Who will win if they form a team of 11 strikers and 11 defenders.
To find the answer, an unprecedented special match was held. It was the “2024 Nexon Icon Match” held at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Tuesday. Icon Match is an event hosted by Nexon’s soccer games “FC Online” and “FC Mobile,” where legendary soccer players gather to stage unique matches. Following a one-on-one match, a power match, and a shooting match on Wednesday, the main match was held on Tuesday.
Indeed, legends have gathered. Rio Ferdinand even said, “Hasn’t there ever been so many world-class players gathered together?” As many as six Ballon d’Or winners were awarded to the world’s best players. FC Spear, led by Coach Thierry Henry and Coach Park Ji-sung, included Kaká, Luis Figo, Andriy Shevchenko, Michael Owen, Rivaldo, Didier Drogba, Eden Hazard, and Carlos Teves. Ahn Jung-hwan, Lee Chun-soo, Kim Byung-ji, and Kim Yong-dae also joined the team.
F.C. Shield (defensive team), which includes coach Fabio Cannavaro and coach Lee Young-pyo, included Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Carles Puyol, Andrea Pirlo, Javier Maserano, Yaya Toure and Edwin van de Sarr. Among the Korean players, Kim Nam-il, Park Joo-ho, Lim Min-hyuk, and FC Seoul legend Adi helped.
Soccer fans were thrilled by the news that many superstars from the past are joining the event. 16,000 pre-purchase tickets for FC online event participants were sold out in 10 minutes, and 48,000 tickets for general public on Friday were also sold out in an hour. The Seoul World Cup Stadium was full of fans wearing classic replica cars to recall past superstars. A whopping 64,210 people filled the stadium.
In terms of name value, FC Spear, which is full of stars who have won five Ballon d’Or, seemed to have an advantage, but the actual atmosphere was different. Coach Henry at the pre-match press conference said, “To be serious, we often play such games in training. In that case, the defense team usually wins.” Park Ji-sung also said, “Even as a player, the offense team has never beaten the defense team. The defense team wins 100 percent.”
Since the team was made up of only strikers and defenders, it was different from the best 11. The four backs of FC Spear were Henri-Dimitar Berbatov-Drogba-Teves. All of them were top scorers in the English Premier League. Prior to them, Hazard-Alexander Del Piero-Pigot made a three-top. Kim Byung-ji defended the goal. On the other hand, Toure-Clarens Seidorf-Jon Arne Lisse made the three-top of FC Shield. Toure has scored double digits once. On the other hand, the three-back team was made up of Ferdinand-Vidici-Cannabar, literally Iron Three-back.
The winner was FC Shield, a contradictory match between a spear and a shield that began when Cha Bum-keun, a “Korean legend,” came out with the trophy. The team won 4-1. FC Spear occupied and tapped the ball based on his brilliant play, but it was not practical. On the other hand, FC Shield was solid. Based on stable play, one or two players quickly counterattacked and finished the game, which was powerful. They showed their heyday in every moment in the legends’ play, but they had no choice but to realize the weight of time soon. However, fans responded with generous applause and cheers. 메이저사이트
FC Shield scored the winner with Toure’s first goal in the 13th minute of the first half and Seidorf’s long-range goal in the 20th minute. In the 9th minute of the second half, Park Joo-ho, who received Seidorf’s pass, scored a netting goal. Mascherano added another goal in the 35th minute. Seidorf was the best player involved in every goal with one goal and three assists. Many superstars played on the ground, but the loudest shout of the day was the moment when “Haejeo” Park Ji-sung was deployed. Park Ji-sung scored a penalty kick as soon as he was deployed in the 40th minute of the second half.