Just A Few Things Busan IPark Vs. FC Seoul

Credit: K-League United

Lee Dong-jun’s Surge

Once he gets going, he really gets going. Being one of the heroes of Busan IPark’s entertaining 4-2 victory at Gangwon FC last week, Lee Dong-Jun emerged as a hero again and is now in hot form after helping Busan to a 2-0 win over a hapless FC Seoul side for the Royals first (and maybe overdue) victory at home as it also buried the demons of Busan’s defeat in the promotion-relegation playoffs two years ago against the very same side.

It took a while for the home side to get going, but on 62 minutes they got themselves in front. Romulo found Dong-jun with an incisive pass on the right before the winger puts the ball on the plate for 19-year old midfielder Kwon Hyeok-kyu to score an easy goal into an open net.Then just three minutes later, a rare attack down on the left side saw the left-back, Park Joon-gang, running with the ball towards the near post before he cut it back for Dong-jun who brilliantly placed the ball towards the far post from an angle that left the keeper no chance. The pace he exuded was tremendous in getting into these crucial positions for both of these goals.

Lee Dong-jun has now been involved in five out of Busan’s last six goals in two games with three goals and two assists. Gwangju is next to visit the Busan Gudeok Stadium and Lee Dong-jun is surely relishing the thought of continuing this form against a side who is struggling at the moment.

The Moon Shines Bright

Rather noticeably, most of Busan’s attacks came from the right hand side. Other than Lee Dong-jun’s presence which proved to be important, another reason is because of the return of a certain right-back from injury. Kim Moon-hwan returned to the starting line-up, replacing Lee Sang-jun as the only change in the Busan line-up that won last week.

Kim Moon-hwan, who made headlines in the K League with his stunning rocket against Incheon United on Round 8, have been tenacious down the right and was in the thick of things in the first half and perhaps one of the most creative outlets for Busan throughout the game. And the good news is that he lasted the 90 minutes, which would mean that he has shown no signs of any fitness issues, which is a huge plus for Busan as they look to make that climb up the table.

Offensive Reinforcements Needed

Despite the win, the Busan attack looked rather labored before they scored the first goal. They haven’t been that threatening before they scored the opener. The only notable chance before that happened was a Lee Jeong-hyeop header from a free-kick that Seoul keeper Yu Sang-hun had to dive across to parry it away. However, it seems they’re still lacking in attack, especially down on the left. Strangely, another one of Busan’s heroes from last week Kim Min-kyu was not even in the matchday squad. The fact that a lot of Busan’s attacks came from the right is kind of telling that either Kim Min-kyu should be put there or they need another left-winger to add more dimension to Busan’s offence.

FC Seoul themselves continued to show their lacklustre offence. Every time they have the ball, they didn’t do much about it and when they did have the ball in the opponent’s final third, they did not make the Busan defence troubled… at all and it was kinda painful to watch whenever they do get forward. They have four centre forwards to use in the team with a formation that uses two up front, but only veteran Park Chu-young has shown any return and even then it’s still minimal. They have only scored nine goals all season and the fact a third of them were scored last week will tell you the bigger picture of their attacking crisis. Something has to change to solve this, either a change in system or bringing reinforcements to help sharpen the attack. 

Confidence Shattered

FC Seoul has the most leakiest defence in all of K League 1, conceding 21 goals so far with an average of around two goals conceded per game and the second main reason why they’re in this mess. To be fair, they started off Ok as they looked quite solid in holding their lines at the back. Once Busan scored that opener, everything fell apart and it resulted in their momentum from their comeback 3-3 draw in the Super Match last week against Suwon Samsung Bluewings all but disappeared. Not even the return of midfield engine Han Chan-hee could provide any inspiration whatsoever.

Speaking of confidence, who knows how long the FC Seoul higher-ups will be patient with head coach Choi Yong-soo. Seoul now has suffered seven defeats in 11 games and has found themselves getting further and further from the leading pack; a huge far cry from their 3rd placed finish last year. If it weren’t for Sangju Sangmu’s automatic relegation and Incheon United’s own troubles that are worse, they would’ve been in far more trouble. A change has to be made and the sooner that is done, the better.