As we enter the final third of the 2024 Hana Bank K League 1 regular season, Round 23 brings with it plenty to sink your teeth into. At the top of the table, league leaders Pohang Steelers travel to face Jeju United, while both Gimcheon Sangmu and Ulsan HD will look to return to form against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and FC Seoul respectively. Elsewhere, Gwangju FC will hope to build momentum against Incheon United, a solid Suwon FC host Daegu FC, and Daejeon Hana Citizen are in search of a much-needed win when they welcome Gangwon FC.
Match of the Round
Ulsan HD FC (3rd) vs. FC Seoul (6th) - Sat. 13th July, 19:00
Headlining this weekend’s fixtures is a clash between Ulsan HD and FC Seoul. The hosts suffered their first home defeat of 2024 in midweek, losing 1-0 to Gwangju FC, which sent them down to third place. There, the Horangi missed their usual clinical edge, failing to score despite taking 14 shots, and creating an xG of 1.45. Now winless in three, new South Korean Men’s National Team boss Hong Myung-bo will want to get his club team back on track as quickly as possible.
As for FC Seoul, they put last weekend’s blip against Jeju United behind them, beating Daejeon Hana Citizen 2-1 to make it four wins out of their last five games, and shore up their Final A standing. With 37 goals scored this season, the capital city club are becoming a potent outfit in attack too, and average (per 90) an xG of 1.57, 14.62 touches in the opposition box, as well as 8.99 shots.
In Round 17, these two teams played out an entertaining 2-2 draw, where Seoul came from two goals down to secure a point, but Ulsan continue to boast the recent advantage in this fixture, given they’re unbeaten in the last 20 meetings (14 wins, six draws).
Team of the Round
Suwon FC (vs. Daegu FC, Sun. 14th July, 19:00)
With three wins out of their last four matches, Suwon FC are again one of the in-form teams in K League 1. In an impressive 3-2 midweek victory against Gimcheon, the team created an xG of 1.87, made 16 high recoveries, 53 interceptions, had five counterattacks, won 44 of their 62 defensive duels, and completed 33 passes into the final third. Now level on points with Gangwon FC (37), Kim Eun-jung could well harbour ambitions for his team to push for a top-four finish this year.
This week, the challenge for Suwon is Daegu FC. The Sky Blues are winless in their last four, though have drawn their last two, with Tuesday’s 0-0 against Incheon United a solid point, even if one they’d have liked to convert into three given their position in the table. On average, Daegu keep the ball the least in the division, having approximately 45% possession in games, and making 9.62 passes per an opposition defensive action. Last time these teams met, Suwon ran out 2-0 winners, which follows a 1-1 draw earlier in the year.
Player of the Round
Tiago Orobó, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (vs. Gimcheon Sangmu, Sun. 14th July, 19:00)
Scoring in four consecutive games, striker Tiago Orobó is finding form at just the right time for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, as they seek to move themselves away from danger. Without these contributions, the Green Warriors would be four points worse off, showing the value of the team having a reliable talisman. Per 90, Tiago averages two shots, an xG of 0.42, 3.62 touches in the penalty area, 0.55 progressive runs, 2.57 recoveries, and 0.7 passes to the opposition box. Following Orobó’s midweek winner against Jeju United, Jeonbuk earned their first win in nine, and moved up to 11th.
On Sunday, the Green Warriors travel to face Gimcheon Sangmu. The military side moved down to second following their 3-2 home defeat to Suwon on Tuesday, but with three wins in their last five, remain in good form. Generally defensively sound, in 2024 Gimcheon have conceded 23 times from an xGA of 27.59 (the second lowest total in K League 1). Back in Round 14, the two clubs played out a 0-0 draw, though Gimcheon won their last meeting on home soil 1-0.
Elsewhere in K League 1
After midweek defeat, Jeju United are looking to bounce back when up against league leaders Pohang Steelers. The Islanders weren’t at their best in a 2-1 loss to Jeonbuk, failing to capitalise on a lighting-fast start (a goal in the first minute) by quickly surrendering their lead, before going on to lose having only taken one shot on target. As for Pohang, an efficient 2-0 home win, where they scored from both of their shots on target, against Gangwon sent them to first place, with their seventh clean sheet of the season. The most recent meeting between these teams finished 1-1, breaking a four-match losing streak in this fixture for Jeju.
When Daejeon Hana Citizen host Gangwon FC, both teams will be looking for better. For the Purples, a third loss in their last four has seen them drop to the bottom of K League 1, with an underperforming attack (a league-lowest xG tally of 22.04, and an average of 7.68 shots per game compared to 10.66 shots against) needing to show more if they're to rise up the rankings. Gangwon, on the other hand, saw a brief two-game winning streak broken by Pohang Steelers on Wednesday, where they conceded from two of the four shots they faced, and were made to rue some defensive errors. Three of the last four clashes between these two sides have ended in score draws, which includes a dramatic 3-3 from May, where a 103rd-minute Peniel Mlapa penalty prevented a Gangwon comeback win.
Rounding out the weekend’s action, Gwangju FC face Incheon United. The Griffins come into this game buoyed by a confidence-raising 1-0 away triumph over Ulsan, where they created an xG of 1.62, took 16 shots, and impressively made 55 interceptions in addition to limiting the Horangi to three shots on target. Incheon, meanwhile, drew 0-0 against Daegu last time out, which makes it nine matches without victory. However, the Durumi are unbeaten in their last five meetings with Gwangju, which includes a 3-2 win back in Round 5, and 1-1 draw in Round 14.
K League 1 Table
K League 1 Round 23 Fixtures
Saturday 13th July
#ULSvSEO: Ulsan HD FC (3rd) vs. FC Seoul (6th) - 19:00
#DHFCvGAN: Daejeon Hana Citizen (12th) vs. Gangwon FC (4th) - 19:30
#JEJvPOH: Jeju United (8th) vs. Pohang Steelers (1st) - 19:30
Sunday 14th July
#GWAvINC: Gwangju FC (7th) vs. Incheon United (9th) - 19:00
#SUWvDAE: Suwon FC (5th) vs. Daegu FC (10th) - 19:00
#GIMvJEO: Gimcheon Sangmu (2nd) vs. Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (11th) - 19:00
Where to Watch
