Reporter Lee Hyun-min= Ulsan Hyundai will welcome Gwangju FC to the tiger’s den in search of three points.
Ulsan will host Gwangju in the 29th round of the Hana OneQ K League 2023 on September 3 at 4:30 p.m. at Munsu Football Stadium.
Ulsan currently leads the table with 19 wins, four draws, five losses, and 61 points. The team aims to stem the tide of third-placed Gwangju (42 points) and give its home fans a thrilling victory once again.
Ulsan conceded in the first nine minutes against FC Seoul on Aug. 27, but came back with back-to-back goals from Lee In-gyu in the 19th and 23rd minutes. With victory on the line, Ulsan conceded a late goal in stoppage time to settle for a 2-2 draw.
Despite the disappointing draw, it’s encouraging to see that signature striker Lee In-jong-kyu opened the scoring for the first time in 50 days since July 8 against the Pohang Steelers. He now leads the team in scoring with 13 goals and one assist. All-around fullback Seol Young-woo (1 goal, 4 assists) is proving to be an invaluable helper, assisting Minjoo’s goals.
The match against Gwangju is the last before the A-League break. Ulsan is Gwangju’s nemesis. They lead the all-time series 23-16 with six wins, six draws and one loss. They are unbeaten in 16 matches (11 wins, 5 draws) in eight years, dating back to a 1-0 away win on August 29, 2015. Both meetings this season have ended in victory. On April 30, they came from behind to win 2-1 at home. On July 2, they won 1-0 away from home.
There was good news ahead of the match. Ulsan, as the defending champions, had the most Taegeuk Warriors.
For starters, Jung Seung-hyun, Seol Young-woo, Kim Young-kwon, Lee Dong-kyung, and Cho Hyun-woo were selected for the A team, coached by Jürgen Klinsmann. That’s five players, the most of any K League team. Including youth players Kim Seung-kyu and Hong Hyun-seok, the total is seven. The A team will play European away trials against Wales on the 8th and Saudi Arabia on the 13th.
The younger siblings also received good news. Kim Tae-hyun, who is on loan from Ulsan to Vegalta Sendai (Japan), was named to the Hangzhou Asian Games squad. Hwang Jae-hwan, currently on Ulsan’s U-22 card, has been called up to train for the 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers.온라인바카
The motivation is clear. The players who have been called up to the national team know the value of the Taeguk-mark, and they are proud of their teammates and aim to win against Gwangju as a team.