The Glorious Cha Doo-ri

“Cha-boom, junior,” Cha Doo-ri (25, Frankfurt) showed his skill to the world.

In "Football for Hope," a charity soccer match played by the star soccer players of the world, held in Barcelona, Spain on February 15, 2005, Cha Doo-ri, playing with the “Ronaldinho 11” team, scored a goal and had an assist.

This was the first time that a Korean soccer player has ever scored a goal in a world all-star match sponsored by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). Since Cha Doo-ri’s father, Cha Bum-geun played with the “Shoeman 11” team in a world all-star match sponsored by UNICEF in December, 1980, Park Chang-sun, Kim Joo-sung, Hong Myung-bo, Ha Seok-joo, and Yoo Sang-cheol have played in various world all-star games.

In the “Football for Hope” match, the all-star players were separated into a world all-star team, “Ronaldinho 11,” led by Ronaldinho (Barcelona), FIFA’s player of the year in 2004, and a European all-star team, “Shevchenko 11,” led by Anriy Shevchenko (AC Milan), “ UEFA’s player of the year in 2004.

Cha Doo-ri, who entered the game in the second half, assisted on Henry Camara’s (Senegal) goal after 18 minutes passed since the beginning of the second half, and when 17 more minutes had passed, he scored a goal with a strong right-foot kick in the penalty area, assisted by Camara.

“Mickey Mouse,” Park Ji-sung (24, PSV Eindhoven), also entered the court in the second half as a mid-fielder, and showed his fancy skills. The game achieved the victory of “Ronaldinho 11,” six to three.

Soon-Il Kwon stt77@donga.com