In *Giant Killing*, a scrappy underdog team from East Tokyo is barely hanging on in Japan’s top football league. Their season has been disastrous, with five straight losses pushing them toward the bottom of the standings. Morale is at rock bottom, and fan support is fading fast—a dangerous sign in football, because once the supporters turn against a team, the downward spiral is hard to stop. Coaches get sacked, players are offloaded, and relegation often traps clubs in lower divisions where financial struggles make it nearly impossible to compete again.
Right now, East Tokyo United (ETU) has only one person to blame—their coach. But instead of giving in, he’s preparing for their next match against the country’s biggest club, determined to prove that even this struggling team can pull off a miracle win.
The manga earned critical acclaim, winning the 34th Annual Kodansha Manga Award for General Manga in 2010.
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