['Ho-young Scores 1 Goal and 1 Assist, Named MOM – Park Kyung-woon's Korea Beats France U-16 Team 3-2'
Considered the weakest team in the tournament, the South Korea U-16 squad stunned France with a mid-range opening goal by the so-called 'Korean Maradona,' Ho-young (13, São Paulo FC).
This marks the first time since the 28th Montaigu Tournament in 2001 that the host nation France has lost the opening match.
Coach Park Kyung-woon predicted a major upheaval in the tournament, stating, "A strong wind is about to blow."
Ho-young's post-match interview, after being selected as MOM, has also drawn public attention.]
Interest in football, which had slightly faded since the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, was starting to spark again.
Online forums were buzzing with constant posts about the national team, and at the center of it all was, unsurprisingly, Ho-young.
> [Where can I watch the match? Seems like no live broadcast in Korea. Only highlights. Anyway, our boys are doing great, especially Ho-young.]
└Still, it's just a youth match...
└The highlights were pretty entertaining though?
└I also watched the interview. That French reporter threw some tough questions, but he handled them well.
└He doesn't speak that eloquently, but for a kid, he speaks clearly. Still, wish he'd be more direct next time.
└Did anyone else notice his face looks a bit different? Just me?
└Not just a bit. He looks a lot different.
└Looks like his baby fat's gone? And his build too… I'd believe it if you said he was in high school.
└♥♥♥ Let's keep growing like this ♥♥♥♥
└So, what about the next match? If we beat France, Ivory Coast should be easy, right?
Many netizens were expecting an easy win against Ivory Coast in the next match, but the team's outlook was different.
"Ivory Coast is a traditional African powerhouse."
March 24, 12:30 PM, Montaigu Stadium.
As the players arrived for their second match, they listened closely to Coach Park Kyung-woon.
"They're definitely not an opponent to take lightly."
He was right.
The biggest issue was stamina.
Although they had preserved some energy using substitutions effectively against France, fatigue was unavoidable.
But the same applied to the opponent.
In fact, it might be worse for Ivory Coast, who had just suffered a 3-0 defeat to Germany the day before.
"Their mentality is probably all over the place by now. That's what we need to exploit."
"Understood!"
Coach Park had every intention of throwing everything into this match.
He believed the following day's match against Germany was a lost cause anyway.
Germany had brought a squad built to win, from the heart of their renowned youth development system. Korea's chances were slim.
In other words, today's match against Ivory Coast was the one that mattered most.
'If we play like yesterday, we'll be fine.'
As long as they made the most of their super crack, Ho-young, a big win was possible.
'The problem is the second half. We need to finish them in the first half.'
The deeper the match went, the worse it got.
They couldn't keep up with the natural stamina of African players, so they had to settle it early.
After that, lock down the goal and conserve energy for the next match.
It was a feasible plan.
Just before heading onto the field, Coach Park gave one final order.
"Unleash everything!"
"Yes, sir!"
Ho-young responded with confidence.
Once on the field, Ho-young scanned around briefly before giving up.
'No special players.'
Most of them were above average, but there was no talent worth coveting.
Even if there were, they were mostly duplicates of ones he already had.
So, there was nothing to worry about off the ball.
It was the perfect situation to carry out the coach's order to attack relentlessly.
He had a good feeling.
And it showed early in the match.
Thud!
8th minute of the first half.
Ho-young latched onto a ball slipped through by Koo Ja-young and struck a mid-range shot on the first touch.
The ball flew into the net like it was ripping it apart.
"Sui!"
"Sui!"
Ho-young's celebration got copied.
Suk Hyun-jun, clearly amused by it, had been imitating Ho-young since the last game.
Thousands of spectators burst into laughter.
'Perfect start.'
15th minute.
Ivory Coast's goalkeeper, Bony, who had conceded three goals against Germany, still hadn't mentally recovered.
At just 15 years old, it was a tough situation to handle.
He had hoped things would go better today, but from the start, he'd been on edge.
The relentless pace of the match left him no time to think.
'Stop shooting already, please.'
Number 7, Ho-young.
He fired shots like he was possessed.
In just the first 15 minutes, Bony had already faced two of his cannon-like shots. He'd managed to punch both away, so he had only conceded one so far.
'This is driving me crazy.'
Despite the cold weather dropping to 5°C, Bony was drenched in sweat.
For a goalkeeper, facing a striker with shooting power like that was a nightmare.
Being called up to the national team at just 15 was already a huge challenge. This was just cruel.
To the point where...
'Please, spare me.'
He accidentally gave Ho-young that very look.
And just then, the ball came to Ho-young's feet again.
Tap.
Ho-young drove through the center and slipped past one defender, opening up a shooting lane.
About 30 meters from goal.
'No way he's gonna shoot from there—'
Boom!
There's no "no way" in football.
Ho-young didn't hesitate. His surprise shot rocketed forward with fierce speed.
'...L, left side!'
True to his potential, Bony read the direction quickly.
He threw himself and reached out.
Slap!
He felt the ball graze his fingertips.
'I got it—!'
No. He was wrong.
The shot was too heavy to be pushed out.
Bony couldn't withstand the force and ended up conceding.
Thud!
It was Ho-young's second goal, just 15 minutes into the match.
'I hate this tournament…'
Only two goals had gone in, but Bony had already lost his will.
He wanted to raise his hand and ask for a sub right then and there...
"Hah."
All he could do was glance at his coach with pleading eyes.
'Coach… You said Korea was the weakest team…'
And Bony realized.
Korea's win against France wasn't luck. It was skill.
After scoring a brilliant second goal, Ho-young didn't celebrate. He stared into the air.
[Powerful Mid-range Shot That Penetrates Gaps (B+3) ↑]
One step away from leveling up.
The talent he obtained from Yoon Jung-ho had grown significantly.
'If this keeps up, I could score more.'
Ivory Coast's goalkeeper was a perfect target.
Being shorter, he was vulnerable to mid-range shots and it was showing.
So Ho-young kept trying his luck from distance.
Not only was he honing his talent, but this was part of the setup to unlock Cha Bum-kun's talent as well.
[30 goals scored from beyond 30 meters.]
He was about halfway there now.
At first, even scoring one was difficult, but with improved ankle strength and shooting power, his success rate was rising.
'Not long now.'
With his eyes on that L-grade talent, Ho-young refocused on the match.
Everything progressed smoothly, without any surprises.
Korea's momentum didn't fade and continued to dominate into the second half.
Ivory Coast, already crushed by Germany, took another heavy beating and ended the group stage with two losses.
The final score was 3-0.
Ho-young and Lee Chung-yong scored two and one goals respectively, securing Korea's second win.
As expected, the Man of the Match went to Ho-young again.
'It's U-16, but it feels easier than Brazil's U-15 league.'
Even though the age group was higher, the level felt a step lower.
Plus, with older teammates supporting him, he could play more freely.
'This tournament's goal is the title.'
He had won several titles in Brazil, but never on the global stage.
That made this tournament all the more desirable.
One step away from the semifinals.
He believed they could do it.
That same day, the match between France and Germany produced a surprising result.
With their injured key players returning, France claimed a clean 2-0 win and saved face as the host nation.
Meanwhile, Germany lost a key central midfielder to a minor injury, which would impact their match against Korea.
As a result, South Korea, now with two wins, stood at the top of Group A, with Germany and France trailing behind.
But with Germany as the next opponent, Korea couldn't relax just yet.
Unlike Group B, where England and Japan had already qualified, Group A was wide open and unpredictable.
Fortunately, Coach Park had rotated the squad well and preserved player stamina.
In particular, Ho-young had been managed carefully and was preparing thoroughly for the Germany match.
That night, at the Korea U-16 team's lodging.
"Wow."
Ho-young, scanning through the German U-16 squad list handed to him by the coach, couldn't keep his mouth shut.
'Incredible.'
No wonder they had destroyed Ivory Coast 3-0.
One glance at the squad was enough to understand Germany's intent to win the tournament.
A truly elite lineup.
'If they don't make it past the group stage, the coach should resign.'
That's how loaded the squad was.
One of them was Thomas Müller of Bayern Munich, who Ho-young had faced during Korea's tour in Germany the previous year.
But instead of feeling intimidated, Ho-young was thrilled.
The first reason — sharing the pitch with superstars.
The second — a particular defender.
Just then, Lee Chung-yong, peering at the same list beside him, frowned and muttered a name.
"Why do German names have to be so tricky… Thomas… Jerome… and who's this? Holzer… Batts…?"
"It's Holger Badstuber. He's one of the defenders we have to break down tomorrow."
[Holger Badstuber (Centre-back, 17, SSV Ulm 1846)]
A defender who had rendered Ho-young helpless in the MBS Youth World Cup final three years ago.
He couldn't help but feel excited to face him again after all this time.
It wasn't about revenge. It was more like a test.
To see how far he had come.
"Badstuber? You know him?"
"I've played against him."
"Oh? Did you win?"
"I lost that time."
"Pfft~"
That's why he wanted to win this time.
But skill alone wasn't enough.
If they didn't fix their team's weak defense, it would be like pouring water into a broken bucket.
That's why Ho-young said:
"Hyung. Look here. Thomas Müller is the one we need to watch most tomorrow."
"How do you know that?"
"I've played against him. Last year."
"Oh really? Is there anyone you haven't played against? So, did you win?"
"Won once. Lost once. So this time, I have to win."
"Haha. I'll back you up from behind. Just focus on scoring."
"Thanks. Then let me give you a tip too."
"What?"
"How to deal with Badstuber."
Of course, he didn't know the exact method.
But as the saying goes, "Know your enemy, know yourself," and it might help.
After all, he had faced Badstuber three years ago.
That night, an exclusive football lesson from an elementary schooler began, something money couldn't buy.
And it didn't stop there.
Starting with Lee Chung-yong, other players who stopped by the room eventually gathered around Ho-young's bed.
Meanwhile, at the German team's lodging.
A similar conversation was unfolding.
"Focus."
"Yeah, yeah… keep talking. So, you're saying we need to watch out for Ho-young? Is he that good?"
"Yes. I played against him last year in Germany."
A conversation between Thomas Müller and Holger Badstuber.
Müller, who had faced Ho-young with the German youth squad, was now giving his roommate a heads-up.
But Badstuber looked unconvinced.
"He wasn't like that when I played him three years ago. I faced him in Korea."
"That was three years ago. It doesn't hurt to be careful. The Ho-young I saw last year was the best Asian player I've ever faced. Didn't we watch the video our coach showed?"
"Oh, that dribbling clip? Yeah, he was fast."
Badstuber, who had watched a 30-second highlight reel, acknowledged Ho-young's pace.
But he wasn't losing sleep over it.
Experience counts, and he had dominated Ho-young once already.
He was confident.
'I got sent off back then because I lost my temper, but this time will be different. If I get on the pitch, I'll shut him down properly.'
Badstuber couldn't wait for tomorrow to come.
(To be continued.)