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Korean K.League Soccer News - April 2006

John Duerden reports from Seoul

The National Team

The 2006 K-League season so far has been a tale of two cities.

It has been the best of times at Seongnam, a city that is known as a good place to buy dogmeat and a good place to watch what look like the 2006 Korean champions in action.

Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma are no strangers to winning the title, having lifted trophy six times already, and while it may be too early to talk about who is going to win the championship, the yellow winning machine keeps racking up the points.

After six games (but only three weeks, this is the K-League) Seongnam have dropped just two points, courtesy of a draw at an improved Chunnam Dragons, and look the most balanced team in the league.

The signing of goalkeeper Kim Yong-dae from Busan I'Park has not only improved the World Cup hopes of the 25-year-old but has stiffened up a defence that was already experienced with Kim Sang-shik, Kim Yong-chul and Jong Hak-young all nurturing similar hopes of a forming a similar line at German immigration in June.

International star Kim Doo-heon has been impressive in midfield and has the team has the luxury of a powerful forward line, an unusual situation in the shot-shy K-League.

The Brazilian pair of Mota and Dudu have bothcaught the eye but it is Woo Sung-young who has starred with five goals from the opening five games though it is probably too late for the 32 year-old to swing the opinion of the one who matters – national team coach Dick Advocaat.

It has been the worst of times in Busan - a far cry from the events of summer 2005 when the team won the first stage and strolled to the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League. Last September Ian Porterfield was a front-runner in the race to step into the vacant national coach position.

Such great expectations feel like a long time ago but it is even longer since Busan won their last K-League match - July 3, 2005 to be precise. Since that narrow victory over Chunnam Dragons, the south coast team has played 21 games without a win.

Ex-Chelsea coach Porterfield has pointed to a very un-Chelsea like practice of selling experienced players and bringing in cheap replacements as partially to blame for the club's woes - the sale of national squad 'keeper Kim Yong-dae to Seongnam, is a good example as was the departure of Denis Laktionov to old club Suwon.

Whatever the reason, Busan's dwindling number of fans are, as one would expect, pretty unhappy about not experiencing the sweet smell of victory for so long and the stench of despair is starting to be felt in the port city.

It is unlikely that it will end in the near future as Busan's next two games are against Seongnam and second-placed Pohang and two more setbacks will see the club set a new unwanted K-League record.

Pohang are riding relatively high, thanks in part, to Lee Dong-guk. The 26-year-old equalled Woo's five goal tally at the top of the scoring charts with a late consolation goal in last weekend's 2-1 defeat at Seongnam.

However, unlike his in-form former team-mate, Lee has an excellent chance of appearing on the global stage after starting the majority of Advocaat's 14 games in charge so far.

'The Lion King' missed out on 2002 despite lifting the Golden Boot at the 2000 Asian Cup, a decision by Guus Hiddink that shocked many at the time but one that was vindicated by events.

Lee is driven by that setback and has heeded Advocaat's warning that national team players must show their worth in the K-League. His five goals, three more than he scored in the whole of the 2005 season, have been accompanied by fine performances.

There haven't been either goals or good displays so far in Jeju. When the SK corporation suddenly moved Bucheon to the southern island in February, the new team propping up the table after six games wasn't quite what they had in mind.

As Bucheon the team narrowly missed out on the play-offs last year and while in the north-west the players may not have been the most prolific scorers, in the picturesque island, they are going through hard times in front of goal, with one meager strike in 540 minutes of football.

Genuine new boys Gyeongnam FC have had an unspectacular start with a win, three draws and two defeats so far but the southerners are just finding their feet though champions Ulsan Hyundai Horang-I can't claim the same excuse. The Tigers sit in ninth after losing three of their opening six games.

With seven games left, there is still time for Seongnam to be caught but the chasing pack of Pohang, FC Seoul and Suwon will have to show a great deal more zest and initiative than they have until now. It's hard to shake the feeling that the first stage already belongs to the Chunma.

Latest Results

Gyeongnam FC 1 Sangmu 1
Ulsan 1 Suwon 2
Busan I'Park 1 Chunnam Dragons 1

John Duerden

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