Shooting Trajectory is Visible - Chapter 296



Only Noblemtl

Episode 296: Following in the footsteps of our seniors

After scoring a goal and celebrating the goal, extra time had already passed.

The referee awarded extra time and, unsurprisingly, Italy mustered their spirits and went on the attack.

But it never succeeded.

Because Korea also gathered its soul and defended accordingly.

The referee generously gave two more minutes of added time, but when no special circumstances arose, he ended up blowing the whistle to end the game.

“Az-at!”

Italian cut! Get out of the room you little bastards!

We’re now in the quarterfinals, back to Boston!

There was no player who was not happy about advancing to the quarterfinals for the first time in 24 years.

Aside from the portrait-house-like atmosphere of the Italian players, we enjoyed our own joy.

I was especially happy.

This was especially true because it was no ordinary task for a goalkeeper to score a game-deciding goal right before the end of a match.

And of course, the POTM of the match that day was mine. I scored the winning goal and blocked countless other crucial moves by Italy.

Son Heung-min also shed tears of joy and emotion after advancing to the quarterfinals, surpassing his previous record of 16.

“Player Kim Min-woo! How do you feel about winning the game right before it went into overtime with a winning free kick goal from Player Kim Min-woo?”

The Korean reporter who asked me the question was so impressed that his voice was trembling.

I was wondering how to answer, but nothing came to mind, so I just blurted out whatever came to mind.

“I’m happy that we beat Italy and advanced to the quarterfinals! It was a much harder opponent than I expected! I heard that Italy was stronger 24 years ago than it is now, but I think our seniors have really taken a great path! We won’t stop here and will continue to move forward!”

“You showed your respect for the Taegeuk Warriors! In 2002, the Taegeuk Warriors made it to the semifinals and created a legend! How far do you expect Kim Min-woo to go in this World Cup?”

“After 24 years, I think it’s time to write a new myth! Personally, I want to write a fairy tale, not a myth! Let’s go beyond the quarterfinals and semifinals and try to enter the World Cup this time!”

As I was about to finish speaking, a famous quote from 2002 flashed through my mind and I immediately picked up the microphone again.

“Our team is still hungry!”

* * *

As Korea advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2002, the atmosphere and cheering spirit inside the team became very, very, very heated.

[… … The Korean national soccer team achieved a thrilling victory in the round of 16 match of the North and Central American World Cup held today, successfully advancing to the quarterfinals. This is the first feat in 22 years since the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, and the entire country is filled with a festive atmosphere.]

[… … At 4 a.m. Korean time, Korea achieved a dramatic victory in the round of 16 match against Italy at MetLife Stadium. The winner was Kim Min-woo, who shook the opposing team’s goal net with a wonderful free kick just before the end of the match.]

[… … This is a great feat of winning again against a strong opponent like Italy in a reunion after 24 years… … .]

[At the post-match press conference, the coach and players unanimously expressed their gratitude to the people for their support.]

[The coach was moved to tears as he said, “We were able to achieve today’s result thanks to the players who never gave up and did their best until the end.”]

[Captain Son Heung-min said, “Everyone played with one mind. Now we are aiming for higher goals.”]

[Also, Kim Min-woo expressed his desire to win the World Cup without holding back, saying that he would write a fairy tale rather than a myth.]

The whole country was literally in a festival mood.

The great achievement of advancing to the quarterfinals of the World Cup also brought about an unusual sense of harmony in South Korea, a country mired in hatred and conflict.

At this moment, there was no conflict between men and women, no conflict between regions, and no conflict between ideologies.

Seoul Gwanghwamun Square, Busan Haeundae, Daegu Dongseong-ro, and other major cheering locations were filled with red waves even though it was early in the morning.

In particular, Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul was filled with tens of thousands of people watching and cheering for the game despite the time zone.

It was a historic moment.

[This victory is not just a simple match. It is an important moment that showed the world the power of Korean soccer.]

Football experts also appeared on the news panel and endlessly preached about what a great achievement we had achieved.

The major domestic media naturally covered Korea’s advancement to the quarterfinals as top news, and wherever Korea went, there was talk of the World Cup.

As the real world is like this, the online world is also hot.

SNS was also filled with the World Cup wave, and hashtags related to the World Cup swept all the top 10 trending spots.

Literally, the whole world was the World Cup.

News. Newspapers. Online media. Every other platform. There was endless talk about the players and the game.

In addition, an atmosphere of ‘harmony’ and ‘unity’, which had been extinct in Korea, was being created throughout society.

[You did really well. Yes. It’s an amazing achievement. Yes. Don’t feel pressured, and please do your best. Yes… .]

The Yongsan government also sent a phone call of encouragement for this amazing achievement, and other political parties and politicians also sent congratulatory messages.

For this moment, let’s put aside all political strife and all that.

How about street cheering?

In major cities across Korea, large-scale street cheering events were taking place, almost as if they were a competition. The mayor himself ordered the installation of large screens, and people gathered together to watch and cheer on the game.

On game days, the movie theaters were packed.

Also, the national team’s uniforms (especially Kim Min-woo’s uniform), cheering tools, flags, and other items sold like hotcakes.

Companies also joined the ranks and launched World Cup marketing campaigns, such as sales when they advanced to the quarterfinals and sales when they advanced to the semifinals. These were common.

It was said that some companies were really worried that Korea would win the World Cup. There was even a company that promised a 90% discount if Korea won the World Cup.

Additionally, the people’s expectations were rising day by day.

Especially after Kim Min-woo declared, “I will write a fairy tale, not a myth, and I will listen to the World Cup once,” whenever people gathered with anticipation of “Aren’t we really going to the World Cup?”, the debate about the World Cup heated up.

“Wow… … crazy.”

Kim Shin-ah was watching the situation in Korea in real time from the United States.

People who had been watching anxiously went into chaos at Gwanghwamun Square when Kim Min-woo scored a dramatic free kick goal.

Even though they may be strangers, they hug each other, shed tears of joy, and shout for the Republic of Korea…

[I never thought Korea would do this well in the World Cup again in my lifetime, but after 24 years! This day has finally come! I’ve been waiting for this moment! I’m so happy that the miracle of 2002 will happen again!]

Older people enjoyed the present by reminiscing about their youth.

Young people enjoyed the present while recalling the Qatar World Cup.

The children had the Taegeuk pattern drawn on their faces or were wearing red T-shirts.

[… I’m so happy to be able to share this joy with the kids. I really didn’t know that Korean soccer would do this well!]

In Haeundae, Busan, a large screen was set up on the beach and fireworks were set off to enjoy the fun. Looking at that, Kim Shin-ah suddenly had that thought.

“Oh, well. Maybe it would have been more fun to just watch it with my friends in Korea?”

Fortunately, times are what they are, and innocent cars weren’t destroyed like they used to be. It was a very orderly festival, wasn’t it?

“If this is how we’re going to advance to the quarterfinals, what on earth is going to happen if we make it to the semifinals and finals…?”

I even worried that someone might die of a heart attack because they were so happy.

No, but that’s still fortunate.

I heard that the future of the country is very uncertain due to low birth rates and pensions, so it was really nice to see a bright atmosphere created, even if only temporarily.

“Will there be no such thing as a World Cup baby like in 2002?”

They say that the birth rate temporarily rebounded in 2002 when the country successfully advanced to the semifinals. Could it be the same this time?

* * *

While Korea was in a celebratory mood after beating its formidable rival Italy to advance to the quarterfinals, Italy was the opposite.

The atmosphere went downhill and ended up stuck in the gutter.

[I have nothing to say!]

It was a one-line commentary in the Italian press immediately after the defeat.

Most of them were agitated, as if they had a hard time accepting defeat.

It wasn’t something that could be described with words like anger and disappointment.

Some people also took to social media and communities to vent their criticism and anger at the Korean team and referees.

That’s pretty much it.

Korea bribed the referee like in 2002, that’s the typical story.

They say that if they bought the referee with money in 2002, they can easily do the same in 2026.

Some media outlets also raised objections to the referee’s decision to award a free kick foul at the end, further infuriating Italian fans.

And that’s not all.

They went so far as to point out one by one the crucial moments and controversial scenes that occurred during the game and claim that this game was wrong! This game should be invalid!

“FIFA, investigate the match! Cancel the match! Declare Korea’s loss!”

Even though they knew it was nonsense, citizens chanted such slogans and caused a riot.

Cars are burning, stores are burning, there are physical clashes with the police… … .

This situation was reported around the world through the media.

“I think the conflict with the Korean team before the match was one of the factors in our loss in this match….”

Federico Chiesa, who created several decisive moments in the match, pointed to Kim Min-woo’s tongue as a factor in the defeat after the match.

And this caused further controversy even after the game was over.

Kim Min-woo cleverly explained that the story he mentioned before the match, in case sparks flew, was a kind of service to boost the morale of his teammates, as Italy is such a strong team.

Well, that doesn’t mean that Italians who were really angry would just say, ‘Oh, that’s what it was.’

Manager Luciano Spalletti also took responsibility for the result in a post-match interview and said he would discuss future directions with the association.

Overall, there were many angry people, but overall, there were many people who accepted defeat. When you just look at the game itself, it was a very close match.

Some Italian politicians have tried to appease the public by mentioning the results of this match.

It is true that the World Cup is a big and important competition, but it would be bad if it developed into a diplomatic issue, so they tried to appease the people by saying that they should just get over it amicably.

[… … How would you compare 2002 to now?]

The TV program compared Italy’s defeat in 2002 and now, comparing and analyzing what caused Italy’s defeat, how they lost then, and how they lost now.

There was national disappointment and anger at the elimination in the round of 16, but as is the case anywhere in the world, time will heal the problem.

Of course… … if Korea wins the World Cup, the story will be quite different.

Japan and Italy probably hated Korea the most if Korea won the World Cup. Only in terms of soccer.

* * *

Joy is short, preparation is long.

Even though we beat Italy, we had to prepare for the quarterfinals right away. We had to fly again, move base camp, acclimate to the local area, train, etc.

“No, the other person… … what is it?”

I felt a strange sense of foreboding as I looked at my next opponent.

It may be a coincidence, but somehow the matchup was very similar to that of 2002. Quite a bit.

Our quarterfinal opponent was Spain.

After the Azuri Legion, the Invincible Fleet. Use it… .

So next is Germany?

Of course not.

If we beat Spain and made it to the semifinals, our likely opponent would have been Brazil. Damn it.

Even if the bracket is unlucky, it’s not like this.

They advanced to first place in Group I, but then they had to go to Italy, Spain, and, although it’s not confirmed, Brazil?

Kim Jun-young, who heard my complaints from nearby, approached me with a bright smile and said.

“But, brother. Wouldn’t this be better?”

“What? Why do you like this?”

“After winning the World Cup, people will say that we won the World Cup because of the sweet match-ups.”

“……her.”

It’s not even a World Cup water rocket. Can you see it like that?

Above all, winning the World Cup is a hope, but it is not a certainty.

I answered with a sigh.

“Hey. People who criticize you for something like that will criticize you for something else. Like, the referee’s decisions are crappy, or Kim Min-woo’s one-tool team.”

“Isn’t Kim Min-woo’s one-tool team correct, hyung?”

“No, well… … that’s true.”

After a short break, we went back to training. We have to defeat the Invincible Fleet. Just like 24 years ago.