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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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'Prepared novice head coach'Bae Sung-jae, head coach of Chungnam Asan, got the hang of it three months after the season opened. In the last four games, he has succeeded in rebounding by maintaining the same pace as the leading team.
Chungnam Asan won 2-0 in the 15th round away match of the 「Hana Bank K League 2 2025」 at Cheongju Stadium on the 6th, continuing its unbeaten (3 wins and 1 draw) for four consecutive games. He has won three wins, one draw and 10 points in the last four games, including Gyeongnam (3-1 wins), Bucheon (2-2 draws) in the 13th round, and Gimpo (2-0 wins) in the 14th round. Only three teams (Incheon and Suwon) have scored more than 10 points in the same four games. South Chungcheong Province Asan, which fell to 13th place at the beginning of the season, jumped to 7th place with 21 points. It trailed fifth-place Busan (25 points), the last place to qualify for the playoffs, by four points.
At the beginning of the season, there were concerns about trial and error by novice coaches. Coach Bae, who contributed to Chungnam Asan's all-time best runner-up sensation as the head coach of current Jeonnam coach Kim Hyun-seok last year, started to stand alone after the season, but suffered. It wasn't until the sixth round that he won his debut victory. In 11 games since the opening, they have won only two games and only 11 points. Only Cheongju and Ansan, North Chungcheong Province, lost three points. Coach Bae's specialty 'eight-color tactical idea' was not realized in the stadium. In the first 11 games, there were only two multi-goals and only three scoreless games.
Having tasted the reality, Bae began to make changes to the Chungnam Asan-style game model represented by 'Asymmetric Build-Up' and 'Inverted Fullback' in April. Considering the current squad composition, condition, and balance, the best member was also found. Tall striker Kim Jong-min was at the front line, while Denison and Kim Seung-ho and Han Kyo-won were deployed to the second line of attack. Son Joon-ho defended the midfield, and defensive midfielder Jung Ma-ho went between center back Lee Eun-beom and Byun Joon-young to play. Lee Hak-Bim Park Jong-min defended both sides, and Shin Song-hoon defended the goal.
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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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The balanced squad became increasingly destructive. Asan, South Chungcheong Province, has scored multiple goals in all of its last four games. Kim Jong-min has scored four goals in the last three consecutive games, and Han Kyo-won has scored four goals and two assists in the last six games. The actual score of Asan in South Chungcheong Province was 0.88, compared to the expected score (xG) in the first 11 games. In the last four games, Asan in South Chungcheong Province jumped 0.60 to 1.48 in the past four games. It produced a large number of goals through various attack patterns such as counterattack (Chungbuk Cheongju match), set piece (Chungbuk Cheongju, Gyeongnam), and cross (Bucheon). Coach Bae said he is preparing more than 40 set piece patterns. It is no coincidence that three goals have been scored in set piece Sanghwa in the last four games.
What's disappointing about Asan in South Chungcheong Province is the "foreign effect." Except for Denison, the rest of the foreigners (Semir, Adam, Misaki) have not contributed much to the team due to injuries and sluggishness. Asan, South Chungcheong Province, is planning a large-scale replacement of foreigners through the summer transfer market. FC Tokyo's U-20 national team fullback Baek In-hwan is also about to join. The team can make a splash thanks to a certain 'Crack' named Juninho (currently Pohang), who scored 12 goals and eight assists last season. South Chungcheong Province Asan aims to win three consecutive home games against Cheonan City in the 16th round on the 14th. The goal is to earn as much points as possible ahead of the 「3 consecutive games of death」 against E-Land, Suwon, and Incheon from late June to mid-July. Can a gust of wind from Asan hit the K League again?
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
