Incheon Utd's Young Stars Crash Champion Ulsan
Incheon United FC won a rare complete victory against Ulsan Hyundai, a strong team that has become the K League 1 champion for two consecutive years. In terms of the recent trend, no team can easily pass the record of eight consecutive games without defeat (4 wins, 4 draws, 12 points and 5 points).
With the opponent already confirmed to win the league, it seemed to have been drained considering the AFC (Asian Football Federation) Champions League away game schedule, but it is surprising that Incheon United FC was close to 1.5 members based on the absence of key players. 19-year-old left wingback Choi Woo-jin scored a great assist by swinging in front of veteran national team Kim Tae-hwan (Ulsan), while 20-year-old Park Seung-ho and Park Hyun-bin also flew.
Incheon United FC, led by head coach Cho Sung-hwan, won 3-1 at 7:30 p.m. on the 24th (Friday) at Incheon Football Stadium, and rose to fourth place in the 2023 K League 1 Final A-group home game against Ulsan Hyundai, allowing them to want a ticket to the AFC Champions League 2 next season.
'Choi Woo-jin, Park Hyun-bin, Park Seung-ho' Defeats Tigers
Home team Incheon United FC was forced to send young players because key players such as "Shin Jin-ho, Lee Myung-joo, Gerso, Mpoku, and Delbridge," including star goaltender Stefan Mugosa, were injured. He was not confident of winning in front of 7601 home fans who came through the fierce cold wave, but he nevertheless did the difficult job.
I didn't expect 19-year-old left-footed wingback Choi Woo-jin to show off his cool dribbling skills in front of Ulsan Hyundai's right fullback Kim Tae-hwan, who is in his mid-30s. It was a special game from the end of his left foot to the first goal assist. In other words, young Incheon United FC players proved that the game that went to the Ulsan Tiger Cave last summer and won 2-1 was by no means a coincidence.
Incheon United FC, the home team that finished the first half without a goal, showed off their ability to develop a faster counterattack in the second half. At the center of it were Choi Woo-jin and Hong Si-hoo, who played as wingbacks on both sides, as well as Kim Do-hyuk and Park Hyun-bin, who played midfield roles in the middle. In terms of organizational power, it seemed that the team would lose out to the opponent, but the scene where Incheon United FC's midfield members quickly and accurately turned the ball around did not catch up with Ulsan Hyundai's key players, who won the championship for two consecutive seasons.
At 50 minutes and 36 seconds, a thunderbolt came out. Incheon United FC left wingback Choi Woo-jin drove in quickly and sent a surprise through pass in front of the goal, and Park Seung-ho, who waited for this time, kicked it with a left-footed kick. Ulsan Hyundai defenders, such as Kim Ki-hee and Kim Young-kwon, who wore captain's armbands, were also stuck in goal.
What was even more surprising was the extra goal-the wedge goal for Incheon United FC, which came between 2:51 midway through the second half. Hong Si-hoo's right-footed extra goal, which received a pass from Hernandez in the second half, was not enough to score at 73 minutes and 32 seconds, and Oh Ban-seok's beautiful diving header extra goal (helped by Kim Bo-seop) came out at 76 minutes and 23 seconds.
In the meantime, Ulsan Hyundai players were only looking at each other's faces. At 89 minutes and 19 seconds, Joo Min-kyu's penalty goal, which was looking for the top scorer, came out, but the goal of Incheon United FC was no longer opened until 9 minutes of additional time in the second half. Starting with a 2-1 home game win over Jeju United on Sept. 16 as well as the final round, Incheon United FC is continuing its eight-game unbeaten streak in the K League.
Incheon United FC, which pushed Jeonbuk Hyundai to the fourth place, will call Yokohama F. Marinos (Japan) home at 7 p.m. on the 28th (Tue), play the AFC (Asian Football Federation) Champions League game, and then visit DGB Daegu Bank Park to meet sixth-ranked Daegu FC at 2 p.m. on the 3rd of next month.
Ulsan Hyundai, the 2023 K League 1 champion, will fly to Patum Tani to play an away game against BG Patum United (Thailand) in the AFC Champions League on the 28th (Tuesday), and then wrap up the K League season with a rival match against Jeonbuk Hyundai on the 3rd of next month.
