Chapter 180
Chapter 180
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 180
Chapter Title: Union Berlin vs. Champions League Final -3
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***
After Yannick Foigt's opener, the flow of the game clearly tilted toward Union Berlin.
But Inter wasn't about to give up just like that.
Inter began desperately pressing forward to equalize.
The two teams battled fiercely in Union Berlin's half, in midfield, and in Inter's territory.
Inter threw everything into finding an equalizer, while Union Berlin went all out for another goal.
"Cambiasso's pressure! Luka Modrić stripped of the ball! But Zanetti snatches it away!"
The moment Inter stole the ball from Modrić, their counterattack kicked off.
Led by Eto'o, Inter's forwards raced into the space behind Union Berlin's defense.
"Zanetti to Cambiasso, Cambiasso lofts it long upfield!"
The pass Zanetti laid off to Cambiasso flew straight toward Eto'o, who was sprinting into the space behind Union Berlin.
"Oh! Eto'o shakes off Virgil van Dijk! Union Berlin in trouble!"
Eto'o shrugged off Virgil van Dijk and charged forward at full speed.
The instant van Dijk was beaten, Thiago Silva sprinted back to cover, but unfortunately, he was a step too late.
"Etooooo!"
In a one-on-one with the keeper, Eto'o unleashed a shot.
His effort was low and vicious, arrowing toward the bottom left corner.
But Eto'o's shot didn't find the back of the Union Berlin net.
"Ooh! He saves it! Manuel Schmidt! A phenomenal stop! The Black Panther Eto'o clutches his head!"
Union Berlin's goalkeeper, Manuel Schmidt, had kept out Eto'o's shot.
"Yes! But the danger isn't over yet…. Oh! Diego Militooo—!"
Of course, Inter's attack wasn't done. The parried ball fell to Diego Milito inside the penalty area. Milito didn't hesitate, smashing it goalward from point-blank range.
Inter fans were already on their feet, sensing a goal.
But Manuel Schmidt, who had quickly scrambled to his feet after the first save, dove again to block Milito.
Even Mourinho on the touchline clutched his head at Schmidt's double save.
"Jaaaaa! Manuel Schmidt!!"
"Football god!!"
Cheers erupted from the Union Berlin fans' section.
'I'm a Boss pick too.'
Manuel Schmidt, catching Park Chan-hyuk's eye, nodded back.
He took pride in being a player handpicked by Park Chan-hyuk.
And it wasn't just Schmidt who felt that way.
It was a sentiment shared by most players who had come through Union Berlin's youth system.
The current Union Berlin youth products were ones Park Chan-hyuk had personally scouted and nurtured since his days as assistant coach.
Union Berlin academy graduates took pride in their roots, even after loans or transfers.
Just like La Masia products boasting about their Barcelona origins. Of course, they weren't quite at Barcelona's level yet. But Union Berlin's youth team's reputation was rising fast.
Anyway.
"Manuel Schmidt!! Union Berlin's guardian deity with a miraculous save!"
Union Berlin had somehow weathered Inter's dangerous counter.
Park Chan-hyuk, watching from the touchline, let out a sigh of relief.
He immediately started barking instructions at his players. The Champions League final was far from over.
As promised to the fans last time, he and Union Berlin would give everything in this match.
'We can win this.'
As Park Chan-hyuk steeled himself for victory.
Thiago Silva lofted a long pass forward.
"Thiago Silva to Ángel Di María up top."
"Ángel Di María! He tears through Inter's right flank!"
Ángel Di María took Thiago Silva's pass and dismantled Inter's right side in an instant. He glanced up at the penalty area.
Yannick Foigt and Lewandowski were dragging Inter's defenders with decoy runs. As the defense focused on them, space opened up.
"Whoa?! That's leaving way too much space behind!"
Di María immediately cut back into that space.
"The moment I mention it, Di María crosses!"
Di María's cutback, a beat late, found Shinji Kagawa bursting into the box.
"Shinji Kagawa! He shoots!"
Kagawa calmly connected with it.
But the ball took an awkward bounce right in front of him.
"Ah— Kagawa's shot sails wide. So close."
And moments later, as Kagawa's mishit skimmed just over the bar.
"Ah, no!"
Park Chan-hyuk, who had been constantly directing his players from the touchline, clutched his head.
That was a chance to seize complete control of the game.
***
The first half between Union Berlin and Inter ended 1-0.
Union Berlin still held the edge.
Perhaps reflecting the match situation, Union Berlin's players looked somehow lighter than Inter's.
The players headed to the locker room, and halftime proper began.
Union Berlin's squad took their individual breaks in the locker room.
Moments later, as Park Chan-hyuk entered, all eyes turned to him.
It was a scene that showed the influence he wielded over the Union Berlin players.
"I'm proud of you all."
Park Chan-hyuk spoke to the players recovering their energy as they watched him. They smiled faintly at his sincere words.
Their manager might seem playful and a bit crazy most days, but he knew how to put real heart into his words.
They could feel his genuine pride in that moment.
"We're proud to play under you too."
In that atmosphere, Yannick Foigt spoke for the team.
It was the kind of cheesy line that would normally draw ribbing from teammates.
But not today. No one said a word.
Everyone in the squad shared the same feeling.
***
The slightly awkward halftime ended, and the second half kicked off.
Just 45 minutes remained in the season's final match.
I watched the game from the touchline, continually directing my players.
I'd shouted so much from the early minutes that my voice was now half gone.
"Eisen!! Union!!"
The fans' chants echoed endlessly around the stadium.
I recalled the moment I first joined Union Berlin as assistant coach.
Memories from the past flashed by quickly.
Starting from when I stubbornly pushed to sign Yannick Foigt.
Faces of players who had dedicated themselves to Union Berlin scrolled through my mind.
For the record, life at Union Berlin wasn't all joy.
Honestly, there were more times I felt daunted staring at the poor club.
[Union Berlin rebuilds stadium with unpaid labor.]
[Fans' blood and sweat save Union Berlin, reach Champions League final.]
[The romance of soccer lives on.]
But we overcame it all in the end.
True to Union Berlin's slogan, we stood together and conquered the crises.
And Union Berlin had become a symbol of romance.
'Hmm. Though we did get some capital injections…'
After promotion to the first division, Gutten's investments had pricked my conscience a bit.
Anyway, the early second half belonged to Inter.
They hammered Union Berlin relentlessly in search of an equalizer. I didn't raise my voice unnecessarily in those moments.
I trusted the players I'd scouted and raised myself.
And sure enough, Inter's forwards couldn't breach Union Berlin's famed wall. We blocked their attacks by hook or by crook.
The momentum swung back to us, and Union Berlin's final push began.
***
Union Berlin's last counter unfolded.
Thiago Silva's interception went through Luka Modrić to the substitute Son Heung-min.
Union Berlin's legs felt like they were shackled with iron chains.
But they kept going, refusing to quit until the end.
Son Heung-min's cross found Robert Lewandowski.
"Shoot!"
Lewandowski's shot grazed the keeper's body, but the ball still rolled toward goal.
With barely any time left, Lewandowski's second goal effectively ended the intense battle between the two teams.
"Oh my God! Union Berlin's fairy tale… becomes legend!"
***
After Lewandowski's second, time flew by.
Inter mounted attacks, but their fatigued players couldn't string together anything meaningful.
"It's over! It's over! Union Berlin! Union Berlin wins the Champions League!"
Moments later, the referee's whistle pierced the stadium.
The final whistle blew, and Union Berlin's players—who had watched anxiously—poured onto the pitch.
"The 2009/2010 European champions are Union Berlin!"
Union Berlin had claimed the European crown.