The Highlight has not come out yet. "Haebeoji" Park Ji-sung (45) is waiting to run across Suwon World Cup Stadium again.
OGFC and the Suwon Samsung legends team are facing each other at Suwon World Cup Stadium at 7 p.m. on the 19th. This match is the first game for the newly formed independent team OGFC, founded together with "Shoot for Love," featuring legends who led the Premier League golden era, including Park Ji-sung.
OGFC is a team made up of players who wore the Manchester United uniform and roamed Old Trafford in their playing days, including Park Ji-sung, Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Ryan Giggs, and Patrice Evra. They set a goal to break a career-high win rate of 73%. In addition to the flashy roster, Eric Cantona took the baton, and Michael Phelan joined as a coach.
Opposing them, the Suwon legends were led by club legend and FA Cup-winning manager Seo Jeong-won, and 'Yeongrokba' Shin Young-rok, who retired in 2011 after cardiac arrest during a match, served as coach. The squad completed a glamorous lineup with domestic players such as Lee Woon-jae, Kwak Hee-ju, Song Jong-guk, Kim Doo-hyun, Ko Jong-su, Lee Gwan-woo, Cho Won-hee, and Yeom Ki-hoon, as well as foreign players loved by Suwon fans, including Denis and Santos.
OGFC lined up in a 4-3-3 formation. Giggs—Dimitar Berbatov—Antonio Valencia, Evra—Alan Smith—Darren Gibson, Fabio—Nemanja Vidić—Ferdinand—Rafael, and Edwin van der Sar started. Evra, who shouted, "If you make me defend again, I'll go up even if I have to break my teammates' legs," was placed in midfield, and Park Ji-sung, who announced about 10 minutes of play after knee surgery, started on the bench.
The Suwon legends operated a 4-1-4-1 formation. Santos, Denis—Lee Gwan-woo—Kim Doo-hyun—Yeom Ki-hoon, Song Jong-guk, Cho Won-hee—Yang Sang-min—Kwak Hee-ju—Shinsegae, and Lee Woon-jae started. When coach Shin Young-rok, who overcame cardiac arrest and stood up, entered, a warm round of applause poured out.
The first half ended with the Suwon legends leading 1-0. The players of both teams collided hard from the start amid tremendous cheering. They pressed high up front and did not avoid physical battles. The crowd, which filled the stadium in waves of blue and red, went wild at every touch by the legends.
The opening goal belonged to Suwon. In the eighth minute of the first half, Denis, who received the ball on the left, threaded a through pass between defenders. Santos, who ran into the space behind, took a left-footed shot that pierced van der Sar and scored. OGFC also took several shots centered on Fabio, but they rarely connected into a goal.
Thunderous cheers erupted continuously from the stands, but the moment of the highest decibel came separately. It was not Santos's scoring scene nor when former manager Cha Bum-kun appeared on the scoreboard. It was the moment Park Ji-sung, who was sitting on the bench, was caught on camera.
When Park Ji-sung, his knee tightly taped, appeared on the scoreboard, both Suwon fans and Manchester United fans united and cheered louder than ever. Park Ji-sung raised his hand and waved in response. After that, he seemed to salivate watching his teammates' play, as if he himself wanted to run.
Park Ji-sung is expected to run on the pitch briefly in the second half. Having even undergone knee surgery for this match, he said at a news conference, "Recovery has not gone smoothly. I'm not yet in perfect condition. I certainly carry some anxiety," but he predicted, "Still, I strongly want to stand in front of fans today. I think I will play for about 10 to 15 minutes."
The sight of "close friend" Evra and Park Ji-sung syncing up after a long time also raises expectations. Park Ji-sung said, "It's a shame that my recovery has been slow and I can't play a full match with (Evra). Still, just being able to stand in a stadium in Korea fills me with emotion and expectation."
Evra also said, "It feels like the first time since 2012. I'm happy to be able to play with Park Ji-sung, who is like a brother," and added, "If I can exchange passes with Park Ji-sung even once, it would really feel like a dream."
Suwon World Cup Stadium is a meaningful place for Park Ji-sung. In May 2002, in an international friendly against France held here, he beat France captain Marcel Desailly and scored an equalizer with a left-footed shot, making his name widely known. It was a goal that served like a celebratory blast signaling the dawn of Park Ji-sung's era leading Korean soccer.
Park Ji-sung also cited the France match as the best game of his career in his 2015 autobiography. He smiled at a news conference before the match that day and said, "(Suwon World Cup Stadium) is the place where I scored against France and created an opportunity to go to the World Cup. I feel proud to be able to play again in such a meaningful place. I'm very much looking forward to it."
Now the remaining time is 45 minutes of the second half. Because there is no substitution limit in this match, Park Ji-sung can be put in at any time and return to the bench again. The moment Park Ji-sung steps on the Suwon World Cup Stadium turf again is approaching.<
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