310. The Europa League final (2)
at Aviva Stadium had extremely mixed reactions.
The sky blue flag was waving like crazy and tens of thousands of voices were singing Blue Moon in unison.
It’s the last game.
Manchester City’s last game and Woo Young’s last game.
Although the first half wasn’t even over yet, some people were already shedding tears.
It wasn’t because I was very sensitive.
Look at that scene.
The play of a young boy from Asia.
That boy who is struggling all over the field.
He was captivating tens of thousands of people with his incredible play.
“Huh….”
“I’m going crazy.”
“Me too…”
Common sense dictates that you should be happy when you see Hoyoung play, but sighs were coming from all over the place.
It wasn’t an overreaction.
They were all Citizens who truly loved Manchester City.
The fact that he came all the way to Ireland to watch the game proves it.
Also, they were in love with Woo Ho-young.
As a human being, I felt truly grateful for the miracle he had created.
It’s been 5 months since I came to Manchester City.
This could be seen just by looking at the number of Hoyoung’s exclusive cheer songs exceeding 10.
So it was natural for them to feel sorry.
Really the last game.
It broke my heart to think that I would no longer be able to see Woo Ho-young at Manchester City.
Moreover, I felt even more disappointed because Hoyoung’s play looked quite attractive today.
To exaggerate, every minute and every second that passed was such a waste.
[It gives me goosebumps. You were very determined today. I think the expression ‘flying over the ground’ is appropriate.]
[That’s right. In fact, wasn’t there some concern? Since Woo Ho-young was very active in the Champions League, he will lose motivation in the Europa League. But I think the motivation is right.]
[That’s the mentality.]
The Champions League and the Europa League are essentially the same, but there is a huge difference in their status.
Even in the same European competition, the level is quite different.
If we had to compare it, it would be the difference between the major league and the minor league.
But to Hoyoung, that was meaningless.
This season, the Europa League was much more important than the Champions League.
As always, I just played the game steadily.
[In particular, I think it would be good for not only soccer players but also athletes in other sports to emulate that consistency. In fact, when a person stands at the top, he or she tends to become lazy.]
[I agree. I haven’t seen anything like that yet, so it feels even more amazing.]
How dare you do that?
I got this opportunity by pledging my lifespan as collateral.
Heavenly luck.
This was an opportunity made in heaven.
I got an opportunity that others couldn’t get even if they wanted to.
Therefore, when Hoyoung wakes up every morning, all he can think about is that he has to go to training.
Still, being human, there are some days when I want to bury my face in the pillow, but when I think about the past, the feeling of laziness disappears immediately.
Having said goodbye to the world once, I knew how precious life was.
So I had no choice but to try harder.
There was a quote from a famous athlete:
-If going to training in the morning is a hassle, it may be time for you to retire.
Consistency and sincerity.
And it was a message that showed how important non-stop effort is.
mentality.
That was the real reason Hoyoung was able to do that.
In other words, it was all talent.
And now it has arrived.
What will happen if you exceed that limit is left to your imagination.
Since you are literally going beyond ‘human limitations’, you will gain talents that go beyond common sense.
Hoyoung could not calm his pounding heart.
Even at this very moment, as I was walking around the stadium, the tension and excitement continued.
There are only 70 minutes left.
The moment I had been waiting for so long was about to arrive.
I was constantly looking forward to what the next season would be like and what further achievements I would achieve in the future.
Cheer up.
As Hoyoung walked around the stadium, a dimple appeared at the corner of his mouth.
It was my first time experiencing something like this.
‘Strange.’
Hoyoung was unable to fully concentrate on the game.
But what was even funnier was that they were still putting tight pressure on their opponents.
My body was moving on its own.
Awakening.
As I get closer to breaking my limit, does my body react first?
Sometimes I thought this would be okay.
A feeling of exuberance of endorphins that lifts the mind and body.
Although it seemed like the body was moving according to emotions, it was being controlled as Hoyoung thought.
[Manchester City’s momentum is so strong. It’s as if a fearless rhino is mercilessly attacking the opposing team.]
[The Juventus players are having a hard time coming to their senses. You must have been quite embarrassed. Before the game, training may have focused only on Woo Ho-young and a few players, but when we opened the lid, we saw that all 11 players were showing tremendous performance.]
Joe Hart, Kolarov, Kompany Boateng, Barry James Milner, etc.
They could not have even imagined that they would be in the Europa League final.
Their youth and spirit were defeating the age and experience of the elders.
But Juventus couldn’t just hide.
After all this and that, there was at least a fight to be had.
exclaimed Juventus manager Luigi Delneri, taking off his glasses.
“Don’t think about conceding goals! “If the mind dies, the body dies too!”
It was from then on.
Juventus, who had been shrinking, slowly regained momentum.
[Juventus builds up step by step. Grosso Chiellini and Bonucci Grigera are actively participating in the attack.]
[The midfield is also getting better. Giovinco Marchisio Diego Pepe coordinates the lines by putting them together. I’ve made a lot of preparations to avoid being caught by Woo Ho-young. I think I can finally see that.]
Because Woo Ho-young’s movements were so vast, it was not possible to focus on one area.
So, we wandered around here and there, looking for various attack routes.
As both teams’ offense and defense became more intense, the game took an increasingly exciting turn.
“Don’t pass where you can see!”
“Change your thinking! Don’t move normally! “Think about that and nothing else!”
Phantasy star Del Piero’s voice filled the field.
Pressure, tackle, cooperative defense, physical condition, etc.
That doesn’t help much when dealing with Woo Ho-young.
No matter how good you are, there is nothing you can do to stop him.
But creativity was different.
That was the most important ability in dealing with Woo Ho-young.
At least that’s what Del Piero believed.
‘Woo Ho-young is nothing short of Manchester City’s watchtower.’
In other words, if you make a visible play, you will easily hand the ball over to him.
So I tried not to play any normal games.
And at the center stood Sebastian Giovinco.
He was once considered a top prospect along with Woo Ho-young, and was good enough to take on this role as he had outstanding kicking and passing abilities and was also highly creative.
At the same time, Fantasy Star Del Piero swept the ground and Iaquinta took control of the air superiority and attempted a cautious attack.
Meanwhile, the game seemed to be slowly unraveling.
[Grosso looks at Giovinco. Pass to the side.]
[Even Diego joins in. Giovinco exchanges a triangle pass and breaks through the side. Wayne Bridge tries to follow, but his speed is not enough.]
[Giovinco stabs straight to the center! Diego gets it once again!]
Giovinco, who escaped Hoyoung’s radar with creative link play, used his genius to create a decisive chance.
It was the moment when Diego, an attacking midfielder from Brazil, caught the ball.
[Diego folds once and stays in mid-distance!]
[Ah, I’m stuck! Woo Ho-young’s back tackle!!]
Ho-young jumped out like a sports car suddenly accelerating and made a sliding tackle on Diego.
Despite the speed, the tackle was clean and without any unnecessary details.
There was absolutely no reason for the whistle to blow.
[Ball deflected after being hit by the foot. It flows straight to Kolarov.]
[Looks ahead at Kolarov. Simone Pepe is sticking to it!]
[But it’s not possible. Kolarov escapes the pressure easily.]
But it didn’t end there.
[Then Giovinco clings to him!]
“Pfft!”
A sudden ball contest.
Giovinco made a smart move and succeeded in getting the ball out.
[An attacking opportunity returns to Juventus again! It was a neat tackle!]
It was Giovinco who had made great progress compared to before.
Now he has outstanding skills not only offensively but also defensively.
Although he had a critical weakness of being only 164 centimeters tall, he compensated for this by lowering his center of gravity and improving his agility through consistent management and special training.
In a way, I was able to grow this far because I was inspired by Woo Ho-young.
How persistent is this evil relationship?
‘I will definitely cut it off today.’
I didn’t want to be better than Woo Ho-young.
Giovinco wants only one thing.
‘Just this one.’
Successfully scoring against Woo Ho-young.
It may sound like a very simple thing, but in reality, it was a very difficult wish.
widely!
[Woo Ho-young’s raid! It’s rolling as is!]
[Ah, Giovinco, you have to concentrate. You have to hold on to your wits until the end!]
A collision occurred near the center.
‘Piercing…!’
Giovinco moved creatively and defended the ball.
I tried my best not to allow a physical fight.
But in the end.
Tuk.
“Kek.”
[Sebastian Giovinco falls down!]
[Ho-Young Woo pulls the ball out between his legs.]
I thought I had a chance of winning as long as I avoided physical fights, but when I opened the lid, I realized that it was actually just a funny illusion.
I only brushed shoulders with Woo Ho-young for a moment, but that was all I did and I was knocked out.
‘iced coffee.’
The level was completely different.
Genius and creativity?
No matter how high it is, it still feels like it’s playing in Hoyoung’s palm.
It was that moment.
Talk.
“…!”
Percussion!
“What!!”
[Oooh! The ball flew over the head! Hoyoung Woo is running!!]
Hoyoung kicked the ball high with the instep of his foot.
At the same time, while penetrating forward, he caught the ball with his chest, hit it with his knee, and attempted to run.
It was a creative play that collapsed the line established by Giovinco Marchisio Diego Pepe in one go.
Moreover, it did not end there.
Whoop!
Hoyoung, who was hitting at speed as fast as the wind, used body paint appropriately and knocked out Chiellini and Bonucci one after another.
First, turn left once.
“ah!”
And on the right.
“That grosso!!”
As Bonucci moved forward, Grosso came out from the right and tackled him with both feet.
But Hoyoung was not there.
“Ahhh!”
Because I jumped up in the air with the ball between my feet.
[It came again! [Bicycle Flick!]
It was a genius individual move that collapsed Juventus’ final defensive line.
“Ah…”
Giovinco, who was looking at Hoyoung’s back from afar, moaned.
‘Don’t put it in. Please, please….’
I put my hands together and prayed earnestly.
But no surprise occurred.
Crash!
[Gooooooooooo! Woo Ho-young’s left footed shot hits the top left corner! With this, Woo Ho-young scores a hat trick!]
3-0.
It was a first half that showed true genius and creativity.