No. 2 Pohang draws 1-1 with Jeonbuk No. 1 Ulsan has early chance to win title on Sept. 29
The Pohang Steelers and Jeonbuk Hyundai battled to a 1-1 draw in the season finale.
Pohang Steelers and Jeonbuk Hyundai played out a 1-1 draw in a battle for the final spot in the season. The Steelers were unable to hold on to a one-goal lead to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
Pohang and Jeonbuk played to a 1-1 draw in the 35th round of the Hana OneQ K League 2023 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on Monday.
The result leaves Pohang with 15 wins, 15 draws and five losses (60 points) and seven points behind leaders Ulsan Hyundai (67 points).
With Pohang only earning one point on the day, Ulsan had a chance to clinch the title early. Ulsan can clinch the title with three games remaining if they win against Daegu FC at Anbang on Sept. 29.
Jeonbuk remained in fourth place with 15 wins, 8 draws and 12 losses (53 points) after a 1-1 draw against Pohang this season. They are four points behind third-place Gwangju FC (57 points).
With a trip to Urawa Reds (Japan) in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League on Oct. 24 and an FA Cup semifinal against Jeju United on Nov. 1, Pohang rested key players such as Zeca, Kim Seung-dae and Ha Chang-rae.
On the other hand, Jeonbuk, who needed a win to qualify for next season’s AFC Champions League, started Baek Seung-ho, Song Min-gyu, and Kim Jin-soo.
Jeonbuk started the game with their main players and attacked early on, but Meng Sung-woong’s shot hit the post in the 14th minute.
Pohang Steelers make an unintentional substitution
After conceding, Pohang tried to counterattack, but Kim Yong-hwan was injured when he fell after being pushed by Kim Jin-soo. In the process of replacing Kim Yong-hwan, Pohang made the mistake of taking out Kim In-sung.
The Pohang bench’s mistake was unfortunate, as Kim In-sung had played well against Urawa and was eager to play with the captain’s armband on this day.
With Kim Yong-hwan’s injury and Kim In-sung’s substitution mistake, Pohang tried to capitalize on their flanking attacks, but they couldn’t find the back of the net until the final shot.
After a good first half, Jeonbuk took the lead in the ninth minute of the second half through Gustavo’s penalty kick goal. Gustavo stepped up to the penalty spot after Meng Sung-woong was fouled by Hong Yun-sang, and he slammed his shot into the center of the goal to give Jeonbuk the lead.
Pohang strengthened its offense in the 20th minute of the second half by introducing star striker Zeca. Four minutes after his introduction, Zeca tied the game with a penalty kick goal.
Jeonbuk made a change to their offense in the 30th minute of the second half, introducing Park Jae-yong and Moon Sun-min at the same time. The change in the attacking lineup revitalized Jeonbuk’s offense and led to a goal by Park Jin-seop in the 35th minute. However, the goal was disallowed after a video review showed a foul.
From then on, both teams tried to score for the win, but their shots were inaccurate, heading straight at the opposing goalkeeper or hitting the post, and they ended up sharing a point each.
Eleventh-ranked Gangwon conceded a late goal in stoppage time to draw 1-1 at home against Jeju United at Gangneung Sports Complex.
The loss leaves Gangwon with four wins, 15 draws and 16 losses (27 points) and a two-point gap over last-place Suwon Samsung (25 points). The bottom of K League 1 will be relegated directly without a relegation playoff, while the 10th and 11th place finishers will play a playoff against K League 2 (second division) teams.
With 10 wins, 9 draws, and 16 losses (39 points), Jeju moved closer to automatic qualification with a goal difference over 10th-place Suwon FC (32 points). 19가이드03
