With the score set at 6:5, Shandong Luneng, a veteran of the AFC Cup, drew 1:1 with Beijing Guoan after 120 minutes of fierce fighting. Immediately after a thrilling penalty shootout, Luneng finally won. Once again, the gods of luck favored Shandong Luneng. Although Beijing Guoan may have been unhappy with the result, they had no choice but to accept the fate of elimination.
Shandong Luneng had the last laugh in the penalty shootout, and apart from luck, it was also due to coach Cui Kangxi's decisive decision-making. He almost turned the game around, allowing his team to come out on top in the penalty shootout.
In the penalty shootout, Choi Kang-hee selected five penalty takers who were all "foreigners", including Cressan, Pato, Moises, Fernando and Fellaini. Although Fernando, as a naturalized player, is not considered a foreign aid in the strict sense, but his Brazilian blood and strength, so that he is almost equivalent to foreign aid. Choi Kang-hee made this move to stabilize the army and avoid players making mistakes at critical moments.
Why did Choi Kang-hee send five "foreigners" to take penalties instead of local players? The answer lies in the stability and psychological quality. In the eyes of Choi Kang-hee, foreign aid is not only better than local players in the technical level, but also in the key moment of psychological quality is more outstanding. Penalty kicks battle is cruel to the extreme, is a great test of the psychological quality of the players. Therefore, he chose five psychological quality of "foreign aid" to take the penalty to deal with this challenge.
In the end, the five "foreign aid" free throws player outstanding performance, one by one hit, the critical moment, the South Korean player Kang Xiangyu's error, but also let Cui Kangxi's strategy of stability has been perfectly embodied.
Experience was undoubtedly the key to victory, as 64-year-old Choi Kang-hee showed excellent command of the field and completely overpowered the 48-year-old Suarez. Especially in the player's choice in the face of penalty kicks, it highlights his calmness and rich experience.
