*This content was translated by AI.
Seol Young-woo of Crvena Zvezda swallowed the disappointment of being eliminated from the UEFA Champions League (UCL). In Serbia, harsh criticism was directed not only at Seol but at the entire Zvezda squad.
On the 12th (Korean time), Zvezda suffered a decisive 0-2 defeat against Hapoel Be'er Sheva (Israel) in the second leg of the third qualifying round for the 2026–2027 UCL season at Rajko Mitić Stadium in Belgrade, Serbia.
Having already lost the first leg away match 0-1 on the 5th, Zvezda was eliminated from advancing to the UCL group stage with an aggregate score of 0-3 across both legs. Instead, they will move to the next-tier tournament, the UEFA Europa League (UEL).
Zvezda, which topped the Serbian league in the 2025–2026 season, entered the UCL qualifiers as the league champion. Although they easily passed the second qualifying round and raised expectations, they could not overcome Hapoel's defense and were forced to bow out.
On this day, Seol Young-woo of the South Korean national team started as the right full-back in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
However, after the match, Serbian local media Sport Klub expressed disappointment with Seol's performance.
The outlet gave Seol Young-woo a rating of 5 points, stating he was "too passive" and specifically noted that "he failed to provide adequate attacking support during the first half."
However, his second-half performance was evaluated as somewhat improved. Sport Klub explained, "In the second half, he started more aggressively and boldly than in the first half. It appears he received instructions from the coaching staff to push forward even more."
Nevertheless, Zvezda found itself in an increasingly difficult situation after conceding the opening goal to Igor Zlatanović in the 16th minute of the second half. With at least two goals needed to avoid defeat, Zvezda adopted a more attacking approach and pushed their defensive line forward, but they ultimately collapsed after conceding a decisive goal in the 34th minute of the second half.
Sport Klub also reported that "everything disappeared once Hapoel's goal went in," pointing out that despite Seol Young-woo's improved performance, the team lost momentum after conceding in the second half.
However, Seol Young-woo was not the sole target of criticism on this day. Most of the Zvezda squad failed to escape blame.
Sport Klub assessed it as a "complete failure by the coach, players, and club management," sharply criticizing that "they showed another pathetic performance against Hapoel and no player deserved a passing grade."
They further described it as a "terrible night" and stated that "no one escaped humiliation," delivering severe criticism.
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*This content was translated by AI.
