Jeonbuk Hyundai and Pohang Steelers showed some completed tactical form in the Asian Football Confederation Champions League (ACL).
Jeonbuk, which played the first leg of the 2023-2024 ACL round of 16 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on the 14th, defeated Pohang 2-0. The second leg will be held at Pohang Steel Yard at 7 p.m. on the 20th.
As the ACL is reorganized from this season, some teams in the K-League will play ACL games before the opening of the league. With Ulsan bringing home Banpo Lego-hoo on Saturday, Jeonbuk and Pohang will face off on the ACL stage a day earlier.
Jeonbuk had a laugh in the first match. Hernandez scored the first goal in the 17th minute of the first half when he hit the crossbar with a powerful shot from inside the penalty box, and An Hyun-beom scored an additional header in the 19th minute of the second half to take the lead. Pohang focused on targeting Jeonbuk by increasing its possession rate, but failed to create a critical attack opportunity.
It was a great opportunity to get a glimpse of the 2024 season of the two teams. Jeonbuk struggled last season because it lacked a clear striker to focus on its offense. The player who scored the most points in the league was Song Min-gyu, who scored seven goals. Although Gustavo was able to endure well at the frontier, he was not perfect when it came to scoring goals.
Jeonbuk acquired Hernandez from Incheon United and Thiago from Daejeon Hana Citizen this season, bringing in top-rated strikers in the K-League. The team benefited significantly from the effect on the day. Thiago effectively supported the second line by pressing defense at the frontier. As a winger, Hernandez stirred up the left side with active movement and scored the first goal with his signature powerful shot.
His teamwork was also robust ahead of the upcoming season. Jeonbuk had several chances to attack through strong forward pressure in the first half, and displayed sharp counterattacks by basically focusing on defense in the second half. Coach Dan Petrescu’s strategy, which has been in progress since last season, is ripe for pre-season play.
Pohang showed off its potential under the new coach Park Tae-ha. Coach Park, who took the helm ahead of this season, tried to present his tactics to the players through a training camp for the winter season. The Pohang players even said that the training camp was more intense than ever. 밤알바
His efforts paid off to a certain extent. Although he expressed regret for his decision-making ability, the entire team displayed good performance by developing attacks through partial tactics on the side and attempting counterattacks by spraying straight passes at a moment. Most of the transfer players, including Jorge and Eo Jeong-won, also displayed performance that deserved passing points.
Although Jeonbuk and Pohang had a rather early season, they showed fairly high-quality performance. Both teams played compliant soccer in the ACL, raising expectations for the future season.