Weird Defender Joo Ji-Tae

168 – Standing Ovation

168

Somewhere, Jo Ye-rin and Filia Villa, who had become like sisters, were sitting side by side, watching the game.

“Unnie, unnie, did you see that? It’s so cool! They just released it.”

“Where… Ah, Dior? The new designer they hired seems to have a good sense. It’s still a bit old-fashioned, though. It has a 10-year-old vibe.”

In fact, these women weren’t interested in soccer, so their conversation was mostly gossip…

“What’s going on! That furry guy is doing something! Why is he always using his hands? That’s a foul! A clear foul!”

“No way. That level of play can be overlooked by the referee. Today’s referee is being lenient, and he’s doing a great job of pretending to be innocent. He even pulled his uniform earlier and then let go. That’s a great technique to disrupt the opponent’s balance. He’s a master of soccer, and that tackle was too much!”

“No way! He went in from the side, but he had one foot firmly planted, and he touched the ball first, so it’s okay. And didn’t the referee let it go because he put his shoulder in first during the collision?”

Han Seung-hoon, who was watching from behind, was stunned.

“What’s going on? I invited him, but why is he acting like that with that kid? And he said he wasn’t interested in soccer, but he knows so much about it…”

As the saying goes, “three years of studying and you’ll be able to recite the classics.” Jo Ye-rin, who had a soccer player husband (not yet), had watched many games and had a deep understanding of soccer.

She had bought VIP seats to impress her long-time crush, Filia Villa, but instead, a Korean kid had taken the seat next to her. The two of them were having a great time, and Han Seung-hoon’s heart was about to burst.

“…It’s still fun to watch, though.”

Beauty is the most important thing, after all.

The loud cheers that shook the VIP seats, or rather, the entire stadium, snapped Han Seung-hoon out of his daze.

“What’s going on? What’s that? A goal?”

As he watched the replay of the goal on the giant screen, Han Seung-hoon let out an unconscious sigh of admiration.

“Wow, that’s incredible. He scored a goal with a bicycle kick. That’s insane. He’s a true soccer god—”

He felt a sharp gaze from the seat in front of him.

“—Ah, soccer idiots! He scored a goal like that, and you’re still not aware of the atmosphere? We’re counting on Joo Ji-tae to take care of it, though…”

So he belatedly saw Joo Ji-tae standing in front of Fernando Alvarez, who was shouting.

“What’s going on!! Is he crazy?! Who does he think he is, acting like that in front of someone?!”

“Oh my, oh my, he’s completely crazy. What is he doing?! Give him a yellow card! He’s completely shameless!”

“Wow… He’s so cool. That’s so… Ah, soccer idiot!! Why did you have to get a card— no, why did you have to score a goal like that?!”

…It’s hard to watch soccer.

“Wow, wow, wow… Did you see that? Wow, wow! I saw it! My oppa scored a goal! He’s so cool! Now I’ll just watch… He’ll give me a heart-shaped celebration…”

“Oh my, Joo Ji-tae is so cool. How did he score that goal…?”

As soon as he scored the incredible goal, he started celebrating and shouted “Si-u!!” in front of Fernando Alvarez, who was standing near the halfway line. Han Seung-hoon let out a genuine impression.

“That guy is completely crazy.”

“My, my celebration…”

“Ah, no! If the defender gets the card, what’s the point of getting it too?! Why do you have to take the card…!!”

Fortunately, the two women in the front seats were distracted and didn’t hear Han Seung-hoon’s words.

* * *

Although I’ve earned a yellow card, I’m not ashamed at all, looking up at the sky. I have no regrets.

That piece of trash is showing off his face.

Ju Ji-tae smiled kindly at the referee, who was showing him the card, and brushed past Fernando Alvarez.

“You can’t even score a goal, defender.”

Of course, the teasing didn’t stop until the end.

In fact, there’s no art to scoring goals in soccer; it’s just about putting the ball in the net. Whether you score with a 720-degree overhead kick or a simple shot, it’s still just one goal.

But sports are not just about objective numbers; there’s something more important – momentum. In that sense, Fernando Alvarez’s bicycle kick had flipped the atmosphere in an instant with Ju Ji-tae’s goal.

Hi ha una grada que viu per tu

que no deixa mai d’animar

eeeooo

Futbol Club Barcelona

The Barcelona anthem echoed through the Bernabeu.

The Real Madrid fans’ chant responded, refusing to back down.

The stadium was heating up.

After the two team aces exchanged yellow cards with a provocative ceremony, the game ignited.

“Here! This way— Ah! This guy is doing it now?”

“Hey, hey, calm down, you weakling. It’s just a light shoulder bump… Ah! Referee! Foul!”

“You’re such a weakling. You’re rolling around on the ground because you got a little hurt. The ball went the other way, so get up quickly!”

The intense game was matched by an intense psychological battle.

You could say it was enthusiastic and passionate, or you could say it was getting rough. But Barcelona was slowly taking control.

“Grab him!”

“Damn it! Do it yourself! He’s slipping away like a ghost, what do we do?”

The overheated atmosphere was making everything move quickly.

The intense pressure and rapid tempo, like a team fighting for the league title, created a chaotic buildup. But amidst all this, there was one player who stood out, playing calmly and collectedly.

That was Ju Ji-tae.

Even under intense pressure, he could maintain possession of the ball, exchanging stable passes, which gradually gave one team the upper hand.

He easily broke through the Real Madrid players’ intense pressure with light turns, light drag-backs, simple backheels, or 2:1 passes. Of course, he also utilized his excellent physical abilities to create space and opportunities.

[Unbelievable!! Ju Ji-tae is easily neutralizing Real Madrid’s pressure!!]

[What is this world? I knew he was a technical player, but this is something else! He’s handling Real Madrid’s pressure so easily and comfortably!]

Players known for their ability to break through pressure usually use numerical superiority to pass the ball, what’s called “smart play.”

No matter how good an individual’s skills are, the core of the game is passing and off-the-ball movement. It has to be that way. The ball is always faster than humans, so it’s theoretically possible to create numerical superiority, exchange passes, and easily neutralize the opponent’s pressure, while also exhausting their stamina.

On the other hand, what about dribbling or individual skills?

They’re inefficient.

The success rate is lower than passing, and the risk of failure is higher. And the return value isn’t even that high.

That’s why wingers in the past, who used to actively try to break through, are now only left with backpasses in modern soccer. It’s not because they lack physical ability or technique compared to past players, but because there’s no space.

Even if you try to dribble past someone, you’ll just face another opponent, so what’s the point of taking the risk and trying to break through, only to get a low return value? Modern wingers only try to break through when they’re tactically prepared, creating space by drawing the opponent’s defense to one side.

Or maybe he would break through 2-3 opponents by himself.

That’s what Joo Jitae did.

He would bring 1-2 players to his side, use his dribbling and technique to break through, and then pass the ball. By doing so, the pressure on his teammates would decrease, and they would feel more at ease.

He was doing this in the final line of defense, the center back position.

Even though it was a play that could lead to an immediate goal if it failed, he was doing it with an air of confidence, as if he was strolling through the park.

It wasn’t like he was scoring a fantastic goal or recording an assist. He wasn’t showing off a “ground-breaking pass” that would make your eyes widen, or a 50-60m dribble that would leave your jaw dropped.

He was simply repeating a series of simple actions in the team’s defense, breaking through the opponent’s pressure, passing the ball, and then breaking through again.

Just this series of plays alone was enough to make the commentators, the viewers, and—

“This is crazy. This can’t be happening.”

“He’s on a different level.”

“We can’t catch up to him.”

It was enough to crush the spirits of the Real Madrid players.

The same was true for the Los Blancos fans who packed the Bernabeu stadium.

Tik, tik, tik!

[The game has ended! Barcelona wins 2:1 at the Bernabeu!]

[After a fierce first half, the second half was relatively calm, but Real Madrid did try to exert some pressure in the middle. However, they still couldn’t break through Joo Jitae.]

[Oh, the crowd… The Los Blancos fans who packed the Bernabeu are getting up from their seats one by one. The applause… the standing ovation is pouring in!!]

[Real Madrid coach Raul Harke: “Joo Jitae was like a mix of Pirlo and Redondo’s strengths.”]

[Is this the start of a new century’s rivalry, ending with Joo Jitae’s victory from the start?]

[After Maradona in 1983, Ronaldinho in 2005, and Iniesta in 2015, Joo Jitae becomes the 4th Barcelona player to receive a standing ovation at the Bernabeu!]