Gwangju's Miracle, Kobe's Tears 'Japan Blames Shandong for mental breakdown'·····"When I didn't say it, it fell to fifth place because of Shandong, and I avoided it."

Gwangju's Miracle, Kobe's Tears 'Japan Blames Shandong for mental breakdown'·····"When I didn't say it, it fell to fifth place because of Shandong, and I avoided it."

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The "Miracle in Gwangju" was both a pain and a nightmare for Kobe. Not only Kobe, the J-League champion who lost to Gwangju FC by allowing three goals, but also the Japanese soccer community was in a big shock.

Gwangju, led by head coach Lee Jung-hyo, overwhelmed Kobe 2-0 in the second round of the 2024-25 Asian Champions League Elite (ACLE) round of 16 at Gwangju World Cup Stadium on the 12th, setting the total score for the first and second games to 2-2, and winning 3-0 with Asani's winning goal in overtime.

Gwangju, which was likely to be eliminated after losing 0-2 in the first round of away games on the 5th, made a dramatic come-from-behind victory in the home game and succeeded in advancing to the quarterfinals. Gwangju is the first city and provincial team to reach the quarterfinals in the ACL stage.

Gwangju, which had aggressive management by increasing its possession against J-League champion Kobe last season, shook the net with a header after Park Tae-joon's cross in the 18th minute of the first half. Gwangju continued its offensive without giving up the lead with the side attacks of Asani and Hayes in the second half. Gwangju's hard work paid off in the 40th minute of the second half. Handball fouls were pointed out in the opponent's penalty area, and Asani scored a penalty kick to balance the score of the first and second games 2-2. Asani, who gained momentum, scored again with a surprise left-footed mid-range shot in the 13th minute of the second half, taking advantage of Kobe's defense near the penalty arc, leading Gwangju to a dramatic come-from-behind victory.

Japan is in a deep shock. Japanese media Soccer Digest said on Tuesday that it had suffered a crushing defeat and blamed China's Shandong Taishan. Kobe's ranking dropped to fifth place after Shandong withdrew from the match against Ulsan HD at the end of the ACLE group stage. As a result, the opponent team in the round of 16 teams will change from Buriram United of Thailand to Gwangju, and the second round of the round of 16 teams will be held in an away match, rather than an away match. The Japanese media reported that Japanese soccer fans resent Shandong on social media and bulletin boards. A Japanese soccer fan said, "All this happened because of Shandong," and added, 바카라사이트 "It's so unfortunate. Of course, the team lost to Gwangju due to poor performance, but it had a huge aftermath of Shandong's sudden withdrawal."

Another Japanese soccer media outlet Soccer King said, "We were hit by a firestorm in Shandong Province, but failed to maintain the two-goal advantage. We had to focus more on the match against Gwangju, which is undefeated at home."