Gimcheon Sangmu’s spear is getting sharper by the day. Gimcheon, whose offense has been molded after the appointment of head coach Jung Jeong-yong, dominates the K League 2 stage with overwhelming destructive power.
Gimcheon won their Hana OneQ K League 2 2023 Round 26 home match against Seoul Eland 4-0 at Gimcheon Sports Complex at 7 p.m. on the 15th. Won Doo-jae’s goal in the last minute of the first half opened the scoring, and Lee Jun-seok, Cho Young-wook, and Politician rattled the Eland goal in succession to secure the three points. With the three points, Gimcheon maintained a four-point gap over second-place Busan I-Park.
Gimcheon, who started the season with Sung Hansu as acting head coach, struggled against the intense pressure of the K League 2 as expected. At one point, the team fell to sixth place in the league. In June, Gimcheon turned things around by hiring Jung Jung-yong as their new head coach.
Since his arrival, Gimcheon has returned to its “absolute top” form. In the 11 games that Chung has led the team, they have won eight (and lost three), and no other K League 2 club has more points than Gimcheon in the same period. Gimcheon’s success is largely due to its dominant offense.
With Jeong Jung-yong at the helm, Gimcheon has scored 26 goals in their last 11 games, averaging 2.36 goals per game. Only two games have gone scoreless, one of which was against the Jeonnam Dragons, where Jung watched from the dugout instead of the touchline. One of the first changes Jung made after taking over was to the attacking lineup. He settled Cho Young-wook in the center, with Lee Jun-seok and Kim Hyun-wook on the left and right flanks.
Cho’s move to the center of the field helped him score more goals. After scoring just two goals in the 15th round, he has scored 10 goals in his last 10 games and is in peak goal-scoring form. His goalscoring eye has been opened since meeting his mentor at the FIFA U-20 World Cup four years ago, where they wrote the final mythology together. With 12 goals in the league, he is currently the top scorer in the K League 2, ahead of foreign players such as Gleison, Valdivia, and Luis.
It’s not just Cho Young-wook who’s making waves. Jo Young-wook’s backup, Lee Jun-seok, is also having a “career-high” season with three goals and three assists. His agile movements make him a nuisance for defenders in the K League 2. In addition, Kim Min-jun (6 goals, 2 assists) and Politician (2 goals, 1 assist), who are often substitutes, utilize their strengths to drive a wedge into the game.
Gimcheon is the only one of the 13 clubs in the K League 2 to surpass the 40-goal mark in team scoring, thanks to its recent string of big wins. “If we score first, the opponent will raise their line,” said head coach Jung Jung-yong after the big win over Eland. The players understand this better than anyone. Because of their ability, the offense seems to be working effectively,” he said, pointing out the factors behind the team’s hot offense. 메이저사이트
Despite the upswing, Gimcheon still faces stiff competition. Several teams, including second-place Busan I-Park, Gimpo FC, and Gyeongnam FC, are eager to move up the standings. It will be interesting to see if Gimcheon can fend off the chase and win the K League 2 title and gain direct promotion.