Here are the best and worst performers from the game
Ulsan Hyundai enjoyed a sublime start to their 2020 K-League campaign at the Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium, where they ran out 4-0 winners against Sangju Sangmu on Saturday. The hosts, who missed out on the K-League title to Jeonbuk Motors on goal difference last season, reinforced their credentials as title challengers with the performance.
Junior Negrao completed a brace in the first half for the hosts, while goals from Lee Sang-heon and Yoon Bit-garam in the second half ensured an emphatic win for the hosts. The win helped Ulsan move to the top of the league table and they will next face Suwon Bluewings away from home.
Without further delay, let’s take a closer look at the best and worst performers from the K-League clash in Ulsan:
Ulsan climbed to the top of the table with their win
Photo: Getty Images
The current K-League runner-ups kicked off their post-coronavirus campaign with an emphatic 4-0 win over Sangju Sangmu at the Ulsan Munsu Stadium in Ulsan on Saturday.
Kim Do-hoon’s side were favourites to come out on top against Sangju, who are comprised of players serving their 20-month long mandatory military service in South Korea.
The Tigers handed a debut to marquee signing Lee Chung-yong, following his move from VfL Bochum in Germany during the close season.
The midfielder wasted no time in leaving his mark on the game, as he produced a sublime defence-splitting pass to find Junior Negrao, who dispatched a calm finish to give the hosts an early lead in the seventh minute.
Sangju were thunderstruck by the swift move and failed to recover from the early blow.
However, the military men enjoyed a brief spell of promise towards the end of the first half, when Ulsan shot-stopper Jo Hyeon-woo was called into action twice.
First, he made a weak clearance that fell cheaply for Song Seung-min, who unleashed a shot that was well caught by the Korean international. A few minutes later, Jin Seong-uk latched on to a weak back pass and made a run through on goal, as Hyeon-woo intervened yet again with a timely clearance.
Kim Tae-wan’s visitors were made to rue their missed chances just before the half-time interval, when Ulsan doubled their lead from a penalty.
The hosts produced a textbook counterattack against the run of play in the 43rd minute and Sangju defender Bae Jae-woo conceded a penalty after pulling down Kim In-sung inside the penalty area.
The defender was booked for his offence and Negrao, who stepped up to take the penalty, bagged his brace by sending the goalkeeper the wrong way with another calm finish.
Ulsan built on their strong first half performance after the interval and was rewarded yet again for some fine attacking football. Negrao turned provider in the 51st minute, when he found Lee Sang-heon with a simple pass to find the back of the net after a swift team move.
Sangju continued to struggled inside the final third, as they failed to make the best use of possession for the majority of the game.
The hosts delivered the killer blow in sensational fashion in the 75th minute, when Yoon Bit-garam struck a thunderous effort from outside the penalty area, as the ball flew into the far corner, beyond the outstretched arm of Hwang Byeong-keun in goal for Sangju.
Ulsan moved to the top of the table, courtesy of their huge win, and will next face Suwon Bluewings away from home. Sangju, on the other hand, lock horns with Gangwon FC at home next weekend.
Jeonbuk left it late to secure all three points in Jeonju
K-League: Jeonbuk Motors vs Suwon Bluewings
Normal service resumed in the K-League on Friday, as Jeonbuk Motors hosted rivals Suwon Bluewings at the World Cup Stadium in Jeonju. The Korean top-flight is the first major football league to kick-off following the worldwide outbreak of the Covid-19 virus and the curtain raiser played out behind closed doors.
Despite holding the upper hand over Suwon in recent meetings, Jeonbuk endured a sluggish start to the game. Murilo produced the first shot of the game, but it was tame and did not concern No Dong-geon in goal for the visitors.
The defending champions were on the back foot quickly, as Suwon enjoyed the majority of possession in the opening stages.
Adam Taggart, who netted 20 goals and became the top-scorer in the division last season, was involved in an early exchange, which presented an opening for Suwon. However, the Australian failed to capitalise after drifting to an offside position.
Jeonbuk slowly got back into their stride and continued their steady build-up leading to the half-time interval. Murilo was yet again involved in the thick of the action, while Kim Bo-Kyung also saw a shot deflected wide for a corner.
Doneil Henry proved to be a towering presence at the heart of the defence for Suwon, as Jeonbuk continued to knock on the doors with their build-up play just before half-time.
The hosts picked up from where they left off in the first half after the interval, and tested Dong-geon in the Suwon goal. However, the shot-stopper was always equal to the task and received good support from his defenders.
Suwon also survived a nervy moment in the 51st minute, when the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) opted against giving a penalty, after allegations of Henry handling the ball in the penalty area.
Jeonbuk continued to build the pressure on their rivals and were handed a huge shot in the arm in the 75th minute, when Terry Antonis received a straight red card. The Australian went in for a rash tackle on Son Jun-Ho and subsequently received the marching orders from referee Kim Woo-seong.
Jose Morais was finally rewarded for his substitution after the hour mark, as veteran and club legend Lee Dong-gook scored through a near-post header in the 83rd minute.
The 41-year-old is the oldest player to play in the K-League and came up with the goods to help Jeonbuk start their title defence on a winning note.
Jeonbuk will now face Busan IPark away from home in their next fixture, while Suwon have yet another tough outing against last season’s runners-up Ulsan Hyundai at home.
Granero is making the best use of Artificial Intelligence
Spain, like many other countries in Europe, are no strangers to the wrecking ushered by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, which originated inside a market in Wuhan back in December.
The country has recorded over 200,000 cases until now, with more than 25,000 people succumbing to death since the outbreak.
However, former Real Madrid midfielder Granero feels they are way past the peak of the outbreak. The Spaniard, who currently plies his trade for Marbella in the second division, has been on the forefront to tackle the virus in his home country.
He has been watching the trends carefully through Olocip, an artificial intelligence company involved in the fight against Covid-19.
Olocip was founded by Granero, who also works as the chief executive of the company, in a bid to help football clubs and players benefit from artificial intelligence and the data gathered by it to make better decisions.
The development team at Olocip firmly believe that AI can help the players as well as coaches with respect to match preparation and tactics, as the world wakes up to the various technological marvels it can potentially produce.
However, the application is currently being used to track and measure the trends of the coronavirus outbreak in Spain. Granero and his team have successfully managed to map, measure and predict the number of those infected in the country, courtesy of Olocip.
The model developed by Olocip currently estimates as well as predicts the number of cases and tracks the evolution of those numbers. As such, it helps to anticipate problems that could arise in the mobilisation of resources.
For example, it can predict the amount of masks and respirators required by a particular region, which subsequently helps production and distribution.
It also has features that can simulate distancing and lockdown measures, measuring how they impact upon the curve of infections, foreseeing certain trends and helping to avoid a potential second or third wave.
All of these might sound like an unexpected activity for a footballer, but Granero is hoping to make his most lasting impression beyond the pitch during these desperate times.
All eyes are on Jeonju for the opening K-League clash
Photo Credits: Seo Hyemin/FA Photos
During late February and early March, the number of new coronavirus cases in South Korea spiked at a rapid rate from a few dozen, to a few hundred, to several thousand.
The country witnessed the peak of the virus outbreak on February 29th, when as many as 909 cases were reported among their population.
Coincidentally, this was also the day when K-League, the professional football league in the country, was supposed to kick off in Jeonju. The defending champions Jeonbuk Motors were set to host Suwon Bluewings then, but the fixture had to be postponed due to the outbreak.
However, the scenario in South Korea has strikingly improved over the last couple of months, with the country flattening the curve at an impressive rate. Now, with local infections down to single digits since mid-April – and down to zero on 4th May – the situation is deemed safe enough for football to resume.
During its 37-year-long history, the K-League has never received the kind of attention it will get on Friday evening, when the 2020 season finally begins. South Korea has emerged as a global inspiration in battling Covid-19 and now they have the chance to provide a similar example in the field of football.
Despite initially struggling to find a domestic broadcaster for the 2020 season, the K-League has now signed ten international deals with various broadcasters from China to Croatia ahead of the opening game on Friday.
Taiwan and Turkmenistan are the other nations currently going ahead with their domestic league in Asia, but the level of competition in South Korea is regarded as the finest in the region and their steadfast resurgence amidst a global pandemic is the stuff of dreams.
There is no complacency in the air, however. All 1,100 staff and players set to be involved in the K-League were tested for the virus last week and within just six hours, all of it came back as negative.
The President of the K-League Kwon Oh-gap has also insisted that matches will be suspended for at least two weeks, if a person from any team gets infected again.
The 12-team league has also reduced the total number of games from 38 to 27, while players will have personalised water bottles and they will not be shaking hands before the game. Coaches are already preparing to get their instructions through while wearing masks and the fans will not be allowed entry into the stadium during the initial weeks.
South Korea are determined to complete the 2020 football season without any hassle and the whole world will turn to them, yet again, for inspiration.
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