Asian Cup Final: Ten-Back and Ha-neul's Free Kick
‘He definitely had solid fundamentals.’
Ayaka, who scored the equalizer, was definitely a player with solid basics. Watching him try to dribble alone, keep the ball, and immediately pass when it seemed impossible showed it.
But football isn't about playing alone.
No matter how much Ayaka showed such performance, if the team didn't support, it meant nothing.
Well, it didn't mean the Japanese players were inferior to Korean players, but something felt like the Japanese players' bodies were heavier than in the first half. And I, when we gained possession, understood the reason.
‘…Ten-back?’
As soon as we gained possession, the Japanese players, familiar with it, started building their two-line defense line in a disciplined manner.
‘Japan is using ten-back?’
And I was a bit surprised by the sight. Using ten-back against Korea in the Asian Cup final. Even in the World Cup, Japan was playing their own style, and in my prime, they clashed and were broken, but Japan had never shown this.
‘How will they handle domestic public opinion…?’
But suddenly why...
But now, instead of satisfying curiosity, it was important to first widen the score difference.
“Ha-neul-ah!”
Since the Japanese pressure wasn't too intense yet, I grabbed the ball near the center and slowly pushed it forward.
‘They'll block with zonal defense, huh,’
Japan's current position was not giving any space, a position. Eight defenders were placed in two lines in the right places. To block me who crossed the center line, Hina, Japan's striker, came up to press.
Hina was Japan's main striker playing in the Netherlands, strong in forward pressing with good stamina, and as such a player, she had some defensive ability, so it seemed she was marked by me at this position.
Well, even so, she couldn't take my ball.
After lightly peeling off Hina's press, I connected to Kim Chae-ri. And the pass starting from Kim Chae-ri dug into the left line, and Yu-ri, after receiving the ball, tried to dribble.
But perhaps because it was hard to break through the Japanese defensive line in place, Yu-ri passed the ball back again, and our attack entered a lull.
“Let’s go slowly! Slowly!”
While taking a gesture lowering both hands, my words made our passing tempo, which was flowing a bit hastily, return to normal.
If Japan came out like this, there was no need to hurry. We just needed to go slowly.
Fundamentally, the reason the ten-back in the Middle East was tough was because the physicality of the Middle Eastern players wasn't much different from European players. And moreover, they came out prepared with such tactics.
But Japan clearly didn't have the advantage in physicality nor had they practiced the ten-back tactic much.
So, by pressing, a gap would eventually open.
‘Should I check the cross first?’
While pushing the ball to the left and making the defense focus around, I passed a long pass to Park Hye-ri, the most accurate crosser. Park Hye-ri, who got a completely free timing, immediately crossed, and Shizuka cleared the ball with a header.
‘Tsk, Shizuka is really tough.’
Shizuka, who had her soul stolen by me today, was a defender who made a name in the EPL. Considering her physicality surpassing European players, it seemed hard to break through that defensive line with a cross.
And since the cross didn't end the attack completely, there was a counter-attack risk.
To deal with ten-back, one always had to be careful with counters, so unless I was the one crossing, I erased the cross from my mind and received the pass.
After receiving the ball, I kept looking for the easiest way to break through Japan, but even a medium-range shot wasn't easy.
To set up and shoot from medium range, a Japanese player jumping out from the area would interfere with the shot, and if I shot without setting up, it was basically giving the ball to the opponent.
If I could shoot from medium range, I could fake one and create shot timing, but honestly, expecting that far was too heartless.
‘Then the only thing left is… passing plays that break through the narrow area.’
And there was Yu-ri, who had matched countless times in the national team.
When trying to push the ball in,
“Ugh!”
Pee - thwack!
Hina, marking me, pushed me with her shoulder and declared a free kick. And only then did I realize that the Japanese guys had prepared this play quite a bit.
‘They cut it as a foul, eat inaccurate crosses or medium shots and counter, right? Wait, but why is this guy coming all the way here as a striker? Is it that they leave the attack entirely to Ayaka?’
Looking at the referee and Hina talking, I glanced at the scoreboard. The time shown on the scoreboard was about 15 minutes into the second half. Of which, 12 minutes were our ball possession and 3 minutes Japan, but I didn't feel like we had the advantage.
‘Tsk. If we hold it generously for about 35 minutes.... Can we break through?’
It was easy to break through the guys trying to take the ball, but breaking through guys who keep committing fouls that don't get cards, prepared for it, was quite difficult. By pressing, eventually a gap would open, but I couldn't guarantee when.
‘Then it might go to extra time?’
When the thought of extra time came, I immediately understood why they were coming out with such a strategy.
They were betting that I hadn't handled extra time with this body yet.
‘...They planned well.’
And their thinking had some merit. Normally, after about 80 minutes in the second half, fatigue would set in.
No matter how great my talent, physical limits couldn't be overcome, and running for over 90 minutes while fighting with women was tough for anyone.
Moreover, thinking that I ran more than usual to press Shizuka in the first half...
‘Yeah, let's see what happens.’
This was their time attack against me.
Long or short, we'd see, but I had no intention of going home crying after coming this far.
*
South Korea is on the attack! Ah! Ryu Ha-neul! Passing to Kim Seul-gi while falling! Kim Seul-gi's shot! Ah! Saved by a great save. ... And a card is shown? The second yellow card for Mio who pushed Ryu Ha-neul today.
Even in an advantageous situation, we have to give the card.
Now Japan has received the second yellow card, what do you think, commissioner?
At first, I saw Hina receiving the yellow card, then Mio marking Ryu Ha-neul? Maybe now Tamaki will mark Ryu Ha-neul? But with yellow cards coming out like this, the Japanese players will have no choice but to shrink back.
Ah, in Japan, they are replacing Mio with Chisato.
It's a player playing in Entwurf, Belgium, a player with good balance between offense and defense? Then Chishato will likely mark Ryu Ha-neul.
Now the remaining time is 10 minutes. Can Korea really break through Japan's wall....
Pee - thwack!
The whistle was blown. Extreme silence enveloped the ground.
And Yoon Seo-hee ran.
‘If I block this! Since Yoon with bad condition came, there might be a chance for us!’
Japan's goalkeeper was thinking that and concentrating all her senses on Yoon Seo-hee's movement, and when Yoon Seo-hee touched the ball,
Thud.
Ryu Ha-neul, standing next to her, pushed the ball forward.
“…Eh?”
The tension in her whole body loosened from the unexpected situation. But soon, the sound of hitting the leather ball hard was heard.
‘What?’
But the invisible ball. When Japan's goalkeeper saw the ball, it was the moment the ball passed under the jumping defensive wall.
‘No...!’
She jumped, but with the sensation that the ball slightly caught on her fingertips, a shout came out.
- Waaaaaaa!!!!
- South Korea! South Korea!
…With the Korean cheering call that came in every time they played the Korea-Japan match.
Yoon Seo-hee, who was loosening up her body according to Ryu Ji-hye's words, felt a bit sad seeing the sight.
Her height was about 178cm, quite tall for a man, but to Yoon Seo-hee's eyes, Ha-neul's figure looked too small and weak, giving the impression that it would break if touched. But even so, the sight of Ha-neul, who got up by supporting himself and patting the grass on his uniform, looked tougher than any woman.
Yoon Seo-hee, as the ace of South Korea, when playing national team matches, always had to face countless violence, so she knew how tough it was. The place where he fell would be sore, and there would definitely be times when she wanted to rest.
But even in such tough situations, after the short free kick, after receiving the ball again, Ha-neul tried to dribble once more.
‘If I had run...’
In this tournament, Yoon Seo-hee's role was as a candidate. Because she hadn't played several games in the club, she wasn't in normal body condition to play the game.
If she was a little younger..., if she had met Ha-neul a little earlier. Seeing Ha-neul falling, Yoon Seo-hee felt sorry. If she had been young, she would have received Ha-neul's pass and easily knocked down one or two and scored the goal.
But, she was already old, and Ha-neul was in a situation where even the viewers would have a hard time, and he kept trying to dribble. No, now the Japanese players too, perhaps because of Ha-neul's madness, were trying to knock him down even without the ball.
Pee - thwack!
So, after a while, the whistle was blown again with the referee holding the card.
To some, it might seem like not a red card and the yellow card was meaningless, but Yoon Seo-hee knew that Ha-neul's dribble was significant enough.
It was a position a little closer to the goal than the position where the previous free kick was taken.
Compared to the first foul, the position that advanced almost 10~20m was now a threatening position to shoot.
And Yoon Seo-hee instinctively knew that the time had come for her to play.
Although she participated as a candidate in this tournament, there was still one weapon left for Yoon Seo-hee. A weapon that had nothing to do with match sense.
And throughout the tournament, under Ryu Ji-hye's instructions, Yoon Seo-hee had been honing that weapon. To prepare for any possible situation.
Moreover, she had used that weapon to show effect in the round of 16.
“Seo-hee.”
“Yes, Coach.”
“Prepare. If the free kick comes from a better position, then immediately substitute.”
“…Understood.”
Since she had already prepared for such a situation, there was no need for long words between them. So, when she took off the vest, the coach Diana approached and patted Yoon Seo-hee's shoulder and opened her mouth.
“Seo-hee.”
“Yes, Coach.”
“Finish quickly. Seeing the kid falling like that makes my heart uneasy too.”
Even in Barcelona days, she said she took care of Ha-neul, and she was indeed a very deep-thinking coach. With such a coach, it felt like there was no need to worry about a South Korea without her.
“…Yes.”
So, Yoon Seo-hee answered shortly as usual, and tied the laces of her soccer shoes tightly.
Pee - thwack!
And the whistle was blown again. This time, the player who received the yellow card was Tamaki, Japan's midfielder. But that wasn't very important. The free kick was called from 26m.
26 meters. Far or close, but Yoon Seo-hee was there. She was at this position for that one shot.
Ah, South Korea is making a substitution here. Jo Seo-won and Yoon Seo-hee are substituted. Yoon Seo-hee entering in the 82nd minute of the second half.
Probably, it seems like they intend to give the free kick to Yoon Seo-hee. Even if Yoon Seo-hee doesn't have sharp game sense, her kick power is at world-class level, right?
Yes. Yoon Seo-hee walks in front of the ball placed.
“Senior, as expected, free kick?”
Watching her mother Ryu Ji-hye taking the free kick and helping, Ha-neul approached and spoke. To that, Yoon Seo-hee nodded silently.
“Then how about 3?”
“3?”
“Yes. It seems it will go in?”
“…Okay.”
The people who can take a free kick from this position in South Korea now are three: Yoon Seo-hee, Kang Yu-ri, and Han Ye-jin. But anyone on the field expected that this free kick would be taken by Yoon Seo-hee.
If Yoon Seo-hee wasn't taking the free kick, there was no need for Yoon Seo-hee, who hadn't played several games in the club and only played about 10 minutes as a candidate in the Asian Cup, to come out to the ground.
In such a situation, Japan's goalkeeper was naturally focusing on Yoon Seo-hee's foot.
Pee - thwack!
The whistle was blown. Extreme silence enveloped the ground.
And Yoon Seo-hee ran.
‘If I block this! Since Yoon with bad condition came, there might be a chance for us!’
Japan's goalkeeper was thinking that and concentrating all her senses on Yoon Seo-hee's movement, and when Yoon Seo-hee touched the ball,
Thud.
Ryu Ha-neul, standing next to her, pushed the ball forward.
“…Eh?”
The tension in her whole body loosened from the unexpected situation. But soon, the sound of hitting the leather ball hard was heard.
‘What?’
But the invisible ball. When Japan's goalkeeper saw the ball, it was the moment the ball passed under the jumping defensive wall.
‘No...!’
She jumped, but with the sensation that the ball slightly caught on her fingertips, a shout came out.
- Waaaaaaa!!!!
- South Korea! South Korea!
…With the Korean cheering call that came in every time they played the Korea-Japan match.