It’s not too soon to rest easy. Jeonbuk Hyundai is likely to end the season on a sour note as the team’s form hasn’t picked up.
Jeonbuk earned a 1-0 victory against Gwangju FC in the 31st round of the Hana OneQ K League 2023 at the Gwangju Football Stadium on April 24.무지개토토
Jeonbuk, which had struggled in its previous five matches with three draws and two losses, picked up three points away from home to move into fifth place with 46 points. They are level on points with fourth-place FC Seoul, two points ahead of sixth-place Daegu FC (45 points) and one point ahead of seventh-place Incheon United (44 points). With two games left in the regular round, Jeonbuk has the green light to enter Final A.
Despite the win, it was a bittersweet game for Jeonbuk. Jeonbuk played defensively against Gwangju, who are unbeaten in their last 10 games (5 W, 5 D) and are in third place. They set up a three-back, in fact, a five-back, and went all in on defense. They were heavily out-shot 31 to 69. Jeonbuk only had the ball for 15 minutes and 53 seconds. In terms of shots, Gwangju attempted three times as many, 5-15.
Jeonbuk’s final goal, scored by Ahn Hyun-beom in the 27th minute, was almost an own goal. In fact, it was initially recorded as an own goal by Doo Hyun-seok, but was later corrected to Ahn’s goal. Jeonbuk was lucky with the goal, while Gwangju’s shots either hit the post or rattled the side netting. It was a lucky win for Jeonbuk.
Without this level of performance, Jeonbuk will have to spend every game in a precarious position. Even in the midweek match against Kitchee SC in the Asian Football Confederation Champions League, Jeonbuk’s offense was unsteady, and they were unable to produce enough offense to earn a 2-1 victory against a team that was several levels below them.
Jeonbuk head coach Dan Petrescu said, “It’s a valuable win. Gwangju dominated, but we defended well. We stuck together as a team. It’s good to come out of the draw.” “In a game like the final, the process and content are important, but the result is the most important thing. For Jeonbuk, everything is a final. It’s important that we won against Gwangju, who have been playing well lately,” he emphasized, but it’s hard to be convinced because they haven’t gotten both the content and results of their recent games.
For now, Jeonbuk has to play Daegu and Seoul in Rounds 32 and 33 of the regular season. Both teams are in Final A, so it’s hard to see Jeonbuk coming out on top. If their recent performances are any indication, it will be a slippery slope.
It’s true that there are some leaks. They lost five players to the Asian Games, and they have a lot of injuries. However, Jeonbuk has the squad to overcome this situation. It’s hard to be satisfied with their current performance.
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