorrow is only a friendly... let's face the best."
Riccardo nods, then follows Noguchi.
"Yes..."
That evening, Riccardo comes home.
"I'm home!"
His mother hears him from the living room.
"Welcome back!"
Riccardo comes into the living room and kisses his mother on the cheek.
"I'll be back later tomorrow."
Riccardo's father comes out of his room.
"Why?"
He is about 1.78 meters tall, bald with a beard, and has dark green eyes.
Riccardo sees him.
"I have a friendly match tomorrow. We're playing away."
His father goes to sit on the couch.
"I see... who are you playing against?"
"Maebashi Ikuei. From what I heard, they won the national championships last year."
His mother is surprised.
"Then it's going to be a tough match! I'll make you a nice dinner for after the match!"
Riccardo smiles.
"Don't overdo it though..."
He looks around.
"Did Cecilia go out with Sasha?"
"Yes... I heard you managed to convince her to join the music club. Good job." His father says, turning on the TV.
"It wasn't hard... she has talent. It would be a waste not to share it with anyone."
Riccardo checks his phone, then starts walking down the hall.
"I'm going to my room. Call me when dinner is ready."
His mother watches him go.
"Okay."
As soon as Riccardo enters his room, his mother turns on the stove under a large pot of water, then heads for the couch.
"Our children are full of talent..." she says with a satisfied and proud tone.
"Yes... since we moved to Japan I can finally agree with you. The environment they had in Italy didn't help them at all..."
"It was particularly good for Riccardo... I never liked the friends he had in Italy..."
The father nods.
"Luckily, he's always managed to stay out of trouble, just like me. Although I'm sure he still misses Italy and his friends..."
In his room, Riccardo is playing a video game.