The Korean Derby (1)
Barcelona brings home a commanding 5-goal victory!
The team had been shaken after dropping points to Real Madrid in their previous match, but they dismantled Rayo in a display of overwhelming dominance.
At the heart of it all was Ryu Ha-neul’s two goals and one assist. If he had played the full second half, a hat-trick might have been on the cards, but the substitution came a bit early.
That’s understandable. But considering the Champions League round of 16 against Lyon in four days, it was necessary to manage his stamina.
And today, Ryu Ha-neul’s two goals also made the La Liga scoring race interesting.
Indeed. Ryu Ha-neul reached 17 goals, tying for third place. Second is Marisol with 18 goals, and first is Hikaruda from Atletico Madrid with 22. With this momentum, it’s likely that either Marisol or Ryu Ha-neul will claim the top spot.
Even after missing a month due to the Asian Cup, it’s truly impressive. That concludes today’s match coverage.
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The Champions League round of 16 second leg. The match between Barcelona and Olympique Lyon is underway at Camp Nou right now. In the first leg, Barcelona won 2-0 away at Lyon, seizing the advantage.
So, Lyon will likely come out aggressively today, and a high-scoring game might be expected.
Then Barcelona’s starting lineup. Goalkeeper Maximilena…… Camela…… Ryu Ha-neul…….
Camela and Ryu Ha-neul are playing as defensive and attacking midfielders respectively. It’s the most attacking combination in Barcelona right now. While it exposes weaknesses in defense, their passing between each other has a 97% success rate. They don’t want to let the momentum slip today.
Then the match starts. …… Ryu Ha-neul! 2:1 pass between Arnal and Ryu Ha-neul! Shoot! The ball finds an unblockable spot! 12th minute of the first half! Ryu Ha-neul scores the opening goal! 9th Champions League goal! Taking the sole lead in the Champions League scoring charts!
Wow, this is Barcelona, this is Ryu Ha-neul. From Camela to Ryu Ha-neul, then Ryu Ha-neul to Arnal. Arnal, who had come forward with the defenders, gave a return pass to Ryu Ha-neul, creating space. Then finishing towards the far post. Perfect.
…… Albà’s cutback pass! Ryu Ha-neul gets a clear chance! Shoot! It hits the post and in! In just 27 minutes, Ryu Ha-neul records his second goal! 10th Champions League goal!
Ah, the shot trajectory was blocked by the defender. No goalkeeper could have saved that.
…… Ryu Ha-neul’s pass! To Arnal! Arnal, back it, Albà! High! High! Goal!!! 3:0! 43rd minute of the first half, Barcelona seals the match with a blow!
Wow, Ryu Ha-neul’s pass… how did he thread it through there? Truly computer-like passing. Three defenders were marking Ryu Ha-neul… Arnal’s light back pass was perfect.
…… Match ends! Thanks to Ryu Ha-neul’s 2 goals and 1 assist, Barcelona wins the Champions League round of 16 second leg 5-0! Barcelona secures back-to-back 5-goal victories!
The Champions League 8th finals draw is complete. Meanwhile, the draw also finalized the 4th finals tree…
Here is the Champions League 8th finals draw.
Real Madrid CF vs Juventus FC
Liverpool FC vs FC Porto
Tottenham Hotspur FC vs Manchester City FC
FC Barcelona vs Manchester United FC
Also, the 4th finals will be the winner of Real Madrid vs Juventus against the winner of Tottenham vs Man City, and the winner of Liverpool vs Porto against the winner of Barcelona vs Man U, and in the final, El Clasico is possible, so the dream matchup that football fans around the world have been waiting for may be in the Champions League final.
Also, Korean football fans are looking forward to the Korean derby in the 8th finals, and Ryu Ha-neul of Barcelona’s first European stage matchup against Kang Yeon-ji of Manchester United has come to fruition…
……Barcelona, thanks to Ryu Ha-neul’s winning goal in the second half, secured a 2-1 win against Real Betis… Now that today’s match is over, it’s A match period, it’s really nice that we can watch Ryu Ha-neul’s game in Korea.
Actually, he’s truly amazing. Up until now, players like Chae Eun-hee, Ryu Ji-hye, Yoon Seo-hee, etc., have been active overseas, but there hasn’t been a player competing for the scoring title in the league or Champions League. Only the top players in the world can do that. But having such a player come from Korea is truly impressive. And he’s a man. It’s truly a blessing of our era.
Yes. Then we’ll meet in the national team match.
*
Every step, applause and cheers and name calls pour out. Even though he didn’t record an attacking point today, he wanted to feel the fans’ cheers more, so he ran at a walking pace and sent applause to the fans.
And the fans in the stadium cheered even more at his motion. It wasn’t a World Cup qualifier or just a friendly, so Barcelona requested a limit on playing time, making it a bit sad that he had to leave the field.
‘… Well, managing fitness is more important than a friendly. No choice. But after the Asian Cup, it seems a bit hotter.’
Feeling that afterglow, he sat on the bench, and Kang Yeon-ji, who had sat on the bench only in the first half today, sat next to him.
“Haneul-ah, please be gentle in the Champions League.”
Suddenly sitting next to him was unusual, but hearing the words, there was a reason. It had only been about two months since she transferred to Man U, but she was already fully a Man U person.
Kang Yeon-ji had taken the starting spot during the season when the main defender was out, and her performance had been good with local fans, and in the Champions League round of 16, she showed good form, displaying the look of a starting defender for the Korean national team.
“Like today?”
“It was scary today too?”
“But better than the Bolivia match, right?”
“That’s true.”
Today she didn’t record an attacking point, but in the first match of the A match, the Bolivia match, she had scored a hat-trick, so Kang Yeon-ji nodded at his words.
Well, no matter how much she nods at his words, he had no intention of being gentle.
But since he was a person with a lot of affection, he decided to give her one piece of advice.
“But, senior. Be careful.”
“Huh? What?”
“They are really tough.”
As a senior who had played first in Man U, this was a piece of advice that was blood and flesh. Man U fans were really tough; when they were doing well, they acted like they saw a god, but if they got upset, they immediately cursed. That’s Man U fans.
Overall, the EPL has a strong atmosphere, but Man U is even more so, right?
He himself had gone to a pub in England after first coming to the UK from Barcelona, and got scolded badly saying “when do you drink now?” It was because he was a bit twisted, and a lot of it was Man U’s fault. No, mostly Man U’s fault.
Muggy weather, tasteless food, extreme fans, and colleagues who seemed brainless. Plus the betrayal of Barcelona selling him off added to it, so from that time, he had indulged in alcohol and women madly.
Well, thanks to that, he focused on individual skills and shot practice, and his attacking talent blossomed.
“Who? Who are you talking about? Barca kids?”
“No, Man U fans.”
“Not really? Everyone seems nice? I am a complete star, you know? When I go to a restaurant, I get free meals.”
Hmm. It was at its peak good. But, even if the fans maintain their kind hearts even if they get eliminated in the 8th finals after being teased by him? He couldn’t know.
Well, this life Man U was one he didn’t know well, so maybe there were no virus-like friends in the team. So Man U fans might be a bit pure.
“Ah, when you come to Manchester on an away trip, I’ll treat you to a meal once. It’s properly British atmosphere there.”
“…No, that’s a bit…”
Of course, he quickly rejected Kang Yeon-ji’s words that she would treat him to a meal in Manchester. Going to a restaurant with British feel in England? Impossible.
“…Really? Maybe a bit like that?”
“I have a diet during the season. It’s a bit awkward to eat at a regular restaurant.”
Fortunately, it wasn’t a lie that he was on a diet, so he didn’t feel guilty. Of course, he didn’t perfectly stick to the diet.
As a person, when he returned to Korea, he had to eat kimchi jjigae or something.
“Hmm. Then that won’t do. As the world’s best player, right…?”
“No, I’m not the world’s best yet.”
“But we’re at a similar level. But our team doesn’t strictly do that…”
As expected, Man U in this world was also slowly collapsing from the inside. Now, barely in the Champions League, but from Kang Yeon-ji’s words, it seemed the time when even going to the Champions League would be difficult was coming.
“But even if you can, try. You need to eat well to avoid injuries.”
If Kang Yeon-ji’s level of skill is like that, if she manages her body well, she could go to a team in the Champions League level when Man U collapses. He wasn’t particularly close to Kang Yeon-ji, but since they were both Korean players, he hoped she would do well and gave advice again.
“Well, I am also on a diet somehow. Ah, and Louise was looking forward to it a lot.”
“Louise? That French guy?”
Louise… the rookie award winner in this World Cup.
Thinking about the guy, there was another reason to beat Man U in the previous match. Honestly, he had thought the rookie award would be his, but because of team performance, the guy stole it, so he had to tell who the real best rookie was this time.
“Yeah.”
“Please tell Louise that I am also looking forward to it a lot.”
The Champions League 8th finals, and one of his home teams, Manchester United. Plus the guy who stole his rookie award, Louise, and the first Korean derby he faces in the Champions League in this life.
‘First matchup with Man U? Let’s check how the kids are doing in this life.’
There were about two weeks left until the Champions League 8th finals started, but he was already looking forward to it.