The 111th edition of the ‘Hyundai Street Derby’ between top K League 1 rivals Ulsan Hyundai and Jeonbuk Hyundai will take place. It is expected to be a battle of tactics between the two managers.
Ulsan and Jeonbuk will meet in the 27th round of the Hana OneQ K League 2023 at Munsusu World Cup Stadium in Ulsan at 7 p.m. on April 19. The two teams have split their derbies this season, with Hyundai winning one and Jeonbuk losing one.
As usual, it’s a big game. Ulsan have been on a bit of a tear lately, which coach Hong Myung-bo will admit. Ulsan lost back-to-back games to Incheon United and Suwon Samsung last month. It was the first time since Hong took over in 2021. In their last two games, they’ve gone winless. On top of that, the team is playing poorly, scoring only four goals and conceding eight in their last five matches. They are in desperate need of a turnaround.
Jeonbuk, on the other hand, has definitely turned things around since Dan Petrescu took over in June. From eighth place at the time, Jeonbuk is now in third place, which is good enough to qualify for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League. Jeonbuk (41 points) is closing in on second-place Pohang Steelers (46 points), so they’ll have plenty of motivation heading into Ulsan.
Despite the slightly different atmospheres between the two teams, the outcome of the match is not easy to predict. Hyundai’s ability to combine a firm philosophy with charisma will be the difference between the two teams.
The two teams play in distinctly different colors. Hong Myung-bo’s Ulsan overwhelm their opponents with their beautiful short passing game. In terms of buildup, they have the best quality in the K League. However, Ulsan’s key resources such as In-Ju-gyu and Bako have been silent lately. It’s also bad news that center back Kim Young-kwon, a key part of the back four, is out with a suspension.
Unlike Ulsan, Petrescu’s Jeonbuk sends the ball forward quickly. The team is known for playing bold soccer with a high percentage of long balls. Most importantly, wingers and strikers such as Han Kyo-won and Moon Sun-min are scoring goals evenly. However, Jeonbuk will be without their main central defender Hong Jeong-ho due to a red card. 카지노사이트
In the last 110 derbies between the two clubs, Jeonbuk has a slight lead with 40 wins, 29 draws and 41 losses. This is one game where Jeonbuk can run away with it or Ulsan can tie it. If Ulsan fails to beat Jeonbuk, they will be the first team to go three games without a win this year. It will be interesting to see who gets the last laugh in the first battle of pride between the two managers.