"Croatia is playing an incredibly fluid passing game, almost all one-touch passes. It's as if I'm watching Spain's tiki-taka style," said Klaušević in astonishment.
Eastern European football is typically known for its strength and intensity.That style is clearly different from Spain's ground-based technical approach.
Croatia never used to play this way either.But for Croatian fans, who doesn't love watching their team dominate possession and take the initiative?
At least in both attack and defense, fans generally favor offense.Counter-attacks are for winning.But attacking—attacking is for dreams.
Just like now. Watching the Croatian players move the ball so fluidly, seeing it pass swiftly and seamlessly between teammates, the Croatian fans erupt in waves of cheers.
In contrast, the South Korean team began to look overwhelmed.Under Croatia's intense pressing, they were forced to compress their defense and tuck in.
"Don't step in! Don't swarm him!"Park Ji-sung shouted loudly to direct his teammates.
Unlike others, Park had experience playing against Barcelona, so he knew—if you step in or swarm too early, Croatia will just slip a quick one-two past you and pierce your lines with a sudden forward pass.
That's when your defense gets torn apart.
Ferguson once said: when facing this kind of attack, you either press high or defend densely.Of the two options, high pressing demands strong team coordination, which Korea lacked, so they had no choice but to go with the latter.
Suker glanced at Korea's retreating defense and scoffed.
Turtling up, are you?Well, I'll just crack open your shell!
With that thought, Suker advanced his position. As he stepped up, so too did the rest of the Croatian team, pressing forward as a wave.
"Oh no…"
Sweat poured down Park Ji-sung's face.The game had only just started, and he was already sweating bullets.
Who would've thought Croatia would suddenly bust out a tiki-taka style of play?
No one on the Korean side had expected this.
Today, the whole world is studying possession football.But very few teams can actually execute it—let alone know how to counter it.
So far, only AC Milan, Real Madrid, and Croatia had successfully cracked it.
And all three teams had one thing in common:They all had Suker.
Suker's explosive counter-attacking ability played a huge role in breaking down possession football.
But Korea didn't have a player like that.So against this style, they could only fall back, eventually getting surrounded by Croatia.
In the stadium's VIP suite, Mendes said in surprise, "Croatia can play possession football?"
Mourinho: "Bullshit possession. This is just a counterfeit version dressed up in tiki-taka's clothes. No real structure behind it—just pure domination through individual talent. Against a stronger team, there's no way Croatia would dare to play this imitation style."
Mendes: "But it does look really good!"
Mourinho nodded. "The Croatian coach is smart. He knows how to pressure the opposition. And he probably anticipated Korea's tendency to foul. You'll notice—Croatia's passes are almost all one-touch. Before the Korean players can close in, the ball is already gone."
"Exactly—Korea doesn't even get a chance to challenge them."
Mourinho kept his eyes fixed on Suker.Sometimes, even he found Suker's athleticism to be unreal.
He had the height—over 180 cm—and a solid build, yet he could shift his center of gravity with incredible agility.
Even his footwork frequency switched rapidly between tight touches and long strides.When Suker launched into a full sprint, his dribbling speed was nearly the same as a regular sprint.Even with some interference, the difference was minimal.
When preparing to take on defenders, Suker would ramp up his footwork speed, slightly decreasing his overall pace but maintaining high-speed control.
Football is a sport where natural talent reigns supreme.
Take legends like Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Zidane—people focused so much on their technique, they often overlooked their athletic gifts.
In dribbling, the key word is "speed".
Speed in acceleration
Speed in getting free
Speed in changing direction
These are the real tools for beating defenders. When a player's physical gifts decline later in their career, that's when their performance takes a sharp drop—not because of lost technique or form, but because they're simply not as fast anymore.
Natural talent isn't something you train.It's about raw attributes—like explosiveness, foot frequency, and feel for the ball.
And what Suker showed today made even Mourinho's scalp tingle.
When so many terrifying traits converge in one player, you get this devastating ability to tear defenses apart.
Thinking about all this, Mourinho frowned."He shouldn't be playing midfield. Stick him up top. One counterattack, boom—game over."
Mourinho was a pragmatist.He didn't care if the football was beautiful—as long as it led to wins, he'd happily park the bus every game.
But Van Stoyak wanted more.
Yes, he wanted to win, but he also wanted to win with style.He disliked defensive play and preferred aggressive football.If you could win and entertain at the same time, why not?
Van Stoyak's eyes gleamed as he watched the match.
In just 10 minutes, Croatia had dominated possession.Suker used his game intelligence to keep distributing and launching attacking passes—skills he developed playing as an attacking midfielder at AC Milan.
Though he hadn't played that way in a while, he quickly found his rhythm.
At the 14th minute, Croatia kept circulating the ball around the Korean box. The pressure was mounting. Korea knew that if their defensive line broke even once, it'd collapse like a breached dam.
But Suker wasn't going to give them that chance.
He stepped up again, receiving the ball with his back to goal just outside the penalty area.
Seeing this, Rakitić immediately sent the ball to him and sprinted forward.Suker received with a light touch, guiding the ball perfectly into Rakitić's path.
At the same time, Suker turned and darted into the penalty area.
This movement drew the attention of Korean defenders, pulling them toward Suker—leaving Rakitić with just enough space.
It was brief, but it was all he needed.
Rakitić ran on, adjusted, and delivered a precise low shot.
Boom!The ball skimmed across the grass. Lee Yong-pyo stuck out a foot—his heel deflected the ball toward the near post.
Korean keeper Jung Sung-ryong stumbled.By the time he turned around, the ball was already in the net.
"Goal!!! Rakitić scores a brilliant low drive after a beautiful one-two with Suker! Croatia takes the lead, 1–0 in the 15th minute!"
Rakitić snapped out of his shock and sprinted to the corner flag in celebration.
His first-ever World Cup goal! How could he not be excited?
"Beautiful!"Van Stoyak punched the air in triumph.
The plan was working.
And this was only the beginning.
Croatia wasn't going to ease up.
Korean commentator:"Still conceded… Lee Yong-pyo's own goal—ahhh…"
Korean fans in the stands fell silent, faces full of disappointment.
They thought their team could hold on. But now, with the goal conceded, doubt crept in.
Their morale took a huge hit.
But Croatia didn't slow down.
17th minute: Just two minutes after the first goal, Suker received a ball outside the box—but it was mid-air.
"Press him! Get him!" Park Ji-sung shouted.
Three Korean players swarmed in from different angles.
Suker calmly flicked the ball backward and spun.They missed.
As they turned to close him down again, Suker flicked it once more—behind them.
"Damn it!""Shibal!""Bastard!"
Park Ji-sung, Lee Yong-pyo, and Ki Sung-yueng cursed as they chased him again.
Suker turned his body and pulled the ball back once more—then burst out from the triangle of defenders.
WHOOOOOOAAAA!!!
The crowd erupted.
Suker had danced around three defenders like they were cones and charged into the box.
"Here comes Suker! He's in the box! Will Korea concede again?!"
Their defense was in chaos.
Lee Jung-soo lunged in with a wild slide.
Suker hit the brakes, letting the defender fly past, then cut inside.
The keeper charged forward.
Suker feinted a shot, pulled off a "rainbow flick," and left the keeper in the dust.
Facing an empty net, Suker gently slotted the ball home.
The stadium exploded.
"SUUUUUUKER!!!"The Croatian fans were going wild, hugging and screaming.
They had just witnessed an all-time dribbling masterclass:
Back-to-back flicks
Toyed with three defenders
Evaded a sliding challenge
Performed a rainbow flick past the goalkeeper
Scored into an empty net
He single-handedly dismantled Korea's entire backline.
The Croatian commentator went berserk."SUKER! SUKER! SUKER! LOOK WHAT HE'S DONE!"
"An unbelievable goal! I can't believe this is happening at a World Cup!"
"A display of pure dominance. The sluggish Korean defenders just couldn't match his pace!"
"This might be the goal of the tournament!"
17 minutes in, Croatia 2–0 Korea.
Spanish commentator González:"I'm already mourning for Korea. They didn't do anything wrong… they just had the misfortune of being in Croatia's group. That alone was their biggest mistake."
"Two goals in 17 minutes—this might turn into a massacre show!"
And indeed, it did.
Korea was dazed.Croatia smelled blood and kept pushing.
23rd minute: They began executing tight one-touch combinations, weaving dizzying patterns around Korea's box.
25th minute: Modrić and Suker pulled off a slick one-two.Modrić finished it with a deft lob.3–0 Croatia.
The South African commentator shouted, "Unstoppable!"
While the team celebrated, Mandžukić looked on wistfully."Come on, I'm the actual striker here, and I've got nothing…"
Perhaps the team noticed.They started crossing more.
37th minute: Mandžukić finally connected, heading the ball in.4–0 Croatia.
The Croatian commentator:"They've gone berserk! Croatia's gone full throttle!"
Second half: The onslaught continued.
Suker ramped up his aggression.He had just 10 minutes left before he'd be subbed off—and he wanted one more goal.
But Korea had resorted to crowding the box.They gave him no room to shoot.
55th minute: Suker was subbed off for Dujmović.
"I'm here! Let me score one too!"Dujmović shouted as he ran on.
57th minute: Out of nowhere, Dujmović fired a long-range rocket.Top corner.Absolute screamer.5–0 Croatia.
Suker on the bench:"Does he have some hidden skill or something?"
"Hidden skill?" asked Pranjić.
Suker nodded. "Trash-killer mode. I remember in Euro qualifiers vs. Andorra—he scored a hat trick."
Pranjić blinked. "Wasn't that you?"
Suker waved dismissively. "I don't waste time trashing noobs. I play in the big leagues."
Pranjić rolled his eyes.This guy was sulking when he got subbed—now he's acting all high and mighty!
Then suddenly—
"Pranjić, warm up—you're going on!"
He shot to his feet:"Sir! Already warmed up and ready!"
This was a golden chance to grab a World Cup debut goal.No one would let it slip.
Van Sterak didn't stop his players from going for more.
The massacre show continued.
74th minute: Mandžukić's shot was saved, but Srna followed up with a rebound.6–0 Croatia.
89th minute: Croatia won a corner.Šimunić rose high and powered in a header.7–0 Croatia.
The Korean fans in the stands fell silent.Or rather, most had already left.
The few that remained were in tears.
Before the match, they said: "Even if we lose, we'll go down with pride."
But a 7–0 thrashing was too much to bear.
Korean players looked completely defeated.
In stoppage time, Park Ji-sung made one final charge, pressing and launching a solo attack.
His teammates had long given up, but he still pushed forward one last time.
Srna cleanly tackled the ball out.
Park sat on the ground, shaking his head.
Suker looked over at him."Yep, classic Man United guy…"
Even as a fringe player, when everyone else had surrendered, he made one final push.
It didn't matter that it changed nothing—it still held value.
WHISTLE!
Full-time.
Park Ji-sung lay on the pitch, gasping for air.His lungs burned. His legs trembled.But worst of all—was the heartbreak.
It was over.His World Cup journey had come to an end.
This was his final World Cup, and he never expected it to end like this.
Then—"Hey!"
In his daze, Park Ji-sung looked up to see Suker standing before him.
Park scrambled to his feet.
Suker pointed at him."Good job."
Then, Suker removed his jersey and handed it to him.
Park instantly took off his own and handed it over.
He never imagined Suker would ask to trade shirts.
But for Suker, it had nothing to do with fame or result. Just seeing Park's fight to the very end—that was worthy of respect.
Without another word, Suker ran off to celebrate with his teammates.
Second group match—victory!
Croatia secured early qualification!