Chapter 119
Translator 8uhl
Chapter 119
Chapter Title The Eldest Son Craves Soccer
The Netherlands was thrown into disarray.
They had been outmaneuvered by a freshfaced kid and conceded the opening goalno way they could stay composed.
It wasnt the script they had envisioned, so panic was inevitable.
Above all, who could have predicted that Yoon Taeyang would wield this much influence from midfield?
The same held true now.
Why was this goalscoring machine so damn good defensively too?
As he advanced with the ball, Taeyang unleashed an absurd level of stamina, disrupting the Dutch passing lanes.
Even while sprinting like that, he somehow directed Kim Ho and Lee Hyunseok behind him to the spots where the ball seemed headed, as if he had eyes in the back of his head.
With every space sealed tight, the Netherlands couldnt push the ball forward.
In the midst of it, Donk grabbed the ball and attempted a long pass.
The ball skipped over the midfield and flew toward the South Korean defensive third.
Reehof controlled it with his chest amid the Korean backline, turned with Yoo Seongjae at his back, and bolted toward goal.
In that instant, Park Donggeun darted in and stole the ball from Reehof.
Ah, this is the Netherlands Achilles heel! In the midst of their generational shift, they still lack a standout striker. 34yearold veteran Reehof is manning the front line even now.
Reehof was a striker who broke lines with quick feet and infiltration runs.
But his pace wasnt what it used to be, and the South Korean defensive duo were speedy themselves.
Park Donggeun steals it and passes to Kim Ho! Kim Ho straight to Yoon Taeyang!
The ball reached Taeyangs feet in a flash.
As Dutch players swarmed around him, Taeyang fired the received ball forward without hesitation.
The target the space at the right edge of the penalty box.
Perfect spot for Park Mingyu to take a few steps and curl in one of his signature shots for goal.
Park Mingyu read Taeyangs intent the moment he got the ball and dribbled forward.
The instant a defender blocked his path to steal it, Park Mingyu stopped dead and whipped a curling shot.
The ball traced a graceful arc and rippled the net.
Park Mingyuuuuuu GOAL!
Oh! South Korea surges two goals ahead against the Netherlands! Theyre dominating! Absolutely crushing it!
At that moment, the fans watching the match nationwide erupted in cheers, utterly hooked on the national team.
Whod ever seen them lead a European powerhouse by two goals in their lifetime?
And not through gritty battle, but by overwhelmingly controlling the game.
But the Netherlandsa team that had etched its name in soccer history time and againwasnt about to go down without a fight.
Shaking off the twogoal deficit like waking from a daze, they began hammering South Korea relentlessly.
Whenever Korea blocked an attack and tried to counter, the young but rocksolid Dutch defenders shut it down perfectly, refusing to yield again. On the flip side, their attacks stripped the Koreans of their composure, conjuring danger with infuriating ease.
The silver lining was that Korea had been effectively neutralizing the Dutch attack lines sluggish pace up to now.
With the Netherlands seizing control after the two goals, the first half came to a close.
Coach Ibica Markovics had no choice but to give the first half a passing grade.
The underdog Koreans had struck like lightning with two goals, held firm against the onslaught, and even launched several counters amid the chaos.
It was a completely different performance from before.
He glimpsed South Koreas potential once more.
Contrary to his expectations, the Korean players werent lacking in soccer IQ.
If anything, they adapted quickly.
Most crucially, they faithfully executed the coachs instructions.
That alone was enough.
Ibica didnt demand more from a team hed coached in just two matches.
He held back on praise for now, entering the second half without tactical shifts or substitutions.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands made changes.
The Netherlands shakes up their attack. Veterans Bernard and Reehof are both subbed off, replaced by 19yearolds Omar van der Been and Brian Koenen.
This really highlights how extreme their generational transition has been. It speaks to a particularly long dark period in between.
What kind of players are these two?
Van der Been is an odd oneplaying in MLS in America. Despite his youth, hes a regular there, stacking experience. Brian Koenen is Feyenoords homegrown talent. Both share lightningquick pace.
It was a deliberate swap to blast open their stalled attack with the duos speed.
With the referees whistle, the second half kicked off.
The Netherlands pushed their entire line up from the start, coming out aggressively.
Korea hunkered down solidly and held firm.
The scenario from early in the first half after the two quick goals replayed itself.
Sensing it wasnt easy to pierce Koreas turtle shellcompact with tight lines and spacingthe Netherlands dropped the ball back to regroup.
Korea pounced, pressing aggressively to capitalize.
This time, the Netherlands tried advancing via the flanks.
Koreas shape naturally stretched, and the Dutch rightback Baheer passed to Donk from the wing.
Donk, receiving centrally, poked it into the open space.
Left winger van der Been snatched it behind Kim Ho and raced down the flank.
As Park Donggeun moved to block him, van der Been dragged him wider before sliding a pass sideways.
Park Donggeun lunged desperately, but the ball cruelly found Koenen.
Koenen struck first time toward goal.
Shin Hoseong stretched full length and palmed it away.
A mistake.
He shouldve cleared it out of play.
Nihman, chasing relentlessly to the end, pounced on the loose ball and slotted it into the empty net for a chasedown goal.
WAAAAAAAAH!
Finally, cheers erupted in the Johan Cruyff Arena.
The sea of orange in the stands was enough to swing the momentum straight to the Netherlands.
Stripped of their aging forwards, the Dutch were now fast and lethal.
Kickoff resumed, and before their surge faded, the Netherlands pressed Korea ferociously for another.
To quell the Dutch momentum, Taeyang dropped deep, and the team as a whole lowered their line to absorb the pressure.
But halting a firedup Netherlands proved no easy task.
From a slightly deeper position, Donk lofted a long ball through midfield to the front.
This time, Nihman took it.
Nihman shrugged off Yoon Jinyong and burst into the halfspace.
As Yoo Seongjae scrambled to block him, Nihman paused for an upperbody feint.
Faking left before cutting right.
Yoo Seongjae shifted to cover, but in that moment, Nihman unleashed the Cruyff turna hallmark of the arenas legendary namesaketo spin past him.
He faked a shot to deceive Shin Hoseong, then passed to Koenen. Exploiting the space from Shin Hoseongs fooled dive, Koenen rifled it home.
In the 21st minute of the second half, the Netherlands leveled against South Korea.
Cheers exploded for Koenen, flipping somersaults, from his compatriots.
Amid it all, trouble struck Korea.
Yoo Seongjae, who had been marking Nihman, collapsed clutching the back of his thigh.
Oh, Yoo Seongjae is down. Whats wrong?
Looks like a hamstring tweak.
The damn hamstring no matter how much you train it, it strikes out of nowhere.
Hed overextended in a backpedal to stop Nihman, and it popped.
The Korean medical staff checked him and signaled an X to the coach.
Caught offguard, the coach paused before turning back.
Bae Sanghyun, get ready.
Yes!
Another moment where a Korean rookie etched a national team cap into his career.
But there was no pure joy.
Rival though he was, Yoo Seongjaehis seniorhad a hamstring injury, the score was tied, and momentum still favored the Dutch.
The Netherlands pressed anew.
As fatigue showed amid the relentless Dutch pressure, Ibica made sweeping subsbut problems emerged.
Excluding Europebased firstteamers and nearEurope elites, the secondstringers quality gap was glaring.
The Netherlands now dominated utterly.
Shining through it was Bae Sanghyun.
He delivered steady defending beyond his years.
The 20yearold prospect Bae Sanghyun, gradually earning more Eintracht firstteam minutes, is now directing South Koreas backline.
He stood out early in youth internationals, and Eintracht invested heavily in hima wellknown name among scouts. Hes living up to the hype.
But the Netherlands still hold sway. Possessions 6535 against uswere way behind.
Even Yoon Taeyang cant magic this alone. Soccers not a solo sport, right?
Is that so?
As the ball went out, Yoon Taeyang placed a hand on his hip and took a deep breath.
Truth be told, they had a point.
Going it alone against Dutch pros was taxing.
Risk of injury from forcing it in a friendly, plus the overall situation sucked.
So hed bided his time, waiting for the Dutch to tire.
Sure, theyd subbed fatigued players, but mostly attackers.
The backline was showing wear.
When a throwin restarted Dutch pressure, Taeyang deliberately dropped deep.
His movement pulled the entire team line lower.
Hunkered down, Nihman attempted another breakthrough.
He breezed past the subbedon Korean fullback with power and aimed for the halfspace again.
But Bae Sanghyun was a beat quicker, intercepting cleanly with perfect timinglike water flowing.
Hey!!
The moment he heard Taeyangs shout, Bae Sanghyun passed to him.
Taeyang took it and surged forward.
Having dropped the line to absorb pressure, Korea faced just two Dutch centerbacks and one midfielder in a makeshift back three.
As Taeyang drove with the ball, Koreas front three sprinted full tilt.
First to greet him Donk.
Yoon Taeyang charges! Explosive acceleration pastslips sideways! Donk cant catch him! Yoon Taeyangs flying!
Taeyang drew level with the Dutch front line.
Next up van Belzen.
Taeyang approached and nutmegged him lightly with a La Croqueta.
Van Belzen wasnt fully fooled and gave chase, but exhaustion left him trailing Taeyangs pace.
With van Belzen beaten and Taeyang bearing down on goal, Buyuk stepped up, convinced hed take it himself.
Then Taeyangs eyes flicked sideways.
Buyuk checked Park Mingyu, then Taeyangs feet.
No ball.
Already passed?
In that splitsecond glance away, Taeyang had flicked it over his head unbeknownst to Buyuk, evading his view to collect the dropping ball.
Roschneil, anticipating, had advanced to confront him.
Taeyang toyed with him like hideandseek, hardbraking and accelerating to tangle Roschneils feet, then stepped past for a clear look at goal and struck.
It evoked Ronaldos Eredivisie rampage in the Netherlandsa thunderous goal.
Yoon Taeyaaaaang! He delivers again today! GOAL! GOAL!
32! Pelé scoreline! With injury time, just 23 minutes left! Hold firm, and South Korea claims their firstever win over the Netherlands!