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 As an assistant at a struggling lower-league club, he begins to reshape the team from within challenging outdated tactics, unearthing hidden gems, and reigniting hope in the dressing room.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.

Crawley Town beat Burnley 1-0 in the FA Cup, thanks to a powerful goal from Thiago in the 75th minute and some great saves by their goalkeeper, Adam Fletcher. It was a surprising result that excited the whole town. The Red Devils, sixth in League Two, had silenced Turf Moor, their 2,500 fans' roars a fire in Niels' heart. With the FA Cup Quarter-Final set for March 29, Crawley Town faced a tough stretch ahead league matches against Macclesfield Town and Morecambe, all before the quarter-final draw on March 1. At Broadfield's training ground, under a February drizzle, Niels watched his squad gather, lifted by Nate Sutton's return, a spark for the team. His knee wasn't fully healed, but the medical staff had cleared him to resume training.


Chapter 56 - Red Devils Rising