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 As an assistant at a struggling lower-league club, he begins to reshape the team from within challenging outdated tactics, unearthing hidden gems, and reigniting hope in the dressing room.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's dramatic 2–1 victory over Aston Villa clinched by Thiago deep into extra time didn't just shock the football world; it lit a path straight to the FA Cup final against Chelsea. But glory comes at a cost. Sitting third in League Two on 76 points, just three shy of Bournemouth, Crawley's promotion hopes were burning just as fiercely. Now, just 48 hours after their Wembley heroics, they were back in the grind away to Lincoln City at Sincil Bank. Around 8,000 fans packed the stands, with 1,000 Crawley supporters painting one end in a defiant sea of red. With six games to go after tonight, Niels stood at a crossroads: chase the dream of cup history, manage tired legs, and hold their promotion charge together. Could Crawley summon one more surge or would the weight of history begin to wear them down?


Chapter 73 - Battle for the Promotion