The first leg of the ‘Hyundai Family’ K League 1 title decider was a draw. Jeonbuk Hyundai utilized Lee Dong-joon’s pace and Lee Soo-bin’s passing to dominate the first leg, but Ulsan HD balanced it out by capitalizing on their opponents’ mistakes.
Jeonbuk drew 1-1 at home against Ulsan in the first leg of the 2023-24 Asian Champions League (ACL) quarterfinals at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on Friday. The matchup between the two K League 1 title contenders was highly anticipated, and it was a tactical battle between the two managers. Jeonbuk dominated the first half with a pressing defense, while Ulsan switched to a two-man defense and dominated the second half.
Jeonbuk broke the deadlock when Lee Dong-joon, who played for Ulsan in the 2021 season, earned a penalty kick after a lively move down the right flank. Midfielder Lee Soo-bin also served as the starting point for the attack, feeding passes forward at an 89.3% success rate. However, frontman Thiago Orovo missed a penalty kick and central defender Jung Tae-wook made a crucial mistake that led to the goal.
Ulsan head coach Hong Myung-Bo turned to the duo of Martin Adam and Min-Joo Gyu to turn the tide after going behind in the first half. Lee Myung-jae, who worked diligently all over the pitch, took advantage of a single chance to equalize. However, just as Hong said after the K League 1 opener against the Pohang Steelers on the first day, “we couldn’t get the ball forward,” the team struggled to develop their offense.
Jeonbuk’s Song Min-kyu, who scored the opening goal, said after the match, “I’m not satisfied with my play today. It’s very disappointing to draw a game that we could have won at home. I will only think about winning against Ulsan,” while Ulsan’s Lee Myung-jae said, “I was able to finish calmly because I believed I had a chance. We drew away, but I’m sure we won’t lose at home,” said Ulsan’s Lee Myung-jae.
Jeonbuk opened the scoring in the fourth minute of the first half. Lee Soo-bin opened up space with a long pass from the back line, and Lee Dong-joon used his speed to break down the right flank and send in a cross. Song Min-kyu, who was rushing into the box, slotted the ball into the back of the net.
Lee Dong-joon made another difference. In the 22nd minute, Lee locked eyes with Thiago and dived into the penalty box to receive a high ball, only to be brought down by the foot of Lee Myung-jae, who was following one foot behind. The referee immediately pointed to the spot, but Thiago hit the crossbar and squandered the opportunity.
Ulsan fought back. In first-half stoppage time, Lee Min-gyu’s headed pass allowed Uhm Won-sang to get into the back of the defense and shoot, but Kim Jung-hoon made the save. In the fifth minute of the second half, Hwang Seok-ho headed home a 토토사이트 corner kick from Lee Kyu-sung. Kim Jong-hoon was unable to get to his feet, but the ball went wide of the right post.
Ulsan then took advantage of the gaps in Jeonbuk’s defense and midfield. In the 21st minute, Uhm Won-sang played a two-on-one pass with substitute Martin Adam and approached the opposing goal, but his shot was blocked by Kim Jin-soo. Five minutes later, Martin Adam took a pass from Ataru Esaka himself and finished with his left foot, but it was straight at the keeper.
In the 32nd minute, Ulsan’s attack finally paid off. Ataru’s pass into the penalty box was played past Martin Adam, but Jeonbuk’s Tae-Wook Jung stumbled and the ball landed at the feet of Lee Myung-Jae, who folded it once and slotted it past Kim Tae-Hwan.
Jeonbuk countered in the 29th minute with a surprise left-footed mid-range shot from Park Jin-seob, which was punched away by Cho Hyun-woo. In the 35th minute, Song Min-kyu took a cross from Han Gyo-won and had a shot on goal, but it went wide left. Five minutes later, Park Jin-seob’s cross, Han Gyo-won’s right-footed pass, and Ahn Hyun-beom’s shot went wide, and Lee Dong-kyung’s left-footed shot was saved by the goalkeeper.
The second leg will be played at Munsoo Stadium in Ulsan on Nov. 12.