I was confident that I could beat Coach Kim Pan-gon, but I'm disappointed. 24 minutes lost against Pluminensee
Jun 22, 2025
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Ulsan fell to its knees 2-4 on the 22nd (Korea Standard Time) after a series of upsetting Brazil's powerhouse Fluminensee in the second Group F match of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Ulsan, which lost all two games, was confirmed to be eliminated from the group stage regardless of the final group match against Borussia Dortmund (Germany) on the 26th. Fluminense scored four points (1 win, 1 draw) alongside Dortmund, which beat Marmelody Sundowns (South Africa) 4-3. Plominensi came in first ahead of goal difference.
Mamelodi ranked third with three points (1-1), and Ulsan remained at the bottom (zero points). The Club World Cup has been expanded to include 32 teams. The first and second places in each group will advance to the round of 16.
Director Kim Pan-gon said, `We didn't bring the results today, so I'm sorry that the fans in Korea who supported us early in the morning, the fans who came all the way here, and the Korean residents cheered for us. Hope for the round of 16 is over. I feel sorry for him as a manager. I want to comfort the players, too"The players did not give results against Fluminensee, one of the strongest teams in South America, but they gave them pride. I'm proud as a coach to come from behind after losing a point. What I couldn't endure until the end was an opportunity to learn and grow. In particular, Lee Jin-hyun and Um Won-sang, who scored their first goals today, showed good spirit. All the other players showed their mettle."
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Ulsan continued its offensive in the second half, but failed to withstand the last. Pluminensi's Nonatu in the 21st minute of the second half, Juan Freites in the 38th minute and Kenu in the 47th minute of extra time allowed relay goals.
Coach Kim led "2-1 and his defense was stable. The counterattack continued to work. Honestly, I was confident that I could win today. Um Won-sang didn't get a goal, and I didn't see it closely, but there was a part where I could even make a penalty scene, which is honestly very unfortunate. But I hope you can use it as an opportunity to grow," he stressed.
Ulsan was eliminated from the Asian team after the Urawa Reds (Japan). Al-Hilal (Saudi Arabia) drew 1-1 with Real Madrid, while Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) was defeated 0-5 by Juventus (Italy).
Director Kim said, `I definitely felt the difference in power. However, I think it is positive that he has shown that he is not one-sided in the competition with strong teams and can compete fairly equally with the opponent in this competition."
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
