In Giant Killing a ragtag bunch from East Tokyo are struggling in Japan’s top football league. The team is going through an abysmal spell right now where they are nearing the bottom of the table and have lost 5 matches in a row. The losses haven’t done much to team morale, because it was already low. Fan support, on the other hand, is looking bleak. In the world of football, once the fans turn on a team the end is near. Teams don’t recover. Coaches are fired, players are sold, and teams drop to lower divisions where profits often prevent them from ever being successful against even mediocre top division teams. East Tokyo United, ETU, can only blame their coach right now. And Coach is ready to give up this next game to prove to his team and fans, that against the biggest club in the nation he can make this team win.
In 2010, this manga received the 34th Annual Kodansha Manga Award for General Manga.