The captain was all smiles after a theater goal kept his team in the game.
Incheon United defeated Suwon FC 2-1 in the 28th round of the Hana OneQ K League 1 2023 at Suwon Sports Complex at 7 p.m. on May 25.
The result moves Incheon into fourth place with 40 points. Suwon FC reclaimed 10th place with 26 points.
Captain Oh Ban-seok scored the game-winner. Oban-seok scored a header just before the end of the game to give Incheon three points. After scoring, he ran to the stands to celebrate. Incheon’s away fans greeted him with enthusiastic cheers and applause.
In a post-match interview, he said, “I expected a tough game. I’ve suffered a lot from conceding goals in extra time this season. This time, I’m glad I was able to score and bring home the win.”
Incheon has been on the rise since July. They have six wins, two draws, and one loss in the K League 1. They have risen to fourth place. “A good atmosphere was formed naturally,” said Oh Ban-seok. We talked a lot even when it wasn’t good. We have senior players. The mercenaries are also doing their part. I think we’re on our way to becoming a strong team.”
The team is competing in three competitions. Incheon won the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Champions League (ACL) playoffs against Hai Phong to qualify. They are also in the quarterfinals of the Korea Football Association (FA) Cup. “The team is different when younger players come up,” says Oh. I try to show them with my body as a senior rather than talking about it. Thinking about today’s game, I think I played my role as a senior and as a father,” he laughed.
Regarding the theater goal, he said, “I was stressed about scoring a set piece. We gave a lot of the game to Suwon FC. There were some things I wasn’t satisfied with. I was lucky that the kick came to me. I was able to convert it into a goal,” he recalled. There was a video assistant referee (VAR) situation immediately after the goal, but he was calm. “I didn’t think it was a problem. I thought the goal was a given. I was leaving it to the heavens,” he smiled.
Part of the club’s history Incheon will play in its first ACL main draw since its founding. They were drawn in a group with Yokohama F.Marinos (Japan), Shandong Taishan (China), and Kaya FC-Iloilo (Philippines). Commenting on the grouping, Oh Ban-seok said, “The squad is fine. The distance is close. The J-League was a team we had to meet anyway. It was an atmosphere of let’s play. We won the game against Hai Phong and saw the result. You can’t not think about the ACL. We have to prepare well within the squad so that we can win the league and get the win at the same time.” 소닉카지노