Team K League defeated Atletico Madrid 3-2 in a friendly match of Coupang Play Series at Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. on the 27th. As a result, the team K-League presented the bitter taste of defeat to Atletico, who visited Korea for the first time in history.
The team K League, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, started with a 4-3-3 formation. Lee Seung-woo, Joo Min-kyu, Na Sang-ho, Baek Seung-ho, Han Kook-young, Bae Joon-ho, Lee Ki-je, Kim Young-kwon, Jung Tae-wook, Seol Young-woo, and Lee Chang-geun will start. Cho Hyun-woo, Anton, Grant, Hwang Jae-won, Lee Soon-min, Palosevic, Gersso, Hayes, Cesinha and Zecca sat on the bench. Timo was excluded from the list after testing positive for COVID-19 self-test kits.
Atletico faced off in a 4-4-2 formation. Alvaro Morata-Antoine Griezmann, Tomarma-Rodigo DePaul-Coke-Samuel Linu, Mario Hermoso-Axel Witzel-Stefan Savić-Sesar Aspilikueta and Ivo Grović went to the stadium first.
Atletico netted first. In the 6th minute of the first half, Morata escaped to the back of the defense and penetrated goalkeeper Lee Chang-geun with an accurate shot. However, it was not recognized as a goal when an offside foul was declared.
Atletico took the lead first. In the 12th minute of the first half, Griezmann dug into the right side of the box and shot. Lee Chang-geun once again showed a great defense, but Le Ma connected the ball that came out with a shot again and scored the first goal.
Team K-League missed a golden opportunity. In the 16th minute of the first half, Kim Young-kwon delivered an accurate long pass to Lee Seung-woo, who penetrated the defensive line. Lee Seung-woo attempted to shoot over the goalkeeper’s height, but Aspilikueta persistently chased and blocked it.
Lee Chang-geun presented Super Save. In the 19th minute of the first half, Linu exchanged a one-two pass with Griezmann in a narrow space and fired a powerful volley. It was a scene like a goal, but Lee Chang-geun didn’t give up and threw himself and hit it well.
The goalpost blocked Atletico’s additional goal. Morata connected Griezmann’s corner kick with a header in the 20th minute of the first half, but the ball hit the crossbar and hit goalkeeper Lee Chang-geun’s body. Sabić’s header from the ensuing corner kick also hit the crossbar.
Morata cried offside again. In the 23rd minute of the first half, he folded once in the box and beat the defense and shook the net with a calm shot. However, the flag of assistant referee was up again this time.
Atletico again wrapped his head in bad luck in the net. In the 24th minute of the first half, Griezmann attempted a quick shot near the box after cutting the ball from the team’s K-League camp. The ball headed to the right corner of the goal, but it hit the post again this time.
Lee Chang-geun continued his showcase. In the 35th minute of the first half, Hermoso hit Griezmann’s sharp corner kick to his head. It was a strong header, but goalkeeper Lee Chang-geun reacted quickly and blocked it stably. Sabić’s header, which came out a minute later, also failed to surpass Lee Chang-geun. He also hit a threatening header from Linu in the 40th minute.
Morata completed an offside hat trick. In the 45th minute of the first half, Linu broke through the left side of the box with another pass play and passed it in front of the goal, and Morata easily pushed it in. However, Morata’s score was canceled again as Linu was found to have been in an offside position. The first half ended with Atletico leading 1-0.
The team K-League immediately balanced. In the 41st minute of the second half, Gersault got a penalty kick when he tripped over the opponent’s defense while digging into the box. Palosevic, who played as a kicker, completely deceived the goalkeeper and scored an equalizer.
At the end of the game, the team K League scored a fantastic come-from-behind goal. In the extra time of the second half, Lee Soon-min penetrated the corner of the goal with a powerful right-footed mid-range shot near the arc. Lee Soon-min and the team’s K-League players heated up the stadium with a “big man ceremony” together.