A look ahead to Round 11, the penultimate round of the 2024 Hana Bank K League 2 season's first round robin.
Match of the Round
Gyeongnam FC (6th) vs. Seongnam FC (11th), Sun. 12th May - 16:30
Gyeongnam FC versus Seongnam FC this Sunday is the only Round 11 match between two teams that won last time out. Gyeongnam overcame Jeonnam Dragons 3-1 with a win that extended their unbeaten run to five matches and six in all competitions. The win also moved the Roses to within a thorn's prickle of the playoff places. For Seongnam, a win over rivals Suwon Samsung Bluewings ended a run of four without and moved the Magpies up a place in the table.
Gyeongnam's win was helped by a hat-trick from Georgian striker Bachana Arabuli, his second, third, and fourth goals of the campaign and first in a Roses victory. For the Magpies, Colombian striker Fernando Ruiz scored his fourth in seven appearances for the club, followed by Kim Hun-min's first-ever in K League.
Gyeongnam are third in K League 1 for shots on target with 47, averaging 5.22 per match. Seongnam, for comparison, are eight with 35 (3.89 per match). Seongnam, though, have completed more accurate passes per match than Gyeongnam, 79.6% compared to 73.9%. Seongnam are also more accurate when it comes to long balls but Gyeongnam are more proficient with crosses. Last season, Seongnam earned a 2-0 win in Changwon last August, after two draws earlier in the campaign.
Team of the Round
Bucheon FC 1995 (vs. Jeonnam Dragons, Sun. 12th May - 19:00)
Bucheon FC 1995 head into Round 11 with a record of three wins, three draws, and three losses. Win number three of the campaign came thanks to a very late Lee Jeong-bin goal away to Gimpo FC last time out, gatecrashing Gimpo's home opener. The win ended a run of four without and was also the team's fourth cleansheet of the season, the most in the league so far. Bucheon rank third for touches in the box and third for corners but the task at hand for Lee Young-min and his men is to improve in front of goal as Bucheon are joint first when it comes to 'big chances' missed. Up next is Jeonnam Dragons at home, a side that's on a run of six matches without a win with four defeats.
Player of the Round
Fessin, Busan IPark (vs. Chungnam Asan, Sat. 11th May - 16:30)
Two goals in his last two matches moved Fessin onto three goals for the campaign and helped keep Busan IPark in third place. His goal last time proved to be the winner, too, as after making it 2-0, Ansan Greeners pulled one back. The week before, Fessin scored to put Busan back in front in an eventual 3-1 win over Bucheon. Choi Geon-joo had given Busan the lead only for former Royal Nilson Junior to level on the stroke of halftime. Fessin's goal on 51 minutes restored Busan's advantage before an assist on 78 minutes teed up Lee Sang-jun to make it three. Fessin has created 23 chances so far this season, the most in K League 2 and will be looking to add to his goal and assist tallies this weekend when Busan take on a Chungnam Asan side that is without a win in six.
K League 2 Table
K League 2 Round 11 Fixtures
Saturday 11th May
#BUSvCAFC: Busan IPark (3rd) vs. Chungnam Asan (8th) - 16:30
#ANSvSEFC: Ansan Greeners (12th) vs. Seoul E-Land (5th) - 19:00
#SSBvCCFC: Suwon Samsung Bluewings (2nd) vs. Cheonan City (13th) - 19:00
Sunday 12th May
#ANYvGFC: FC Anyang (1st) vs. Gimpo FC (10th) - 16:30
#GYEvSFC: Gyeongnam FC (6th) vs. Seongnam FC (11th) - 16:30
#BUCvJDFC: Bucheon FC 1995 (7th) vs. Jeonnam Dragons (9th) - 19:00
