Chapter 1: Living in the Shadow

Diego Maradona Jr. jogged onto the dusty training pitch. The sun was burning, the air thick, but this was his moment. He tugged his socks up, adjusted his jersey, and ignored the whispers around him.

"Yo, is that Maradona's kid?"

"Yeah, but he's not him. No one is."

Diego heard it all. He always heard it. He didn't care. This wasn't about them. It wasn't even about his dad. It was about him.

Coach Mateo blew the whistle. "Five laps! Let's move!"

Diego took off, his cleats pounding the ground. The guys around him joked and laughed, treating it like another day. For Diego, every lap, every sprint, every second, was war.

"Hey, Maradona Jr.," a voice called behind him. It was Dani, the team's star forward. Cocky. Fast. "You sure midfield's your thing? Your dad would've scored by now."

Diego didn't answer. His legs burned, but he kept running. He wouldn't waste energy on guys like Dani.

"Enough chatter!" Mateo yelled. "Practice match. Two sides. Let's go!"

Diego's heart raced. This was it. Time to prove himself.

The ball rolled his way early. His first touch was clean, soft. A defender charged, quick and reckless. Diego feinted right, slid left, and sent the guy stumbling.

He looked up. Dani was yelling for the ball. Diego ignored him, threading a pass through two defenders to the winger. Perfectly timed.

"Not bad," someone muttered.

Minutes later, the score was 1-0. Dani's team, of course. Diego wiped sweat from his face, frustrated. The ball came back to him, and this time, he didn't hesitate.

Two defenders closed in. He shifted, tapped the ball between them, and exploded forward. The crowd of players gasped. Dani was ahead, yelling again.

Diego had other plans. A quick glance, a sharp chip, and the ball soared over the defense. The winger caught it clean, one touch, then buried it in the net.

Coach blew the whistle. "That's it. 1-1. Good work."

Dani stormed off, shaking his head. "Lucky pass."

Diego smirked. Lucky? Sure. Whatever helped him sleep at night.

As he walked off, he caught bits of conversation.

"He's decent."

"Yeah, but he's not Diego. Not that Diego."

Diego clenched his fists but didn't turn around. He couldn't waste energy on that. Let them talk. He wasn't here to live in his dad's shadow.

He was here to break out of it.