Played in oppressive heat in the South Korean capital, conditions were testing for both sets of players but City put on a fine show of attacking football in the first half.
Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders and Divin Mubama got our goals before a second half that saw 24 changes across both teams and a much slower pace of play.
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We will return to the same venue on Sunday to close out our pre-season tour of Asia by facing Atletico Madrid. That match will again be live on CITY+ globally (except South Korea and Spain).
The game in 250 words
With temperatures around 36 degrees Celsius at kick-off, control of the ball was paramount.
City had all the early running and made it count just eight minutes in when Tijjani Reijnders turned his marker inside out down the right wing before a low cross to the feet of Rayan Ait-Nouri, who fired home with his right foot.
However, the hosts bit back almost immediately with a drilled effort from Kim Dae Won rushing through a crowd of bodies and into Gianluigi Donnarumma’s goal.
City retook the lead on the 20 minute mark when an inventive Antoine Semenyo backheel into the path of Reijnders was finished with aplomb.
Divin Mubama grabbed our third a few minutes later, following up a parried effort to chip over goalkeeper Song Bum Keun.
Phil Foden in particular will have felt he could have had a goal of his own before half-time but it wasn’t to be for our Academy graduate.
City shuffled the pack at the break while our hosts made wholesale changes, meaning the second half had a real exhibition feel.
There was still some goal threat, with Jeremy Monga seeing a goal ruled out on his first City appearance after he was deemed to commit a handball.
While substitute goalkeeper Gu Seong Yun was equal to the attempts of Savinho, Omar Marmoush and Monga late on, City can be more than pleased with the evening’s work as Enzo Maresca picked up his first success.
Teams
CITY XI: Donnarumma (Bettinelli 46), Khusanov (Reis 46), Dias (C) (Alleyne 46), Gvardiol (Mfuni 46), Ait-Nouri (Monga 60), Lewis (Nunes 60), Kovacic (Nico 46), Reijnders (Heskey 60), Semenyo (Savinho 46), Foden (Echeverri 60), Mubama (Marmoush 60)
Subs: Wint, Chabot, Braithwaite, Mukasa, Sangare, F. Samba, Henderson-Hall, Parker
K-LEAGUE ALL STARS XI: Song Bum Keun (Gu Seong Yun 46), Kim Moon Hwan (Ibiza 46), Yazan (Kim Ryun Sung 46), Eo Jeong Won (Ahn Tae Hyun 46), Lee Ki Hyeok (Ki Sung Yueng 46), Kim Dae Won (Kim Ju Chan 46), Kim Bong Soo (Son Jeong Beom 35), Mateus (Mugosa 46), Park Tae Jun (Ha Seung Woon 46), Yago (Galego 46), Lee Dong Gyeong (C) (Lee Seung Woo 46)
Subs: Kwon Kyung Won, Moon Min Seo
Attendance: 28,036
Maresca reaction
“For us the result is always important, even if it is a friendly game - but the most important thing is to see the effort of the players, especially in this weather.
“Also, compared to the last game in some aspects we did some things better.”
Star man
Tijjani Reijnders - The Dutch midfielder was a constant threat to the K-League defence, popping up high up on the inside right over and over again.
He created our first, weaving around his marker on the edge of the box and drilling the box across the six-yard box and eventually seeing it reach Rayan Ait-Nouri who tucked home.
His energetic running into the box brought fruits shortly afterwards too, latching on to Antoine Semenyo’s backheel and rolling into the far corner.
Nico reaction
“It was so hot.
“I don’t think I’ve ever played in these conditions. I’ve played in Spain for a couple of years and in the summer it was hot, but not like this.
“I think the idea is clear, we try to arrive to the wingers and then we have a lot of quality on the wing, so they can do 1v1 all the time.
“I think the main idea is the same again, we want to win the ball back as quick as possible and have the ball.
“Then there’s some things that change, but the main idea is the same.”
Extreme heat
It’s worth reiterating the punishing heat this match was played in and how rare it is that any of those involved will have to navigate such extremes.
There’s no doubt it contributed to the slowing down of the game and likely influenced a few decisions through premature fatigue.
But if our players can survive this, then returning to the blistering Mancunian summer for the start of the season should be a walk in the park.
What’s next
City’s third and final game of this pre-season tour comes on Sunday 9 August against Atletico Madrid.
The match kicks off at 12:00 (UK) and will be globally available to watch (except in South Korea and Spain) on mancity.com and our official app with a CITY+ subscription.
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Effort of players in heat pleasing, says Maresca
Enzo Maresca says it was important for him to see his players work hard despite tough conditions in Wednesday’s 3-1 win over K-League All Stars. Read more
