The double defeat of Incheon United is destined to become a classic in the history of the Taishan team

At the Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium this night, the general of the Taishan team made Incheon United feel the chill of late autumn in Quancheng. On the evening of November 7, Shandong Taishan team defeated Incheon United 3-1 at home, completed the double kill of this South Korean powerhouse in the group stage of the AFC Champions League, and also took the initiative in the competition for the right to qualify from the group. This is the first time in the history of the AFC Champions League that Shandong Taishan team has beaten a South Korean team in the group stage.

Despite the fact that the day of the game was a weekday and the kick-off time was 6 p.m., 20,723 spectators still poured into the Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium. The fans of the Taishan team who watched the game were undoubtedly happy - this heart-wrenching game is destined to become a classic in the history of the Taishan team.

Team Tarzan strikes backwards

It was a "back-to-back" match. Just a dozen days ago, the Taishan team defeated Incheon United 2-0 away. Back at home, the Taishan team has taken winning as the team's goal. At the pre-match press conference, Taishan team coach Cui Kangxi said that the team's goal this season is to strive to enter the round of 16. In the end, the Taesan team won as they wished, taking 6 points from Incheon United.

But the course of the game was not as easy as the final score suggested. In the first half, the two teams were locked in a tangling affair, focusing on the defense and not creating many chances in the offensive end, ending the first half 0-0. After the break, head coach Choi Kang-hee deployed his troops and replaced three players in one go: Cressan, Liu Binbin, and Li Hailong. This personnel adjustment means that the Taishan team sounded the horn of attack. But after the start of the second half, it was Incheon United who took the lead in creating a killing chance. In the 49th minute, Kim Bo-sub had a great chance to shoot on goal, but the ball was deflected. A few minutes later, Yoo Binbin burst into the penalty area and shot hard, the Incheon United goalkeeper struggled to save the ball, and Lee Won scored the ball in the chaos to help the Taishan team break the deadlock on the field. Shortly after conceding the goal, Incheon United created another dangerous attack, but failed to capitalize on it. After that, Incheon United defender Kwon Han Jin made a bizarre mistake and gave the Taishan team an "oolong gift". In the 73rd minute, Fernando broke through and sent an inverted triangle pass, and the follow-up Li Hailong was brought down by the opposing defender, and Cressan scored a penalty. Cressan's goal also effectively ended the suspense of the game. In stoppage time, Kim scored a face-saving goal for Incheon United with a lob shot.

At the post-match press conference, Choi Kang-hee revealed the team's game plan: "In the process of preparing for the game, I thought about what to do in the first half and prepared the tactics for the second half. The goal of the first half of this game was to defend well, so a back three formation was adopted, and the personnel changes made in the second half were made to strengthen the attack. ”

I have to say that Cui Kangxi's tactical intention to strike after the campaign completely worked. Before the start of the second half, Choi Kang-hee made three changes in a row. In the 72nd minute, when the team led 2-0, Cui Kangxi changed two more generals in a row, and Liao Lisheng and Fernando came into play. The two goals scored by the Tarzan team themselves were related to the players who came off the bench. In this crucial battle related to the initiative to qualify, Choi Kang-hee once again showed his clever skills.

Incheon United left in a panic

"I said before the game that I would do my best to win this fight. Unfortunately, this was not achieved. I'm sorry for that, too. Incheon United coach Cho Sung-wan, who appeared at the post-match press conference, revealed a little loss in his words.

Before the start of the game, the South Korean fans who traveled with Incheon United made a lot of noise in the away team's stand area, and seemed to be ready to fight to the end. But in the second half of the game, as the situation on the field changed, the Incheon United fans fell silent. After the end, when the Incheon United players came to the visiting team's fan zone to thank them, they responded with silence.

Facing the imposing Taishan team, Incheon United looked a little flustered. When Kwon Han Jin passed back to the goalkeeper, the mistake that occurred was incredible. There were still more than ten minutes left in the game, and the Incheon United players had already suffered from cramps and waist crossings on the field. It's rare for such a scenario to happen to a South Korean team...

Lee Won-il, who scored the team's first goal, said after the game that the two games of the double win over Incheon United were very similar: "The team scored in the second half. On the more positive side of the game, the formation moved forward, attacked on the spot and scored. The away win in the last game gave the team confidence. Everyone knows that if you want to qualify from the group, you have to win today's game – and we have that confidence as well. ”

After this battle, the Taishan team achieved a record of 3 wins and 1 loss in the group stage of the AFC Champions League, got 9 points, and the qualifying situation was very good. In the other contest in the same group, Yokohama Marinos won 2-1 against Kaya FC. In this way, Yokohama Mariners also scored 9 points, and temporarily ranked first in the group by virtue of the advantage of winning and losing. In the next round of matches, the Taishan team will continue to sit at home and face Kaya FC. The Yokohama Mariners will have a strong dialogue with Incheon United. When the Taishan players left the stadium after the game, the North Stand fans chanted over and over again: "Target Asia!" This shout could not be clearer to convey the fans' expectations for the team.

Thanks to the strong performance of the Taishan team on the field, a few minutes before the end, there were already reporters on the scene who were "distracted" to pay attention to another FA Cup semi-final that had already started. That night, Shanghai Shenhua eliminated Qingdao Manatee 1-0 away and advanced to the FA Cup final. On November 25th, the Taishan team will stage a peak showdown with Shanghai Shenhua in Suzhou. With the high-spirited momentum of the double defeat of Incheon United, the Taishan team will set foot on another battlefield and hit the FA Cup for four consecutive championships. However, due to the national football team's call-up, suspension, punishment and injury, many players such as Moises, Judson, Pato, Fernando and other players of the Taishan team will miss the FA Cup final on November 25, which is a test for the team to hit the championship.

Reporter: Li Fujie Editor: Li Fujie Photographer: Sun Changqing Proofreader: Tang Qi