Lee Kang-in (22, Real Mallorca) once again proved his worth. Now, with the end of the Spanish Primera Liga approaching closer and closer, scenes that will further increase Lee Kang-in’s value appeared in the game that day. There are not many days left to see his great performance in Real Mallorca’s home game.
Real Mallorca won 1-0 in a home game in the 34th round of the Spanish Primera Liga in the 2022-23 season against Cadiz, which took place at Estadi Mallorca Son Moix in Mallorca, Balearic Province, Spain on the 13th (Korean time).
With this victory, Mallorca added 3 valuable points, marking 12 wins, 8 draws and 14 losses. The winning score is 44 points. Mallorca remained in 12th place, with rivals Osasuna and Sevilla (44 points above) playing one less game. On the other hand, Cadiz maintained 35 points with 8 wins, 11 draws and 15 losses, and placed 15th in the league.
Real Mallorca vs Cadiz Starting LineupIn the midst of the hot cheering of the home fans, Mallorca came out in a 4-3-3 formation. Bedat Muriki was deployed at the forefront, and Lee Kang-in started as a left attacking midfielder. The right flank was played by Amat Ndiaye. With Idrisso Bava, Manu Morlanes and Inigo de Galareta defending the midfield, the back four from the left is Jaume Costa, Cofete, Martin Valente and Pablo Maffeo in order. Goalkeeper: Predrag Rykovic.
Against this, Cadiz used a 4-2-3-1 formation. Sergi Guardiola stood in the front striker, and Chris Ramos, Ruben Sobrino and Ivan Alejo lined up in the second line. With Fede San Emeterio and Gonzalo Escalante side by side in the defensive midfield position, the back four was Alfonso Espino, Farley, Luis Hernandez, and Iza Carcelen from the left. The starting goalkeeper is Jeremias Ledesma.
Cadiz threatened Mallorca’s goal with a sharp attacking opportunity in the first five minutes of the first half. Aleho, who was on the right side of the penalty area, trapped the ball from the left corner kick situation, and then fired a right-footed shot, but it went over the crossbar after being slightly hit by the goalkeeper’s hand. In the ensuing right corner kick situation, Guardiola attempted a last shot in the confusion situation, but it was powerless and headed for the goalkeeper Rykovic.
In terms of Lee Kang-in’s overall performance, he was literally the midfielder’s conductor.Lee Kang-in’s true value began to emerge in the 15th minute 안전놀이터of the first half. Cadiz made a miss while passing a pass in midfield, and Lee Kang-in, who was near the center circle, rushed toward the ball. Even in this process, Lee Kang-in’s instantaneous speed shone. This is because if he didn’t have the speed, he would most likely have lost the ball to the opposing defense. Momentarily Mallorca’s 3:2 numerical advantage situation. Lee Kang-in, who intercepted the ball, boldly dribbled forward. Two defenders stood in front. Lee Kang-in had no hesitation. On the left, Morlanes ran. However, Lee Kang-in gave a pass to Muriki, who was digging to his right. Soon after, Muriki fell and connected with a right-footed sliding shot, but after being hit by the leg of the Ledesma goalkeeper, it headed for the opposite goal. Lee Kang-in looked at Muriki for a while and swallowed his regret.
In the end, Mallorca’s opening goal came straight away. Left corner kick situation. The ball, which Lee Kang-in launched with his left foot, headed for the left side of the penalty box, drawing a parabola. Baba, who was rushing the ball to the goal, jumped up and connected it with a header shot, but after brushing the hand of the Ledesma goalkeeper, it bounced off the crossbar. Mafeo ran at this again and put his head on it, and the goal went into Cadiz’s goal. After scoring, Mallorca’s home fans went wild. As a result, it was the moment when Lee Kang-in became the starting point in Mallorca’s first goal scene.
Lee Kang-in continued to help the team attack by attempting organic movements and passing without delay in the midfield. He sometimes dribbles for a long time this season, but sometimes he is Lee Kang-in who stabs non-stop passes to suit the situation. In the 11th minute of the first half, there was a scene where he opened a pass to Muriki and a scene where he easily gave away a pass in midfield and then penetrated into the central area. He also liked the way he calmly dribbled even when he turned his back on the touchline. He was like a midfielder.
Mallorca, who succeeded in scoring the first goal, led the game by increasing possession of the ball. In the 44th minute of the first half, Lee Kang-in attempted a left-footed free kick from the right rear area. It was a sharp courier kick that landed exactly between his teammate and the opposing goalkeeper. Even in the ensuing right corner kick situation, he shook the opponent’s defense with a sharp corner kick. Mallorca was pushed 5-10 in first half shots, but took a 3-2 lead in shots on target. As for corner kicks, Mallorca had two and Cadiz had six. With both teams receiving a warning once each, Cadiz had a slight lead 53-47 in ball possession.
Lee Kang-in’s performance in the second half, Lee Kang-in, who both gave and won warnings… Now equipped with physical fighting skills, his speed did not drop even in the 96th minuteMallorca, who finished the first half with a 1-0 lead, stepped up their offense in the second half. However, Cadiz’s counterattack was also formidable. Lee Kang-in received a warning in the 5th minute of the second half. He thrust his left foot towards Alejo, who was trying to break through on the left flank, but went rather deep. Alejo collapsed on the spot and complained of his pain. The referee gave Lee Kang-in a yellow card. Lee Kang-in held his face for a while with a gesture of regret. The threat from Cadiz continued. In the 7th minute of the second half, Cadiz took a direct free kick opportunity from behind the penalty arc. Caselen then hit a non-rotational shot with a right-footed inside kick, but it slightly missed the right goal.
Lee Kang-in continued to walk all over the ground. In the 19th minute of the second half, a dizzying scene came out in a situation where Lee Kang-in induced a foul. The moment they boldly penetrated into the midfield, Aleho, who had previously been warned for committing a foul by Lee Kang-in, joined the defense. At this moment, he slipped and fell on the grass, but he stepped on Lee Kang-in’s right foot twice in a row. Lee Kang-in, who seldom acts out, complained of his pain after being knocked down for a while. Eventually, Alejo was also cautioned. Fortunately, Lee Kang-in stood up and continued to play.
In the 19th minute of the second half, Mallorca replaced Ndiaye and Costa with Daniel Rodriguez and Antonio Sanchez. After scoring a goal, Cadiz replaced three players at once in the 22nd minute of the second half. Instead of dropping Alejo, Guardiola and Fede San Emeterio, they replaced Ruben Alcaraz, Theo Bongonda and Alvaro Negredo.
Lee Kang-in actively participated in defense and helped the team. In the 26th minute of the second half, he showed a soft tofu touch in the midfield area and connected the pass to his teammate without interruption. In the 33rd minute of the second half, he took the ball while exquisitely avoiding the opponent’s tackle with active pressure.
And the first masterpiece scene came in the 40th minute of the second half. When Cadiz’s free kick was cut, Mallorca had a chance to counterattack. The ball kicked off by the defense team flowed to the left flank, and Lee Kang-in and Casselen rushed toward it at the same time. At this time, Lee Kang-in had a proper shoulder fight with Casselen, but rather, Casselen was pushed back and Lee Kang-in won the ball. The moment when I was able to confirm that Lee Kang-in was never pushed back even in the ‘body fight’. Afterwards, Lee Kang-in broke through about 35m alone and gave a pass to Muriki, but unfortunately it was not connected to the finish.
Then, the second masterpiece scene came right before the end of the second half. With 6 minutes of added time in the second half, even opposing goalkeeper Ledesma joined the attack in a set piece situation. However, he failed to score, and was rather beaten by Mallorca on the counterattack. Cadiz’ goal is empty. Lee Kang-in received a roving pass from a colleague and ran toward the opponent’s gate. After catching the ball, Lee Kang-in trapped it once and fired a left-footed shot from the left side of the penalty arc to kick the ball into the empty goal. However, as offside was declared, Lee Kang-in’s 7th goal in the league was canceled. It was not overturned even in the video review. It started from behind the half line, the starting point where offside was not declared, but at the time of the pass, Lee Kang-in’s body was considered to have crossed the half line. Still, it was Lee Kang-in who showed a tireless appearance despite the time period of 96 minutes. With his goal nullified, the referee blew the whistle to end the match. Despite the cancellation of his 7th goal, Lee Kang-in was selected as ‘MOM’ again and made his name shine.