2-0.
As the first half ended somewhat uneventfully, reactions among netizens split into two main opinions.
[As expected, they're taking it easy. Their goal is the trophy anyway, so they're just cruising.]
[Looks like they just came out for a casual stroll lol.]
[Still, Seongnam held on well. They fought hard.]
[Coach Shin Tae-yong really is a promising manager. He could even handle the national team in the future.]
Real Madrid had indeed played casually, but Seongnam Ilhwa had also done well.
A small spark of hope had begun to appear.
Entering the locker room, coach Shin Tae-yong clenched both fists.
'Good. Everything is going according to plan.'
2-0.
They were losing, but for him it was a very satisfying result.
As expected, Real Madrid lacked urgency.
If they could exploit that gap well, a comeback goal was possible.
And who knew?
Maybe they could push the match to penalties and win a miracle.
'Let's create a miracle.'
So far, this was only the beginning.
Shin Tae-yong.
After making his managerial debut last year, he had taken over a struggling Seongnam Ilhwa and successfully played the role of a firefighter, bringing the team back to the top.
He was considered one of the most promising young managers by Korean football fans.
A gentle leadership style and a focus on player autonomy.
He was also the man who abolished the traditional Korean football culture of team training camps.
Because of that approach, people sometimes called him Murin-yong, a mix of Mourinho and Shin Tae-yong, or Alexim Tae-yongson, a mix of Alex Ferguson and Shin Tae-yong.
Although they had barely produced a proper attack in the first half, all of it had been nothing more than a trick to make the opponent lower their guard.
'They'll think our team is nothing special.'
If that happened, Real Madrid would not change their tactics.
That was when the opportunity would come.
'I'll make the decisive move.'
He was a gambler.
He had an excellent ability to confuse opponents with unexpected tactics.
Of course, sometimes those tactics confused his own team as well, which was a fatal weakness.
But he believed that much was necessary when facing Real Madrid.
'You can't catch a tiger with ordinary methods.'
After quickly organizing his thoughts, Shin Tae-yong returned to the locker room and gathered the players.
The conversation took place in a careful and serious atmosphere.
After a brief tactical explanation, his solemn voice followed.
"The day after tomorrow is Christmas Eve. If you perform well here, you can enjoy a party and shopping in a wonderful place. But if you lose helplessly, we'll just go back home. Now choose. Which do you want?"
"The first one!"
"Good."
Having united the players, Shin Tae-yong clenched his teeth.
'From here, I'll step forward as a national team manager.'
That dream.
He truly wanted to achieve it.
[Yes, halftime has ended and the players from both teams are returning for the second half. There are several noticeable changes.]
Shin Tae-yong placed the tall and physically strong Radoncic in the center.
He used the team's crack Molina and Seongnam's "Maradona" Choi Sung-kuk on the wings, forming a 4-3-3 formation.
It was a surprise tactic they had not shown during the match.
[Coach Shin Tae-yong has made a bold move. Unlike the defensive first half, Seongnam Ilhwa is now attacking aggressively.]
[Yes, the balance is good. But the key question is whether the players can fulfill their roles in each position. The opponent is Real Madrid. It would be a mistake to treat them like an ordinary European team.]
Radoncic would dominate aerial duels.
Molina and Choi Sung-kuk would use their speed on the wings to exploit gaps.
The tactic itself was good.
After all, it was Seongnam's only chance to attempt a comeback.
However, there was one thing Shin Tae-yong had overlooked.
'Substitutions?'
Seongnam Ilhwa was not the only team that had made changes.
Real Madrid had also made significant adjustments during halftime.
[This is a change that could catch coach Shin Tae-yong off guard. Instead of playing defensively as expected, Real Madrid has come out with a very attacking tactic.]
It was just as surprising as Seongnam's change.
Higuaín went off and Gourcuff came on, taking the attacking midfielder role.
But it did not stop there.
Xabi Alonso, who had formed a double pivot with Lassana Diarra, moved forward.
He and Gourcuff now formed a double attacking midfield line.
Ho-young moved up as the lone striker.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Douglas joined him, creating a three-man forward line.
[An extreme 4-1-2-3 formation. It's a shape we rarely see.]
[Yes. It clearly shows their intention to focus on attack instead of defense. It's the complete opposite of Scolari's usual preference for solid defense.]
Shin Tae-yong felt as if he had been struck on the back of the head.
Real Madrid had been expected to defend, yet they had chosen an attacking approach.
But from another perspective, that also meant their defense had weakened.
'This is an opportunity.'
Exploit that gap.
Thinking that way, Shin Tae-yong ordered an all-out attack.
And indeed.
[Choi Sung-kuk uses his speed to break down the wing! Marcelo tries to chase him!]
[The cross comes first! He spotted Radoncic in the middle!]
[The header!]
[Ah! It narrowly misses!]
[But it was a good attempt. Seongnam Ilhwa's first shot after about fifty minutes!]
As expected of Alexim Tae-yongson.
'This is the trick.'
It worked perfectly.
Against everyone's expectations, his tactics were showing clear results.
The problem was that the trick was too simple.
After Radoncic's header, Seongnam Ilhwa failed to create another dangerous chance.
Whenever Radoncic tried to dominate aerial duels, Pepe appeared and controlled the ball.
When Choi Sung-kuk and Molina attempted to attack down the wings, Ramos and Marcelo blocked them.
Soon after, Real Madrid began dominating the midfield and took control of the match.
Seongnam's front three became completely isolated and turned into spectators.
It was around the 55th minute.
[The momentum has completely shifted.]
[There's far too much space behind Seongnam Ilhwa's defense. This is dangerous!]
The danger had already arrived.
[Alonso sends a long pass into the space behind!]
[Jung Sung-ryong rushes out desperately!]
Jung Sung-ryong hesitated and reacted a moment too late as he rushed forward.
He threw his body forward, but Ho-young's foot was two steps faster.
Clang!
It was a hat trick.
[Gooooal! 3-0! Real Madrid extend their lead!]
"Ho!"
Ho-young's scoring instinct did not stop there.
Shaken by the additional goal, Seongnam Ilhwa dropped their defensive line and became more passive.
Whenever Gourcuff touched the ball, he began distributing killer passes all over the pitch.
"Here!"
Tap.
[Cristiano Ronaldo! He easily beats Hwang Chul and breaks down the flank! A low cross!]
[Ho-young charges in!]
Ho-young squeezed between Koo Jae-sung and Sasa and stretched out his foot.
But at that moment.
"Hup!"
Jung Sung-ryong positioned himself perfectly and blocked the shooting angle.
It was an incredible display of football instinct.
Unfortunately, it was not enough against Ho-young's own instincts.
If the shooting angle was closed, he simply had to open another one.
Ho-young touched the ball with his heel and redirected it toward the opposite side of the goal.
Clang!
That was the fourth goal.
A super hat trick.
"Ho!"
"Siuu!!"
As the two celebrated passionately, Shin Tae-yong's face turned pale.
'We're finished.'
His dream of becoming the national team manager was slipping away.
'No.'
He could not give up like this.
If nothing else, they had to stop conceding more goals.
"Defense! Get back! Everyone defend!"
He immediately switched to a ten-back defensive system.
One by one, they began blocking Real Madrid's attacking routes.
From that moment, it became a half-pitch match.
[68th minute of the second half. Real Madrid's possession has risen to 87 percent. It might even reach 90 percent.]
[Seongnam Ilhwa must be terrified every moment. Real Madrid's players seem to have become more interested and are focusing entirely on attack.]
It was completely one-sided.
Still, Seongnam's defenders packed the box and somehow managed to hold on.
"Defend! Twenty-five minutes left!"
"Don't lose focus for even a second! Stay with them until the end!"
"We can do this!"
Seongnam Ilhwa's players shouted and tried to steel their mentality.
At that moment.
Step.
"…!"
[Oh?!]
[Ho-young is sprinting! But the direction...!]
Not inside the box.
Outside.
Ho-young, who had been searching for space inside the box, suddenly pushed off the ground and ran outside the penalty area.
If the opponent blocked the inside, then score from outside.
As soon as Ho-young received the short pass Xabi Alonso pushed forward, he put power into his upper body.
Sasa arrived late and clung to him like a leech, but Ho-young did not move at all.
Instead.
Whoosh!
[…?!]
[Unbelievable!!]
Even with his back to the defense, he could still shoot.
Like this, spinning instantly.
Boom!
Clang!
[Goooooal! Ho-young scores again! A turning shot that everyone knew was coming yet could not stop! Fantastic!]
[He rotated his body sharply and opened the shooting angle to the left. With that level of physical ability and body balance, there's simply no way Sasa could stop him.]
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
He simply received the pass, turned left, and shot.
Sprint, first touch, rotation, shot.
All those movements flowed together like a single motion, producing a magnificent turning shot.
His fifth goal.
As the goals exploded in the second half, both spectators and netizens went wild.
[LOL he came here to relieve stress.]
[Kimchi is best when it's well fermented.]
[Just keep passing forward and Ho-young will score everything.]
[Stop already... the kids might cry...]
But it was not over.
Twenty minutes still remained.
With momentum on their side, Real Madrid pressed high and regained possession again.
It looked like a public execution.
Real Madrid seemed determined to humiliate their opponent, crushing Seongnam Ilhwa like a washing machine.
Another goal came just three minutes later.
Clang!
"Woooooo!"
Douglas and Marcelo formed a triangle with Xabi Alonso, producing a brilliant passing combination.
Meanwhile, Ho-young made sharp movements to create space.
He fooled all the defenders and shook the net.
That goal became Ho-young's sixth.
[Double hat trick for Ho-young. What more needs to be said? This is Ho-young's class.]
[Six goals from eight shots. It's only natural that goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryong looks completely devastated.]
"Damn it…"
Maybe he should have asked them to take it easy.
After conceding four goals in the second half alone, Jung Sung-ryong even found himself thinking that.
It was a humiliation beyond words.
Real Madrid and Ho-young were showing every possible kind of play in the second half.
Combination plays that could not be stopped even if you knew they were coming.
Plays that could not be defended even if they told you in advance.
Before you realized it, the net was already shaking.
The same thing happened again three minutes later.
Clang!
"Damn it!"
[Gooooal! This time Sergio Ramos scores! Ho-young and Ronaldo's movement drew the defense perfectly. Gourcuff's through pass was excellent.]
[Ho-young seems to be moving tirelessly, even though the victory is already secured. Did he hold some kind of grudge against Seongnam Ilhwa?]
Watching the scene, Scolari chuckled.
"Haha…"
He remembered what Ho-young had said during halftime.
He wanted to score many goals so he could remember this final match.
And it happened to be against fellow Koreans.
'Cruel kid…'
But it still was not over.
Seongnam Ilhwa had completely lost their will.
In the final minutes of the second half, they could not even show half of their real ability.
And then.
Clang!
[Another goal. This time Douglas scores, with a brilliant assist from Ho-young.]
[This match will be remembered as a thrilling gift for football fans worldwide. But for Seongnam Ilhwa, it will remain a very cruel memory.]
Because of that goal, the scoreboard looked like a baseball score.
9-0.
Tweet!
Full time.
The excited crowd chanted Real Madrid's name endlessly after the goal festival.
Netizens also went wild.
[That's brutal... Jung Sung-ryong looks like he's crying...]
└Why did they even win the AFC Champions League just to suffer this humiliation...
└Shin Tae-yong... good tactics but poor preparation... maybe not ready to be national team coach yet...
└Kimchi's biggest enemy was kimchi.
└Ho-young isn't ordinary kimchi. He's "God Kimchi."
Five trophies achieved.
Real Madrid easily lifted the championship trophy.
And Ho-young, while winning the Golden Boot, also gained valuable rewards.
[Excellent Ball Handling (B-)]
[Outstanding Leadership (B+)]
They were talents from Jung Sung-ryong and Scolari.
He wanted to covet Scolari's exceptional player management (S-), but since it was the first time, he could not.
'Maybe next time.'
Now only one thing remained.
'The Ballon d'Or.'
Late December.
The shocking Ballon d'Or ceremony was approaching.
(To be continued.)