LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 247
Some Dortmund fans, creating a ruckus with flares, were ejected from the stadium.
Even as they were dragged out by the stadium manager, the Dortmund fans did not let go of their flares, and I couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.
My body, which had been tense, began to relax gradually.
‘Don’t shake too much.’
I took a moment to breathe deeply and calm my trembling heart.
‘This is just one of the countless matches I’ve played since my past life.’
And at that moment, Ronaldo approached me and spoke.
“Son Jinho, I’m contemplating whether to score the first goal with my right foot or my left.”
He wore a serious expression over what seemed like a trivial dilemma.
“Just use your head.”
He responded with a bright smile to my indifferent reply.
“Oh. Are you a genius?”
“…You lunatic.”
After being teased, Ronaldo burst into laughter and then suddenly became serious.
“Son Jinho. We will win today.”
I quietly nodded my head at Ronaldo’s confident words.
***
[The match between Manchester United and FC Barcelona has begun with a kickoff.]
As the smoke from the flares filled the stadium faded away, the game between Manchester United and FC Barcelona kicked off.
Given that it was legendary coach Alex Ferguson’s last season, the motivation among the Manchester United players was tremendous.
On the other hand, FC Barcelona, who had achieved a treble last season, had slightly less motivation than Manchester United.
This caused Manchester United to take control early in the match.
[Manchester United is showing strong pressure.]
Manchester United relentlessly pushed FC Barcelona.
[Javier Mascherano’s tackle on Robin van Persie! Van Persie, who fell due to Mascherano’s leg, appealed to the referee for a foul, but the referee firmly shook his head and gestured for him to stand up!]
[Yes. He touched the ball first. The referee’s call is accurate.]
As soon as the ownership of the ball shifted to Barcelona, the Manchester United players immediately pressed hard.
[Andrés Iniesta attempts a pass to Lionel Messi!]
Andrés Iniesta, evading Manchester United’s pressure, had his pass intercepted by Sami Khedira, prompting a quick counterattack from Manchester United.
[The ball deflected off Khedira’s foot and flowed to İlkay Gündoğan.]
Ilkay Gündoğan, having secured the ball, passed it to Son Jinho.
“Son Jinho, it’s finally my time to shine!”
Upon seeing Son Jinho receive the pass, Cristiano Ronaldo immediately requested a pass from him.
Of course, Son Jinho was as carefree as ever, only half-listening.
[Jinho is bringing the ball up himself. He is the player who stopped Lionel Messi from winning his fifth consecutive Ballon d’Or and won the Ballon d’Or at the youngest age.]
Rather than passing to Ronaldo, Son Jinho decided to advance the ball himself.
Soon enough, he reached near the penalty box.
[Jinho, who has faked out Mascherano with a body feint!]
He lightly brushed past Mascherano, who was blocking his path, and attempted a shot with his right foot.
[He took the shot!]
Son Jinho’s quick shot flew at high speed.
In that moment, the Manchester United fans sensed an early goal coming.
[Marc-André ter Stegen!!]
Son Jinho’s shot was blocked by Ter Stegen’s incredible save.
“Oh….”
Manchester United fans covered their heads in disappointment.
“Jaaaaaaaa!!”
Ter Stegen, who made a fantastic save, jumped up and roared.
[If that shot had gone in, it would have been fatal! He successfully saves FC Barcelona with an amazing save!]
The match continued with a corner kick for Manchester United.
[İlkay Gündoğan preparing for the corner kick.]
İlkay Gündoğan got ready for the corner.
[He lifted it into the penalty box.]
Ronaldo’s header struck the crossbar.
The ball didn’t go far and dropped right in front of the goal.
[Van Persie!!!]
In a chaotic situation, Robin van Persie attempted a shot, but—
[What a Save!!!]
Ter Stegen, with his animal-like reflexes, managed to deny the goal again.
Following Ter Stegen’s consecutive super saves, the atmosphere of the match began to shift slowly towards FC Barcelona.
[Now, Lionel Messi has the ball and is on the move.]
***
Lionel Messi had looked forward to meeting Son Jinho every season.
Including today’s match, they had faced each other five times, and the records were even at 2 wins and 2 losses.
However, because of the aggregate score, FC Barcelona had advanced to the higher rounds.
The media proclaimed it a victory for FC Barcelona, but Messi himself believed he had drawn with Son Jinho.
“Jinho, show me how much you’ve grown.”
As soon as Messi thought he had completely outpaced Son Jinho,
Son Jinho quickly caught up and succeeded in pushing the ball out of play.
A natural smile began to form on Lionel Messi’s lips.
***
[Once again, Son Jinho stands firm against Lionel Messi.]
[Though he was beaten by Messi, he immediately catches up!]
[Successfully pushing the ball out of play.]
[That seemed to be an important moment reflecting today’s match.]
[Son Jinho reaches out a hand to Messi, and the rolling Messi smiles and takes Son Jinho’s hand to get back up.]
***
After pushing the ball out of play, I calmed my ragged breathing.
Having rolled on the ground several times to stop Lionel Messi, my uniform was already covered in dirt and dust.
I cautiously turned to look at Lionel Messi. His uniform was similarly soiled.
Like me, Lionel Messi was panting near the touchline.
I couldn’t help but curse inwardly at Messi.
“Seriously, why is he running around like that when it’s not even the World Cup?”
It felt as if this match was the World Cup final, as Messi participated in defensive efforts he would usually avoid and didn’t hesitate to compete in aerial duels.
It was like watching the real history of the Qatar World Cup final.
How shocked I was at the fact that someone who usually trotted about could sprint like that.
Anyway, while FC Barcelona’s player was fetching the ball from the ball boy, I looked around.
Could it be the pressure of the Champions League final?
‘This isn’t good.’
Some players seemed to be overphasing during the game.
Veteran players tried to comfort them as much as possible, but it seemed the tension was too much for them to hear properly.
“Hey! Over here!”
The match resumed with a throw-in for FC Barcelona.
With the ball now in possession of Barcelona, they calmly continued their attacking maneuvers.
Andrés Iniesta, who had the ball, began a forward dribble to shake Manchester United.
“Andrés!”
Luis Suárez called out to Iniesta and attempted to penetrate into the penalty box, but Sami Khedira intervened, risking a card with a foul.
Beep─!
In a borderline situation, where a card was uncertain based on the referee’s inclination,
Fortunately, the referee did not hand out a card to Khedira.
“Next time, it’ll be a warning.”
Instead, the referee verbally cautioned Khedira.
If the same infraction were to happen again, it was likely Khedira would receive a card.
The match continued with a free kick for Barcelona in a dangerous area.
Ahead of the free kick, Messi, Suárez, and Neymar seemed to be discussing something.
After their conversation, the three signaled to the referee.
As the referee blew his whistle, they prepared to take the free kick.
With the whistle blow, Messi began to take his position.
The moment I saw Messi’s face, I had an ominous feeling, so I quickly dove down under the wall.
I successfully blocked Messi’s shot that came low under the wall.
***
In the 38th minute of the first half,
The balance of the tightly contested match began to tilt suddenly towards one side.
Manchester United’s center back Jonny Evans committed a dangerous tackle in the penalty box.
The referee immediately blew his whistle and declared a penalty. Jonny Evans’ tackle caught Neymar’s planting foot as he was about to shoot.
Had it been a little stronger, he could have been shown a red card without question.
Jonny Evans’ face began to turn pale with the guilt of ruining Alex Ferguson’s final match.
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi calmly converted the penalty kick.
[FC Barcelona, who scored the first goal, is now putting strong pressure on Manchester United.]
Having taken the initiative, FC Barcelona began to apply strong pressure to Manchester United.
And less than two minutes after scoring the first goal,
[Manchester United is shaken by FC Barcelona’s attack.]
The defense line of Manchester United, which had been rattled since conceding, made a mistake.
A pass error occurred in a dangerous area.
Andreas Iniesta seized the opportunity, sending a cross to Lionel Messi, who was in the penalty box.
[Goal…. Lionel Messi! FC Barcelona scores two goals within two minutes!!]
Lionel Messi jumped adorably and headed the ball into Manchester United’s net.
[Oh no…. This is going to make things difficult for Manchester United in the game.]
[Yes. And with that, Lionel Messi is starting to pull ahead by one goal in the Champions League top scorer race.]
***
With the score at 2-0, the first half came to an end, and we couldn’t hide our gloomy expressions.
Frustration engulfed our bodies, and our heads gradually dropped to the ground.
As I was heading toward the locker room with my footsteps heavy,
Cheering sounds echoed from the stands.
Slowly lifting my head, what I saw was.
“The yellow and red people gathered here!”
The Dortmund fans in their yellow and black uniforms and Manchester United fans in their red uniforms sang in unison.
“I’ll always be by your side!”
The cheers of the fans who had not given up on the game echoed through the Olympiastadion Berlin.