Shooting Trajectory is Visible - Chapter 298



Only Noblemtl

Episode 298 Minwoo will do it

The 2026 North and Central America World Cup quarterfinal draw was as follows.

Korea vs Spain

Brazil vs Germany

Japan vs Argentina

England vs France

Two Asian countries in the quarterfinals. Two South American countries. Four European countries. Overall, it was a balanced draw.

It was a bracket that made the upward leveling of soccer (more precisely, Asia) that experts have been talking about since 2022 a reality.

Korea advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in 24 years (and for the first time away from home), while Japan advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in history.

That alone would make this World Cup a success for both countries, but once the original goal is realized, people tend to expect more than that.

Netizens from both countries who like to make a fuss also had hopes that Korea and Japan might face off in the finals.

Since they have advanced to the quarterfinals, it is not impossible (although it is almost impossible), and netizens from both countries have been cheering each other on.

From Korea’s perspective, they were confident because they had beaten Japan 3-0 in both of their recent matches, and there was anticipation that if Japan made it to the finals, the outcome would be anything but certain.

[Korea and Japan each advanced to the quarterfinals. Although the two countries are right next to each other, their tendencies are completely different.]

European football experts highly praised Korea and Japan’s advancement to the quarterfinals and analyzed the two teams’ performance and tactics in detail.

Originally, this kind of thing couldn’t be left out of the World Cup.

He also predicted that the Korea vs. Spain and Japan vs. Argentina matches will be very exciting and made various predictions about which teams will advance.

[It is not impossible for Japan to beat Argentina and advance to the semifinals. Argentina is not as strong as they were four years ago.]

[I think who will advance will depend on the condition of the day. It is a match that is not easy to predict.]

European experts predict that the match between Japan and Argentina will be a close one. And the match between Korea and Spain will be… .

[This matchup is really unpredictable. To be honest, I don’t know. My head says Spain will advance, but my heart says Korea will advance.]

[Currently, Korea has won all of its matches. They beat Italy, right? Can’t they beat Spain? Above all, Korea has Kim. To be honest, I can’t imagine Kim giving up a goal.]

And then there’s the crazy super save scene from the Italy match that was broadcast.

Kim Min-woo reacts and blocks the deflection of the shot that hit the player’s body.

European football experts were left gaping in awe, even though they had seen the scene dozens of times.

[It doesn’t make sense even when I look at it again. How can you react to that? Are you even human?]

[Unless you are seriously predicting the future… … .]

[Even if Yasin comes back alive, he can’t stop that.]

[Can a goalkeeper who reacts to such a deflected shot stop Spain? Honestly, I want to put together a team of the world’s best players and have them play against Korea. But I don’t think Korea will lose.]

While many experts around the world were debating whether Korea and Japan would advance to the quarterfinals, Asian soccer fans were cheering for Korea and Japan to advance to the quarterfinals.

In any case, this was an achievement for Asian football as a whole, and since Asia has always shown disappointing performance compared to other regions, those two countries were cheered on by almost all Asians, regardless of region.

.

.

And then, after the world’s anticipation, the quarterfinals began.

First came England and France.

These two countries had met once before, four years ago, and like then, this time too, the two countries had a close match.

The level of play was so high that it was impossible to predict who would win.

[Okay, let’s go ahead and get started! Chuameni! Chuameni! Chuamenii―!]

The first goal was scored by Aurélien Chouameni, just like four years ago. France successfully cut off England’s build-up and continued to advance until Chouameni scored.

[Harry Kane, long-range shot―!]

[I got in―!]

England was not one to be taken lightly either, so they followed up with a goal. It was a goal by the undefeated king, Harry Kane.

[Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham. Right foot shot!]

[Eeeeeeeeek! It’s going in again!]

[England! A comeback goal as soon as they catch up! Will they succeed in getting revenge for 4 years ago?]

Harry Kane’s goal was followed just two minutes later by a combination of Phil Foden and Jude Bellingham.

England, with a squad as strong as France, put another goal into France’s goal with a determined spirit.

A close-up of Mbappe’s expression as he scores goals in succession is shown. It was an expression of someone chewing shit.

The game was sluggish after Jude Bellingham’s goal.

There’s a lot of back and forth, but no scoring.

And so the game continues into the latter stages.

88 minutes into the second half. The score is still 2:1.

It seemed like the game would end like this, but the situation changed during extra time.

France’s final push saw England commit a deep tackle inside the box, and the referee ruled out a penalty.

The PK kicker is, of course, Kylian Mbappe.

It was a crucial moment. If he failed, the game would be over. Under this enormous pressure, Mbappe—

[Shoot! Gooooool! Killian Mbappe! Killian Mbappe! He did it in difficult situations!]

[A dramatic goal! If we hadn’t scored, the game would have ended just like that!]

At the most dramatic moment, Mbappe’s goal made the score 2:2. The match went into extra time… … .

[Mbappe sends a cross.]

[Griezmann header―! Gooooooooooo―!]

[I got in!]

Score 3:2.

France, who succeeded in turning the game around with Mbappe’s cross and Griezmann’s header, solidified the match. England also pressed forward like France in the second half, but failed to score.

There were only three unfortunate missed shots.

And England were crushed by France in the quarter-finals, just as they had been four years ago. The two teams’ performances were largely the same and there was little difference.

It was just a battle of who was more persistent and who had better determination. England ended up being eliminated by just one point.

Harry Kane clutched his head in frustration… .

The second match, Brazil vs. Germany, was also a match that monopolized the world’s attention. The two countries, meeting on a single-plank bridge for the first time in 12 years, put up a surprisingly close match.

However, because Brazil’s desire for revenge was so burning, Germany lost momentum.

A match between fiery Brazil and watery Germany. The winner was Brazil. After a close match that went into extra time and even a penalty shootout, Brazil barely managed to beat Germany.

Contrary to popular expectations that Brazil would win easily, it was a close victory.

Score 2:2. Neymar caught Germany and fell to the ground in tears. It was tears of a different kind from Harry Kane’s… .

And next is the match between Japan and Argentina.

The match between the two countries went as predicted before the match. It was a close match. The two countries each scored one goal in the first half, and the second half continued with a fight in which no one could tell who would win.

And in the 18th minute of the second half, Lionel Messi, who had been sitting on the bench, came on and the tense game changed in an instant.

Japan was overly nervous about the appearance of Messi, the god of soccer and the so-called GOAT, and ended up being pushed back the whole time, but ended up losing the game 2:1 after Messi scored a dramatic goal in the 90+1 minute.

39 years old. Lionel Messi, who was practically on the verge of retirement, defeated Japan with his last fighting spirit as a veteran.

The world was once again thrilled by Messi’s performance, and Japan left the game having set a new record by advancing to the quarterfinals.

In many ways, it was a disappointing match for Japan. Before Messi came out, they were very strict, but once Messi came out, they focused too much on that and fell apart.

To a third party, it looked like a self-inflicted wound. In any case, Japan achieved its goal by advancing to the quarterfinals, which had seemed like a long time coming, so it was a regrettable but not a bad result.

Defeat after a fierce battle.

And next was Korea.

With Japan eliminated, the wish of all Asians was for Korea to defeat the Invincible Fleet and advance to the semifinals.

Whether that’s possible or not, we’ll have to watch the game to find out.

Korea surprisingly made the bold decision to rest some of its starting players for the match.

If you form a lineup like this and lose the game, it was a decision that could never avoid criticism. However, the die was cast, and Korea played with the 1.5 team, while Spain played with its elite 1st team.

[20 minutes have passed in the first half. The game is currently one-sided and overwhelming. Spain has over 84% possession, and Korea has been unable to control the ball for most of the game.]

[It’s an iron defense. Japan, a fellow Asian country, lost to Argentina in a bloody battle, so what about Korea? First of all, Kim, who is a strong candidate for this year’s Ballon d’Or, following Lev Yashin, is guarding the goal.]

Spain’s overwhelming share.

But the game was sluggish.

Spain made numerous attempts to somehow get Korea up and hit them while they were playing completely down, but were blocked every time.

Either blocked by the defensive wall or blocked by the goalkeeper.

Spain has been creative in breaking down the defensive wall, but even when they break down the wall and create a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, they are unable to score a goal.

[What an amazing goalkeeper. He’s been blocking countless attacks like an iron wall.]

[Spain keeps getting chances to attack, but it doesn’t look like they’ll get in…]

Korea didn’t have a chance to attack or even get the ball once throughout the first half.

Half coat.

An overwhelming match.

Nevertheless, Korea held on steadfastly, and this trend continued into the second half.

Spain must have been feeling a bit frustrated, so they chose to increase their attacking numbers by using a substitution card, but Korea’s Leon asked a question as soon as he saw the choice.

“You’re going to increase the attack numbers here? Really? Then we’ll raid your back space?”

Cho Kyu-seok, who was in the starting lineup, was out and Kim Jun-young was brought in. Hong Hyun-seong and Lee Hyun-joo were also out and Lee Kang-im and Hwang Hee-cheon were brought in.

Korea’s previously weak offense has become complete once again.

Son Heung-min was already a starter, so if Spain maintained their current offensive momentum, they could have collapsed in a single counterattack.

Once you concede a goal with just one counterattack, the current possession and current effective shot attempts all become meaningless.

The Spanish manager also noticed this and immediately changed his tactics.

It was an easy multiple choice question with a virtually fixed answer.

Spain, fearing a counterattack from Korea, reduced their attack numbers again and continued the game as in the first half, and as a result, the game continued to be at a standstill.

There are a lot of attempts, and some plausible scenes are produced, but that’s about it.

Spain continued with the typical pattern of a weak team when playing against them.

Finally, the second half ended.

The game goes into overtime.

[This quarterfinals mostly go into overtime. Except for the matches against Japan and Argentina, all matches go into overtime.]

[Even that match would have gone into extra time if it hadn’t been for Lionel Messi’s dramatic winning goal.]

Even though the game entered overtime, Korea’s tactics did not change.

Ready for a penalty shootout with your guard up.

Spain also felt that Korea was preparing for a penalty shootout, but there was no way around it.

And as the game entered overtime, even though we made substitutions, the players’ stamina was greatly reduced and the build-up process was not as good as before.

[Korea stretches its legs! Paris Saint-Germain’s Lee connects with Son!]

That’s why Korea came out aggressively, thinking they would end the game in overtime instead of a penalty shootout. They played defensively throughout the game, but then attacked like wildfire, leaving Spain at a loss.

Attacking was a task that consumed too much stamina to begin with, and when Korea, which had saved a lot of stamina for defense, exploded in overtime, Spain had to allow consecutive valid shots.

[The flow of the game has completely changed! If this continues, Korea will end the game!]

The two countries’ positions suddenly changed as overtime began.

Spain had to change their usual tactics and now play defensively. Korea hits, Spain defends, a reversal of the world.

The crowd gathered at the stadium cheers wildly as they watch the underdog beat up the top dog.

It’s natural for people to root for the weaker team. Also, it’ll be refreshing to see Korea, who had been on the receiving end of the entire game, finally launch a proper offensive attack.

But Korea also failed to score even once, despite being on the verge of a goal.

Beep— beep— beep!

In the end, the game ended just like that.

The two countries, unable to decide the winner, eventually went into a penalty shootout.

And the penalty shootout… … .

[Man Utd’s Kim has been most confident in penalty shootouts throughout his career. However, many football experts have said that penalty shootouts are a 50-50 battle. We will have to wait and see how it goes.]

Kim Min-woo with a relaxed expression is captured on screen.

It was as if he had been waiting for this moment.

Captain Son Heung-min gathered the players together before the penalty shootout and spoke passionately.

A camera was brought in close to capture Son Heung-min’s words.

“… … Minwoo will do it, so don’t feel pressured. Even if you fail, it’s okay! Anyway, our Minwoo will block what you couldn’t. Do you all understand?”

Son Heung-min’s Kim Min-woo give-it-to-you joke that was broadcasted all over the world.

In fact, it wasn’t a wrong statement, but since foreigners couldn’t understand Korean, they could only admire Son Heung-min’s spirited shouting…