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A female journalist from The Asahi Shimbun took the next question. "Rakim, you faced a tough challenge against Japan's defence. What was your impression of players like Tomiyasu and Riku Handa?"
Rakim who had been preparing to give a neutral answer that would place the foreign media was left speechless. He had run through their team with ease scoring two goals whilst playing out of his usual position and here she was asking about the tough challenge he faced with their defence. In the second half, they had to swarm him with bodies to block his breakthrough routes and force him to lean into possession football.
"They showed great teamwork and coordination working well within their team's tactical framework." He simply responded with a neutral tone causing Bella-Kotchap to do his best to keep his facial expression straight.
From the training camp, he had faced his young teammates quite a few times and the one thing he was sure about him was his belief in his attacking prowess. He didn't mind if you made fun of his defensive weakness but one time Kevin boasted he could take him on one-on-one and shit hit the fan. For a full 3 days, Rakim used various ways to face Kevin in training and each time he used the most efficient way to get past him.
No matter what position he was put in be it as a midfielder, winger, striker, and even left back he would cut inwards and face him. Things only stopped when Kevin bribed him with a pack of Knoppers and proclaimed him as the best attacking player he had ever faced. From that day onward the two became the best of friends training together, with Keving giving him advice in defensive positioning and Rakim telling him the best ways to stop players like him.
Not willing to give up on getting such a neutral answer that didn't highlight their player's abilities she asked another question. "Ahem, what is your opinion of their prospects of breaking into the top leagues in Europe,"
"I honestly couldn't tell you I'm not a prophet," Rakim simply answered gaining a few chuckles from those present and frustrating the reporter. "Where they end up would depend on their own efforts and choices they make, not all players excel in the premier league but thrive in LaLiga and vice versa."
Whether she was satisfied with the answer or not didn't matter as the German press secretary immediately motioned for the next reporter to ask his question. A deeper, more serious voice followed. "Armel, defensively, you and Kevin Ehlers looked solid in the first half but struggled against Japan's pressure later. What went wrong in the second half?"
Bella-Kotchap sighed, his jaw tightening before responding. "We pushed too high in our attempts to apply pressure and were unlucky to not capitalise on our chances. Their speedy counterattack played a role, and they punished our mistake with a goal. As for the free kick that was a piece of individual brilliance from Kubo."
Bella-Kotchap's answer gained a nod of approval from the Japanese reporters and the Germans alike as he had perfectly outlined their mistakes. However, most understood that such a tactic would only work once against a side like Germany which would adapt should they meet again in the tournament. Following that question they asked the 3 a few more talking about everything from pre-tournament preparation to their living standards in Poland and overall team morale.
A final question came from a German media outlet who asked a more personal question to Rakim. "Rakim, your national team journey has been well-documented, well with you growing up in the American youth system and even representing them in a few tournaments. The switch to Germany came suddenly and many are wondering whether this move was pre-planned or done out of desperation to play in the tournament."
The room quickly went silent as quite a few reporters perked up their ears ready to jot done Rakim's response. This was a topic that could quickly make headlines as half the hype of the tournament was caused by this controversy. Many American news outlets when they had nothing better to do used this news to create buzz at the expense of his image.
Rakim took a moment before answering, he leaned forward with his hands intertwined as his elbows on the table propped them up. "If I was being honest, I never expected my move either after all I grew up in Florida and have been a part of Team USA since the age of 7." He started his voice sounding quite sombre as he looked into the camera that was filming the interview.
"After winning the Scottish Cup with Celtic I was preparing to join the team in Brazil, but the call-up never came. When my team asked for the reason, we were informed that I wasn't wearing the right boots on the field. I honestly never knew there was a right shoe brand to winning matches, maybe we should all look into that if we want more matches." He continued stopping a light joke towards the end but by the serious look on his face, one could easily tell that he was unamused.
"On the bright side, Germany embraced me with open arms, allowing me to not only grow as a player but also thrive in my personal life. Plus representing my father's home country is something I'm very proud of, He grew up admiring the Kaiser Beckenbauer, and the likes of Gerd Müller and Lothar Matthäus telling my sister and me stories growing up." After speaking so far Rakim took a small break taking a sip of the bottle of water in front of him.
He continued speaking before any of the reporters could interrupt him, he continued his speech. "England was also an option but yet again my shoes weren't quite right not that I'm complaining since I've been playing the best football of my life since becoming an Apex player." The room murmured with the noise of discussion among the reporters as they took in the explosive news.
All of them could easily read between the lines on who had blocked his entry into Team USA as both America and England were sponsored by NiKi. Plus, it was well known that the company had been trying to move heaven and earth to get him to resign with him after they stupidly activated a clause that allowed him to leave for free after his shooting. They wanted to ask more questions and dig deeper to add some more TNT to this bomb they were handed but the German media officer interrupted.
"That's all the time we have. Thank you, everyone." Without needing a prompt, the three who had been under a magnifying glass immediately stood up and took their leave.
[Czosnek i Oliwa, Bydgoszcz Poland, 21:00]
The warm glow of candlelight flickered against the polished wooden tables of Czosnek i Oliwa, a charming restaurant tucked away in the heart of Bydgoszcz. The scent of freshly baked bread and slow-roasted meats filled the air, blending with the soft hum of Polish jazz playing from the speakers. Seated near the window, Rakim found himself in the company of the two stunning blonde women.
The older of the two sported light blonde hair and dressed in a cream-coloured blouse and high-waisted black trousers. She exuded an effortless air of maturity and elegance as she listened to her son talk about his adventures in Germany. The girl sitting next to her matched her height of 5'10 but exuded a more relaxed presence as he twirled a strand of her peach-blonde hair as she scrolled through her phone, probably looking at the media reactions to the match or handling her own business. She wore a simple fitted black sweater with a neck zipper loosened showing off her long neck and white jeans with a brown belt.