“I’ve been living hard dreaming, and at some point, reality makes me dream. We don’t know our limits either. It’s going up by breaking the prejudice and preconceived notions. It’s working positively on the squad. I think it’s making my teammates dream bigger.” Lee Soon-min, who led the national team to Gwangju, the promotion team, showed strong trust in the team and coach Lee Jung-hyo.
Gwangju FC beat Ulsan Hyundai 2-0 in the 29th round of the ‘Hana One Q K League 1 2023’ held at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium at 4:30 p.m. on the 3rd. With the victory, Gwangju continued its unbeaten nine league games (4 wins and 5 draws) with 45 points and jumped to third place. Ulsan remained at 61 points, with an eight-point gap with second-place Pohang. 토토
The momentum of the promotion team Gwangju is scary. Before the game, head coach Lee Jung-hyo said, “It’s Ulsan, but I’m going to try to fight.” Even if you get a counterattack, you have to raise the line and try to pressure to score a goal. “If you tap, you will get a goal,” he said, signaling offensive football.
Director Lee Jung-hyo’s words were not false. Gwangju took an aggressive step by raising the line against the leading Ulsan, and Gwangju scored the first goal in the early hours. In the 17th minute of the first half, Lee Kun-hee caught the ball that flowed in a chaotic situation and quickly penetrated it, beating goalkeeper Cho Hyun-woo to score.
It remained the same color in the second half. Ulsan aggressively played with Um Won-sang, Lee Chung-yong, Joo Min-kyu, Kim Tae-hwan, and Boyanichi, but they did not back down and eventually scored additional goals. In the 9th minute of the second half, Lee Hee-kyun, who hit and climbed from the center, attempted to shoot after hitting the defense, and Becca shook the net with a fantastic volley shot.
Gwangju is the strongest team in the K League 1 and won 2-0 against leading Ulsan. With the victory, he rose to third place with an unbeaten nine games. In addition, Gwangju won its 12th win of the season with the victory. It was the record for the most wins in the K League 1 in the club’s history, and now it becomes a new history with every win.
That’s the gust of wind of the promotion team, or typhoon. Gwangju is the team that uses the least budget among the K League 1 clubs, but it is playing aggressive football against big clubs such as Ulsan, Pohang, Seoul, and Jeonbuk. As a result, there are many praise for coach Lee Jung-hyo’s leadership and tactical skills, and there are also players selected as national and age-specific representatives such as Um Ji-sung, Lee Soon-min, and Jung Ho-yeon.
In particular, Gwangju’s voice hero Lee Soon-min received a lot of attention when he was selected for the Korean national team led by head coach Jürgen Klinsmann in the A match in September. On the same day, Lee Soon-min started as a center back, not a central midfielder, and showed stable defense, and after Lee Min-ki was absent due to an injury, he played as a fullback to lead the game to a complete victory.
After the game, Lee Soon-min said, “It was a leading Ulsan expedition, but I really wanted to win because I never won.” “I think 100% of what I did while preparing for the game with the players came out,” he said adding, “There was something I prepared as a team rather than as a personal part.” I did what I had to do in any position because I had something promised. “It wasn’t a familiar position, but I was able to make good results,” he said with a bright smile.
As for the reason why Gwangju is on the rise, he mentioned his trust with coach Lee Jung-hyo. Lee Soon-min said, “It can be said to be scary from the outside, but we know well how the director acts and speaks. They want the players to do well, grow and be recognized. I can take those things positively because I know them well. “I have a belief that if I do what the coach asks me to do well, I can develop further,” he said.