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All the teammates cheered with a dramatic advance to the semifinals. However, Lee Kang-in (24) was unable to join the ranks of joy. Again, he was completely sidelined. There was no place for Lee Kang-in in a fierce neck-and-neck race. Lee Kang-in was also a surplus resource of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) on the same day.
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) dramatically reached the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League (UCL), raising expectations for a victory. It was an uphill victory.
PSG played the second round of the UCL quarterfinals in the 2024-2025 season against Aston Villa at Birmingham Villa Park in England on the 16th (Korea time). But the result was a 2-3 defeat. The home team Aston Villa knocked down PSG after an all-out war as if they were determined to be 'Today is the last'.
But Aston Villa only won 'Battle'. The winner of 'War' was PSG after all. PSG won the first game 3-1 at home on the 10th. As a result, PSG eventually led 5-4 in the combined score of the first and second games to advance to the semifinals. PSG also reached the UCL semifinals last season. It is a step closer to winning the UCL for the first time in the club's history.
However, Lee Kang-in's sigh is behind PSG's advance to the semifinals of the UCL. Like the first game, Lee Kang-in couldn't even get on the ground for a minute in the second game of the day. He was waiting on the bench, but Luis Enrique didn't even look back.
Enrique's starting formation was 4-3-3. Bradley Barcola-Uman Dembele-Hvicha Kvaracellia as an offensive triangular formation. After that, Fabian Lewis-Vitinya-Jouan Neves midfielders were deployed. Nunu Mendes-Willian Pacho-Marquinoz-Ashraf Hakimi was the four-back defense, and Gianluigi Donnarumma Keeper was in charge of the goal. At this point, it's PSG's best squad. There is no room for Lee Kang-in.
PSG scored the first goal like an elite player. In the 10th minute, Barcola cut through the left flank and sent a low cross. Aston Villa Martinez tried to clear but failed. Hakimi rushed in like a lightning bolt and pushed the ball in front of the goal.
Aston Villa, who fell behind by a combined score of three goals, staged a 'life-or-death' operation. He raised the line and launched a full-scale offensive. This was cleverly backfired by PSG. In the 27th minute of the first half, defender Mendes, who took over Dembele's pass from the center of the box, made it 2-0 with a strong left-footed shot. The combined score was 5-1.
I could have raised the white flag here, but Aston Villa made the drama. In the 33rd minute of the first half, Tillemans' shot hit the defense and scored a chase goal.
The second half was completely Aston Villa's pace. the second half of the game with a 1-2 deficit. Within nine minutes, McGinn's left-footed mid-range shot went into the corner of the goal. Goalkeeper Donnarumma, who made a super save in the crisis of goal just three minutes ago, failed to prevent the goal. a 2-2 tie.
Aston Villa turned the tables again four minutes later. Rashford dribbles down the right flank in the 13th minute of the second half. Then, a sharp cutback pass. Konsa, who was rushing in, pushed it into the goal to make it 3-2.
The time left is about 35 minutes. It was enough time to write a reversal drama. Aston Villa home fans are starting to go wild.
In the 15th minute of the second half, Aston Villa had another chance to score. PSG defense Marquiños failed to clear the cross. Tillemans hit a header shot. It was almost a goal, but again, Donnarumma Keeper's super save came out. The hero of the second UCL game was definitely Donnarumma Keeper.
He made another super save in the 24th minute of the second half. Asensio, who was loaned to Aston Villa from PSG, had a one-on-one chance with the goalkeeper. But he couldn't get over Donnarumma Keeper's wall. If it wasn't for Donnarumma, Aston Villa would have scored at least two more goals.
In the end, the match ended in a 3–2 victory for Aston Villa. Throughout the second half, PSG were busy fending off Aston Villa's offensive. It was not the right time for Lee Kang-in to come out. Enrique also used only one replacement card. In the 15th minute of the second half, Desiree Doue was replaced by Barcola.
There is something that has become clear with this. Lee Kang-in is not the main player. It's not even a team replacement 1 option. It's somewhere in an ambiguous position between two or three options. In addition, he cannot come to important games such as the UCL tournament unless he is injured by the main player and the No. 1 backup.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
