["Yes, the match has kicked off."]
["Manchester City and Arsenal have both come out in the same 4-3-3 formation. We can expect a fierce battle in midfield."]
["That's right. And there's another point to keep a close eye on as well. It's Manchester City's lineup. At last, today, the squad the fans have been waiting and waiting for is finally out."]
Manchester City's starting lineup was as follows.
Goalkeeper: Joe Hart
Defenders: Gael Clichy, Vincent Kompany, Thiago Silva, Pablo Zabaleta
Midfielders: David Silva, Marouane Fellaini, Iniesta
Forwards: Eden Hazard, Ho-young, Gareth Bale
["What exactly is Guardiola's reason for making this choice? I didn't expect him to field all the new signings at once."]
["Hmm, isn't it because he trusted Ho-young? No matter the situation, he's always become the core of the team and led them to the top."]
["That's a fair point. Ho-young, who has achieved so many accomplishments such as the youngest Ballon d'Or winner, the youngest World Cup MVP, the youngest Champions League winner, and the youngest La Liga winner, really makes you wonder what kind of new records he might set this season."]
Even before kickoff, there was a tight tension in the air.
Manchester City and Arsenal.
For both teams, this was a match neither could afford to give away.
Arsenal in particular had brought Thierry Henry in on loan from New York Red Bulls for their resurgence this season, and signed Park Ju-hyung from AS Monaco.
Not only that, they had also reinforced the squad by signing players such as Chamberlain and Arteta.
On top of that, Arsenal captain and ace Robin van Persie had scored five goals in the last two matches, leading the team to two straight wins.
The so-called "full Persie" mode.
He was delivering incredible performances in pursuit of the title.
Even though they had run into the massive mountain that was Manchester City as early as Round 3, it was a mountain they would have to overcome sooner or later anyway.
'Then we'll do it today.'
Van Persie clenched his teeth as he entered the match.
He did not let go of his focus for even a moment.
Because he knew very well that the moment you lost concentration, you got punished.
'I remember perfectly well how badly Manchester United got crushed.'
They could not afford even a single second of carelessness.
They had to recognize that every moment was dangerous.
"Stay sharp! Keep your minds fully on the match!"
Van Persie looked after his teammates and faithfully fulfilled his role as captain.
["Arsenal have set up in a 4-3-3 and are aggressively going forward with the Thierry Henry, van Persie, Walcott line leading the attack."]
In midfield, they used the Jack Wilshere, Alex Song, Mikel Arteta trio, opening attacking routes through short, simple passing.
Arteta in particular, who had joined for the first time this season, was showing a strong presence as a defensive midfielder.
Normally his tackle success rate was not particularly high, but in key moments he produced sharp and precise tackles.
["A deep-reaching foot there! Arteta's tackle hits the mark!"]
["The ball goes back to Arsenal."]
Around the 12th minute of the first half.
Once the feeling-out phase ended, the match truly began.
Arsenal, true to their style, escaped Manchester City's pressure through crisp, quick passing.
Even when they lost the ball, Mikel Arteta and Alex Song showed tremendous defensive ability and helped them get out of danger.
["Arteta is having a tremendous game today. If you have a player like that holding firm in midfield, even David Silva is going to have a hard time."]
Arteta focused on shielding the back four.
At the same time, he closely man-marked David Silva like a leech, and the effect was working perfectly right now.
On top of that, despite his height, he was excellent in the air, so he could also deal with the occasional high ball.
["A ball floated into midfield, Arteta gets himself into position."]
["David Silva is charging in as well!"]
Thud!
"Ugh."
The aerial duel ended, naturally enough, with Arteta the winner.
Like that, Arsenal were gradually taking control of midfield.
["Arsenal are painting a very good picture here. Iniesta and David Silva are fighting hard, but Arsenal are not allowing them anything easily. Arsenal have come in very well prepared."]
That they had prepared thoroughly was becoming plainly obvious through the match.
And as time passed, the effect began to show more and more.
["Robin van Persie is dropping deeper. At the same time, Thierry Henry and Walcott are widening the spacing on both sides."]
["Very intelligent play. They keep adjusting the spacing and continuously create areas that favor them. Robin van Persie's off-the-ball movement looks especially good today."]
Arsenal moved unpredictably and shook up Manchester City's back four.
From then on, van Persie's influence began to stand out.
He succeeded in unsettling Manchester City's defenders and creating several chances.
The decisive chance came around the 17th minute of the first half.
It came from Jack Wilshere's killer pass.
["Robin van Persie receives the pass and squeezes through a narrow gap!"]
["Straight away, a left-footed shoooooot!"]
["Ahhh! Thiago Silva blocks it! A perfect shot block! The ball goes out for a throw near the touchline."]
["That was close. They nearly conceded there. Manchester City are showing a more disappointing level of performance than expected. The players themselves must be disappointed too."]
No, not at all.
While anxiety was growing among the crowd and the commentators, the players themselves still wore relaxed expressions.
"Nice, Thiago!"
They even praised and encouraged one another.
Trust.
For a bond built in just a few days, it was remarkably strong.
They believed in each other.
They knew that even if things were shaky at first, it would only be temporary.
Time was on their side anyway.
As long as they showed the chemistry they had built on the training ground, they had no doubt they could overturn a situation like this in no time.
All eleven players thought the same thing.
Because they had already experienced a miracle over the last four days.
And then, in the 20th minute of the first half.
"Fellaini, keep switching positions with David Silva. From now on, you're the one dealing with Mikel Arteta."
Leader Ho-young's first instruction came down.
Fellaini nodded, but still showed some doubt.
"Then what about van Persie's runs?"
"Kompany will push the line up and apply pressure higher up. Thiago Silva will handle the line control. You just stick to Arteta."
"Then Arsenal will order a switch too."
"Exactly. That's what we're waiting for."
"Fine. Leave it to me."
The players, including Marouane Fellaini, moved according to Ho-young's instructions and began to shape the flow of the match.
["The ball rises into the air, Mikel Arteta goes after it."]
["Fellaini is right with him!"]
No matter how good Arteta was in the air, he could not beat Fellaini, whose specialty was aerial duels.
Thunk!
["Fellaini wins it with his head. The ball goes to Manchester City."]
With that, Arsenal's midfield was cut in two, and David Silva's movement began to come alive.
Thanks to that, Manchester City were gradually able to take control of midfield.
It was right then.
"Mikel! Switch with Alex! Get away from Fellaini!"
Wenger immediately instructed Arteta and Alex Song to switch, but it ended up becoming a bad move instead.
["Iniesta moves centrally!"]
The space that opened up during the switch between Arteta and Alex Song.
Iniesta did not miss it.
["David Silva passes to Iniesta."]
["Iniesta uses the tight space and opens up a clear passing lane."]
Arteta and Alex Song, having lost their bearings, got their movements tangled.
That area was the perfect pocket to connect in one move to Ho-young's zone.
And then.
["Ho-young is making the run!"]
Tap.
Receiving the ball with an extremely soft touch, Ho-young looked ahead.
'As expected.'
Hazard and Bale were making fantastic runs into exactly the right areas.
From that moment on, their chemistry began to show its true value.
Tap, tap.
Tap!
["Manchester City are producing a fantastic display of tiki-taka!"]
They were not simply exchanging passes.
Hazard moved centrally, Ho-young drifted left, Bale moved into the middle, and then Hazard moved out to the right again as they continuously exchanged passes.
It was endless switching, drawing passing routes that could not be predicted.
It looked complicated, but for those three, it was familiar work.
There was no need to force their bodies or waste much energy.
They simply had to do what they always did on the training ground.
Even if the space became tight, there was no need to worry.
"Behind you!"
Because Iniesta and David Silva were pushing up from behind.
["Iniesta receives it!"]
["Then David Silva! Eden Hazard takes over immediately!"]
Unbelievable chemistry for a first match together.
The ten players were becoming Ho-young's hands and feet, carrying out the football he wanted to play.
They moved the ball to the final third through passes aimed solely at progressing forward.
This was, simply, perfection.
At last, Guardiola's football philosophy was being realized perfectly.
And at the end of it all was Ho-young.
["Ho-young receives it in front of goal!"]
As if it had all been agreed upon beforehand, the ball was delivered precisely in front of the net.
Ho-young calmly put it away.
["Goooooooal! It's in!!"]
["I don't even know how that goal went in. It's like you blink, gather your senses, and somehow the ball is already in the net."]
A goal in just 25 minutes of the first half.
It was only a single goal for now, but what it meant was enormous.
It meant that they, who had finally reached perfection, could display their ability whenever they wanted.
The first time was the hard part, but after that, there would be no problem.
That was proven just five minutes later.
Whoosh!
["Goooooooal! Manchester City go 2-0 ahead!"]
"Hooo!"
Arsenal had been beaten by the same pattern again.
No, it was a flow they could not stop even when they knew it was coming.
If Arsenal tried anything at all to block it, Manchester City would slightly twist the pattern and keep the flow going.
Nothing changed.
Passes for progression, space for Ho-young, movement for the goal.
The fundamentals were always the same, and Manchester City's players stayed faithful to them throughout the match.
And so, the goals kept coming.
Eventually, when Arsenal were forced into changing their strategy and setting up in an extreme defensive shape, Manchester City used a different method.
["Song, Gibbs, Vermaelen, Sagna, Arteta, Walcott, six men are all watching Ho-young. They've really made up their minds here."]
["Only now have they realized it. That the beginning and end of everything is Ho-young anyway."]
That did not mean Ho-young would let himself be shut down.
With his trademark quick footwork and flexible body movement, he steadily slipped away from the pressure and instead attacked the gaps in the opposition.
["Ho-young's La Pelopina turn, he gets away from Arteta's pressure."]
["Then a scoop turn! He beats Walcott too!"]
["Wow, even a flip-flap! He's moving as if he's one with the ball!"]
The ball-reading ability he had coveted from Ronaldinho created immense synergy with his ball sense, turning every moment Ho-young touched the ball into a highlight scene.
And then around the 75th minute of the second half.
"He's God!"
"God! God! God!"
The score was already 6-0.
It was the moment when Ho-young, having smashed in four goals, was etched into the minds of the crowd as a god.
(To be continued.)