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| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
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| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
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They have the same dream, but the reality is mixed.
The early steps of K League 2 Incheon United and Suwon Samsung are mixed. Incheon, which suffered its first relegation drop last year, is ranked second after Bucheon FC (8 goals) with 3 wins and 1 loss and 9 points (6 goals) in 4 games in the 2025 season. On the other hand, Suwon ranks 11th out of 14 teams with one win, one draw and two losses (three goals).
Don't jump to conclusions because they only played four games. However, it is not pleasant to see the gap widen from the beginning. In particular, Incheon, which spends its first season in the `Downstream', is showing strength without confusion, while 'Re-recipients' Suwon seems to be sagging compared to last year.
Incheon's main gun Mugosa leads the attack with three goals and one assist, and Kim Sung-min also helped with two goals. In particular, in defense, he is playing a `salt water defense' that gives up just two goals in four games.
Suwon, on the other hand, has no goalscorers in sight. Kim Ji-hyun scored the first goal in the opening match against Ansan last month, and Lee Il-chenko and Kang Hyun-mook scored in the E-Land match, respectively. However, the ups and downs are so great that there are two scoreless games out of four games.
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| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
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| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
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Incheon started to renew its atmosphere by appointing coach Yoon Jeong-hwan ahead of this season. Aimed at direct promotion, he focused his efforts on strengthening his power. Prospect Choi Woo-jin moved to Jeonbuk Hyundai and there was a risk of leakage, but he has been showing stable performance so far.
Suwon, which celebrated its 30th anniversary, was full of determination to turn its disappointment to sixth place in the K League last season. Despite the intensive restructuring of the team in the off-season, it was expected that the recruitment would give more strength to the manager Byun Sung-hwan's system. However, the opposite of these expectations is unfolding at the beginning of the season.
Of course, it remains to be seen whether this will continue this season.
Incheon experiences the characteristics of K League 2 for the first time this year, which requires more schedules than K League 1. Manager Yoon Jung-hwan's know-how in coaching the second division team during his time in Japan is expected to be a great help to Incheon. However, it remains to be seen whether the player will completely overcome accumulation and injury variables.
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| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
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| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
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There is also a view that Suwon's potential will revive as the season goes on. After overcoming chaos in the first half of last season, it revealed its potential in the second half of the year when the promising squad was strengthened under coach Byun Sung-hwan. If experienced foreign players such as Ilyuchenko revive their skills and gain confidence, there is plenty of room for a rebound.
Reporter Park Sang-kyung ppark@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
