Jeonbuk Hyundai came from behind to win 2-1 against Gangwon FC in the 18th round of the Hana One Q K League 1 2023 at Songam Sports Town in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, at 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 11.
With their third straight win, following victories over Ulsan Hyundai and Daegu FC, Jeonbuk moved up to fifth place with 27 points. Gangwon, on the other hand, remained on 12 points (W2 D6 L10).
Jeonbuk conceded an own goal in the first minute of the second half when Kim Young-bin’s shot from a corner kick hit Jeong Tae-wook, but Cho Kyu-sung scored a brace in the 13th and 33rd minutes to complete the comeback.
Jeonbuk gained a lot from this match. They won their first three games in a row, following their previous wins against Ulsan and Daegu.
The resurgence of Cho Kyu-sung was especially welcome, as he scored three goals during the three-game winning streak, including a multi-goal performance on the day.
“In the beginning of the season,메이저놀이터 I played with too much pressure,” Cho said in a post-match interview. Lately, I’ve been playing to save my teammates instead of scoring goals, and it’s been working out well,” he smiled.
As good as the three-game winning streak and the resurgence of Cho Kyu-sung was, there was something else to celebrate. It was the first upset win of the season. Up until the previous 17 rounds, Jeonbuk hadn’t won an upset.
After conceding the first goal, they lacked the strength to overcome, but this day was different. After conceding the first goal, Jeonbuk rushed their opponents like they were on fire.
The basic condition of a strong team is to be able to come back from a disadvantageous situation. The strength that was missing from Jeonbuk in the crisis of this season reappeared against Gangwon.
In fact, after scoring the game-winning goal in the 33rd minute, Cho Kyu-sung walked up to the Jeonbuk away fans and roared. It showed how much this goal and come-from-behind victory meant to the players and fans of Jeonbuk.
The win puts Jeonbuk in a position to catch second-place Pohang (31 points), third-place FC Seoul (29 points), and fourth-place Jeju United (28 points), albeit with a large gap to first-place Ulsan (44 points).
With three straight wins and an upset victory to start the season, Jeonbuk has shown that its championship DNA is alive and well. It will be interesting to see what the team can do under new coach Dan Petrescu after the A-League break.