Nicholas Marjan, known as Niels, was an Asian football-obsessed loner in the modern world. A master of FIFA Career Mode, addicted to YouTube tactics videos, and followed every twist of the transfer window like it was life or death, he lived the beautiful game from behind a screen.
Until the day he died.
And woke up in the late 2000s, in the body of a once-promising young player at a lower-league English club. A player whose career had been cut short by a brutal ACL injury. With his playing career over before it could truly begin, his second life offers no glory on the pitch.
But Niels still has one weapon: his mind.
Armed with future knowledge of football's evolution, and guided by a mysterious, almost cheat-like instinct for scouting raw talent, Niels steps into the world of coaching. As an assistant at a struggling lower-league club, he begins to reshape the team from within challenging outdated tactics, unearthing hidden gems, and reigniting hope in the dressing room.
His methods are unorthodox. His instincts, uncanny. And soon, whispers about the "young coach with a gift" begin to spread.
This isn’t the story of a player chasing glory. It’s about someone reborn to change the game from the sidelines. From forgotten training grounds to Europe’s biggest stages, Niels is on a mission, 
not just to win, but to rewrite what it means to lead.
He once dreamed of lifting trophies as a player.
Now, he'll do it as a coach.

The morning after Crawley Town's 2-1 triumph over Barnsley, the town thrummed with a pulse of pride, its streets draped in red scarves, shop windows scrawled with "Red Devils!" in chalk. Niels stepped out of his flat, the January air sharp, the buzz of last night's FA Cup Fourth Round victory still ringing in his ears. Luka Radev's 71st-minute winner, José Baxter's razor-sharp assist, and Adam Fletcher's heart-stopping save had carved history, propelling Crawley into the Fifth Round for the first time ever. His heart swelled with pride, yet a quiet dread lingered, the next opponent, still a mystery until tomorrow's draw, a shadow in the frost. Could his League Two side, battered but fierce, keep this dream alive, or would the Cup's next step crush their fragile fire? 


Chapter 41 - Echoes of Glory