Chapter 136 – Asian Qualifiers (6)

136

While preparing for the match against Iran, our team prepared two scenarios.
When the game goes well and when it doesn’t.

The national team tends to be like that, but the preparation period for the game against Iran was insufficient.
I have to do recovery training after the China match, move from Seoul to Iran, and the training schedule is postponed due to problems with the auxiliary stadium.

Aside from everything else, Iran’s petty obstruction cost a lot of money.
I replaced the training with video analysis and discussion, but… I just can’t do it with my own body.

Anyway, since there was not enough time to prepare, I had no choice but to use the three-back base that was effective in the match against China, but Iran is a much stronger opponent than China. Besides, isn’t the venue also that Azadi Stadium?

The national team’s three-back is a tactic whose performance depends entirely on my performance, so if I perform poorly, the team’s performance will drop dramatically.

Since it is an opponent of a different level from China, I prepared quite a lot in case I was blocked by the Iranian defense or I could not adapt to the high altitude stadium and wandered around, but it seems to have been in vain.

Between the defensive lines of the 4-4-2 Iranian players.
Today, too, he played as the center of the back three, but received the ball from senior Yoon Hyuk, who jumped forward and participated in playmaking like a midfielder.

The quick pressure of the Iranian players who were terrifying to catch the ball and surrounded them from three directions was quite fierce.
However, the fact that three players participated to pressure me inevitably means that there is a shortage of people somewhere in the Iranian camp.

When Iran’s right midfielder was followed by the movement of left wingback Seol Yo-han, who dug into the side with a timely overlapping, the space was instantly empty.

“Senior Bae Chan-shik!”

The off-the-ball movement of former national ace Bae Chan-sik, who is active in the EPL, could not have been missed.
My pass, which was keeping the ball while moving the ball between the three pressures, headed for Bae Chan-sik senior.

Surprised by the sight of senior Bae Chan-sik catching the ball in an empty space without any restraint, the Iranian players quickly put pressure on them, and the players start moving all at once according to the promised pattern.

Two strikers run to the right side at once, and the opposite central midfielder penetrates as if to join the attack.

The Iranian players moved in line with our players, and in the meantime, senior Bae Chan-shik, like an off-the-ball master, was tempting the Iranian players in a clever position.

An Iranian player belatedly rushes in from behind, but the Iranian player blocking the front cannot stand it. At the same time, a subtle sense of distance that won’t take away the ball.

The team’s movements were dazzling enough to dazzle the Iranian players, but on the contrary, if the ball is stolen, they are aggressive and vulnerable to counterattacks.

A dangerous moment when the side defender of Iran, who had been thinking about it for a short moment, quickly ran toward senior Bae Chan-shik, and senior Bae Chan-shik, who was under pressure from Iran players from the front and back, seemed to lose the ball at any moment.

“This way!”

I break through the Iranian player who marks me with a momentary sprint and dig into the empty half space. As in training, the pass was accurately delivered to my feet.

A very short time before the hurried Iranian player caught up with me.
I am completely free.

As he took over the ball with the same momentum as he was running and dug into the penalty box, the Iranian center back approached, but even this was overtaken with a light turn, and only the goalkeeper was left.

He waited for the goalkeeper, who stretched his hands down and lowered his stance, to come closer, and kicked the ball accurately between his legs.

Although he was a goalkeeper who reflexively closed his legs, the ball that had already passed indifferently rolled over the goal line and shook the net.

* * *

“Yaah!! Goal!! Goal!! Hong Min-jun’s first goal!!”
“This is a perfect goal that combines organic team play and Hong Min-jun’s individual skills!!”

The Azadi Stadium, filled with 80,000 spectators, excluding the areas assigned to away supporters, fell into silence.

9 minutes in the first half.
Contrary to expectations, it was a goal due to the brilliant pass play of the Korean national team, which showed overwhelming possession against Iran, which was aggressively opposing them.

“The players’ movement and pass connection were very good! If you look at the replay, Yoon Hyuk climbed up to the midfield camp to create a pass path and pass to Hong Min-jun. Wait for the Iranian players to approach, and then, like this, connect them to Bae Chan-shik.”
“Wow~ Even under the pressure of 3 people, it connects without being taken away.”
“It’s an amazing ballkeeping ability. The movement of the other players was also good. Seol Yo-han dug into the side and brought in the Iranian player, and Bae Chan-sik pretended to dribble and drew the Iranian player into an empty space with instant speed, Hong Min-joon. I dug in.”

The caster, who was looking at something next to the commentator who was admiring the replay that followed, quickly opened his mouth.

“Ah~ With Hong Min-jun’s score, you can taste the goal in 4,355 days at the Azadi Stadium. On October 13, 2021, after Son Heung-min’s first goal against Iran in the 4th round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar World Cup Asian final qualifying round, a whopping 4,355 Goal at Azadi Stadium in 10 days!”
“Didn’t the Korean team show an exceptionally weak appearance in the Azadi expedition?”
“That’s right. Since the 1974 Tehran Asian Games group stage matchup, until Hong Min-joon’s goal today, only three players have scored at the Azadi Stadium. Lee Young-moo, Park Ji-sung, and Son Heung-min were the only players. Park Ji-sung in February 2009 He scored a goal on the 12th in the final qualifying round for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, and after 12 years and 8 months, Son Heung-min scored a goal on October 13, 2021.”
“Ah, really… Iran’s Azadi expedition has been very difficult. Today, here! We must resolve the defeat of the expedition, our players!!”

When the mulberry-filled caster burst into the lion’s roar, a local relay camera suddenly illuminated the audience.
Hong Min-joon, who scored the goal, ran to the away supporter’s seat assigned to Korean fans and shook his hand. Among the crowd cheering wildly, there were five particularly striking beauties.

“Yeah… It’s so pretty, our audience.”
“Keuheum. It’s a very desirable sight.”

* * *

Iranian bastards, they must have believed that they could control me with their skills.
No way

Certainly, the quick pressure against me or the intense competition that pushes forward with its size is threatening. That is if I insisted on breaking through the dribble.

I catch the ball and the Iranian players rush at once, perhaps regaining momentum from the one-sided cheering of the 80,000 Azadi Stadium spectators.

The fierce pressure that ran back and forth was quickly neutralized with a light pass.
In this game, instead of holding the ball for a long time as usual, I was playing a simple one-touch or two-touch pass.

No matter how hard he presses, he connects with a pass in just one or two touches, so can the pressure be properly applied?
Basically, there were many friendly players in the midfield, so the pass path was diverse, so I was able to easily connect with my one-touch pass, which was relatively lacking in pass sense. It was a possible reason.

It doesn’t work even if you try to stop me, but rather, the pass is smooth because the players on our team are free to keep me in check.

The Iranian coach, who belatedly noticed our team’s tactics, shouted loudly, and the guys’ movements changed.
Even if I caught the ball, only one marksman applied the pressure, and the rest of the guys backed away and started marking friendly players.

“Oh. Well, it’s me.”

The Iranian camp got tangled up in the movements of Seol Yo-han, who works hard to cross the side, and Bae Chan-sik, who annoys the Iranian players with off-the-ball moves trained in the EPL.

If you mark me with just one person… Just break through
As if he expected to continue with a pass this time, he kept a distance and penetrated the Iranian player, who was focusing on blocking the path, using his speed at the moment.

The startled Iranian player stretched out his foot,
Took.
With light trapping, he takes the ball out through his wide crotch and digs into the Iranian camp.

Along with my dribbling, the national team players showed ready movements.
After continuing the pass play, when the intensity of pressure from the Iranian players toward me decreases, they scatter to the ground as wide as possible to create space for dribbling.

It was a very simple, promised pattern that was not difficult, so the national team players scattered left and right in an orderly manner.
The Iranian players, who were often ridiculed by the pass play, also reflexively follow the national team players, so the space widens at the moment and there is a space for me to dribble.

As I drove the ball to the side to avoid the Iranian player who was running into it, it was outside the penalty box.
Avoiding the Iranian players who surround and press on all sides, give the ball to senior Seol Yo-han, who is located in the corner of the side.

Seol Yo-han, who received the ball, set his stance with one trapping and raised the cross.
While the Iranian players were focused on me, towards my teammates digging into the wide space on the other side.

* * *

『The 60-year jinx is broken!!』
『Iran’s away winless record at Azadi Stadium, finally over!!』
『An exciting 3:0 victory. The performance is more fun.”
『Elena Stewart, America’s national sister, appeared at Azadi Stadium! What is the reason?』
『The beautiful Hong Min-jun division. Are agents and personal trainers beautiful in their twenties?”