Will the top ranks of the K-League 1 fluctuate amid Ulsan Hyundai’s leading solo run?
In the 7th round of the K-League 1, Ulsan (18 points), who has won 6 consecutive wins, Daejeon Hana Citizen (11 points) in 4th place, Pohang Steelers (14 points) in 2nd place and FC Seoul (12 points) in 3rd place will face each other. Depending on the result, the composition of the leading group may change drastically.
The match between Ulsan and Daejeon kicks off at 4:30 pm on the 16th at the Daejeon World Cup Stadium. After beating Jeonbuk Hyundai 2-1 in the opening game last February, Ulsan, which has been on a winning streak this season, is truly a ‘perfect race’.
Ulsan, who won 4 consecutive victories against Suwon FC (3-0 win) on the 19th of last month, is now starting to create a new history in the K-League. If they win in Daejeon, they will be on par with Suwon Samsung (1998) and Seongnam FC (2003)’s record of 7 consecutive wins since the opening of the K-League. It is a record that comes out in 20 years in the K-League. Afterwards, if they win the home game against the Pohang Steelers in the 8th round on the 22nd, they will write a new history in the K-League.
Under coach Hong Myung-bo, Ulsan boasts a near-perfect offense and defense build-up, scoring 13 goals and conceding 4 goals in the past 6 games. Swedish striker Rubiksson and local striker Ju Min-kyu played the role of solvers, scoring 4 goals and 3 goals, respectively. His firepower, scoring more than 2 goals per game, is outstanding, but the foundation is solid defense. Four runs this season is the least in the league. Not only the last line of defense led by Jeong Seung-hyun and Kim Young-kwon, but also Park Yong-woo’s third line is unmatched. In the 1st to 4th round ‘packing index (the number of times an opponent was defeated by passing or dribbling)’ recently released by the Professional Football Federation, Kim Young-kwon and Park Yong-woo were ranked 1st and 2nd overall in the K-League 1. As much as that, he is opening the way to attack with stable possession of the ball from the rear.
The battle against this cannot be ignored. As a ‘promoted team’, they are playing a lot of football in every game. Among them, he scored 14 goals, which is the highest in the K-League 1. I scored 1 more goal than Ulsan. Compared to him, in the last Suwon FC match (2-5 loss), he exposed a problem at the back door by losing a lot, but it seems that he will come out with a more solid defense in Ulsan. 안전놀이터
On the front, Thiago, who finished second in K-League 2 scoring (19 goals) last year in Gyeongnam FC, stands out. He made a soft landing in the K League 1 with 4 goals this season. The expected goal value (xG) is 2.03 points, which is second in K-League 1. He is the type who smells the goal well, and is aiming for a ‘one shot’ in the Ulsan match.