Reporter Ji Yu Intern Zhuang Tianyi.
Judson's stunning goal helped the Tarzan team advance to the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League. ic photo
The final whistle blew, and the soldiers of the Taishan team hugged each other tightly to celebrate a joyful victory.
With Judson's countdown stunner, the Taishan team defeated Kawasaki Frontale 4:2 away, eliminated the opponent with a total score of 6:5 over two legs, and entered the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League for the third time in team history. This game also ended the 7-game winless streak of the Taishan team against the Japanese team. More importantly, with this victory as a "model", the Taishan team has enough confidence to meet the challenges ahead.
The momentum is like a rainbow. The way of others is also to govern their bodies.
In the first half of the game, the Taishan team did not be afraid of the unfavorable situation of falling behind by one goal, but on the premise that the possession rate was not dominant, through the front court pressing and quick counterattack, caused a lot of threats to the opponent.
In the 7th minute of the game, Li Yuanyi stole the opponent's defender and picked up a pass from the left side to find Cressan, who took the lead with a header; In the 25th minute, the Taishan team organized a high-quality counter-defensive counterattack, Kaza sent a beautiful outside instep assist, and Gao Zhunyi scored with his instep inside and outside the penalty area.
Kaza proved his ability to link up with the team in the first half, while Ko also scored his first goal back to the team.
Looking at the two goals scored in the first half, the process of expanding the score of the Taishan team is very similar to the first leg of Kawasaki Frontale, and it can even be said to be the same. As the saying goes, "with the way of others, and the body of others", the Taishan players also seized the gap on the two wings of Kawasaki Frontale, and used sharp counterattacks to tear apart the opponent's not solid backline.
It is worth mentioning that Cui Kangxi made a starting adjustment in this game, in addition to Cressan, Kaza, and Judson, the three foreign aides continued to start, Cui Kangxi removed Wu Xinghan and Chen Pu, who were not satisfactory in the last game, and promoted Zheng Zheng from the position of defender to the midfield.
Judging from the first half alone, such targeted adjustments paid off quickly.
Final word. Judson plays Mr. Key again.
Although it was expected that the second half would be very close, the game was beyond people's imagination.
As one of Japan's most successful teams in recent years, Kawasaki Frontale is known for his tenacious style in the Japanese league, and this campaign did not allow Taishan to win easily.
In the 58th minute, Kawasaki Frontale was again exceeded by Erison, and the Taishan team was once again pushed into a desperate situation. After that, the Taishan team strengthened the organization and attack in the midfield, Cressan received the pass from Kaza and cut in continuously, opened the gap and scored twice, and the total score stubbornly pulled into a 5:5 draw.
In the 79th minute of the game, Wang Dalei made a mistake in a sortie, which scared many fans into a cold sweat, and referee Ahmad Ali once sent him off with a red card. But at this time, VAR intervened in the game in time: the opponent was offside first, and Wang Dalei's red card was canceled.
Just when the coaching staff of both sides began to consider the arrangement of extra time, the Taishan team seized the last chance through set-pieces.
In the second reading stage of the game, the Taishan team took a corner kick on the right side, Kawasaki Frontale made a mistake in clearing, and Judson stopped the ball with his chest and scored with a hook to complete the stunner. As a "defender with a knife", Judson has scored "killer goals" in key games many times, including the 2021 FA Cup final to help Taishan win the cup.
This time, Judson once again ended the Taishan team's winless streak against the Japanese team with a stunning goal, helping the team reverse the opponent and advance to the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League.
Purple gas comes from the east. A victory boosts morale.
This is also the third time in the history of the Taishan team to advance to the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League, tying the best record in team history. The last time Taishan team achieved this result was back in 2016, when Taishan team relied on Hao Junmin's goal to draw against Sydney FC and advanced to the quarterfinals by virtue of away goals.
After the game, the Taishan team members waved the national flag with the fans of the expedition away. In the cold winter of Chinese football, this hard-won away victory made the hearts of fans feel a little warm. Today, when Chinese football has fallen to the bottom, the victory of the Taishan team in this expedition is even more commendable.
Taishan coach Choi Kang-hee said in his post-match press conference: "This is a game we have to win. The players are doing very well in attack and defense under the deployment of the coach. With the first goal scored, the players were more energetic and confident on the field. ”
Looking ahead to the future of the AFC Champions League, Choi Kang-hee also expressed his opinion: "After a tough round of 16, we will continue to face two legs of 180 minutes. As long as the players can keep playing like they did today, I'm sure there will be good results in the future. ”
The opponents of the quarterfinals of the Taishan team will be produced by Bangkok United and Yokohama Marino. Considering the difference in strength between the two sides, the probability of Yokohama Mariner and Taishan team playing each other is a bit greater, and this game will be played in early March.
It is worth mentioning that in the group stage, the Taishan team was "double-killed" by the Yokohama Mariners, and the Japanese team also became the "inner demon" of the Taishan team. With the confidence brought by the away elimination of Kawasaki Frontale, can the Taishan team continue to break the demons and create the team's best record in the AFC Champions League? Anything is possible.