K League Preview (Round 34)

So, it’s round 34 or round 1 of the split season in the Classic, and just plain ol’ round 34 down in the Challenge. But, titles in both divisions could be decided this weekend, so pay attention.

K League Classic Fixtures – Championship Half

Pohang Steelers vs Jeju United – Saturday, 2pm KST
Ulsan Hyundai vs Suwon Samsung – Saturday, 4pm KST
FC Seoul vs Jeonbuk Motors – Sunday, 2pm KST

K League Classic Fixtures – Relegation Half

Jeonnam Dragons vs Seongnam FC – Saturday, 2pm KST
Sangju Sangmu vs Busan IPark – Sunday, 2pm KST
Incheon United vs Gyeongnam FC – Sunday, 4pm KST

Last Round’s Prediction Results

Result correct – 3
Score correct – 0

Mini-Previews

Pohang vs Jeju

The two sides met a couple weeks ago down in Seogwipo, with the islanders coming away with a resounding 3-0 win. Will we see a repeat on Saturday? Probably not, as the match will be in Pohang (where the Steelers won 3-0 earlier this season). A tight, and important match in the battle for 3rd place. Expect Pohang to eek this one.

Predicted result: Pohang 2-1 Jeju
TV: SPOTV+
Stream: Naver, Daum, Afreeca

Ulsan vs Suwon

Ulsan made the top half by the skin of their teeth, thus avoiding a rather embarrassing drop of going from being a minute away from the title last season to being amongst the relegation clubs this season. This match could be exciting or quite boring I think. Both teams are capable of scoring, but how motivated will they be? Ulsan’s chances of making the AFC Champions League are slim – needing to make up an 8 point gap to 3rd place while hoping three other teams (Pohang, Jeju, Seoul) all drop a significant amount of points. Suwon similarly has only a slim chance of catching Jeonbuk for the title, and have a comfortable 8 point lead over the fourth placed clubs. I think Suwon will look to consolidate second, and will play a bit more conservatively. Ulsan, shorn of Kim Shin-wook’s attacking talents will struggle to break through.

Predicted result: Ulsan 1-1 Suwon
TV: SPOTV+
Stream: Naver, Daum, Afreeca

Seoul vs Jeonbuk

Should Jeonbuk win this one and Suwon lose to Ulsan, Jeonbuk will claim the K League title. I think though that their title celebrations will be on hold for at least another week. Jeonbuk will be without club talisman Lee Dong-gook after he suffered an injury last week against Suwon. Kaio has proven to be a decent player, but he doesn’t seem to offer as much as the Korean. Seoul’s focus seems to have shifted to the KFA Cup, but they should offer enough to derail Jeonbuk for this weekend.

Predicted result: Seoul 1-0 Jeonbuk
TV: MBC Sports+, TBS
Stream: Naver, Daum, Afreeca

Jeonnam vs Seongnam

On paper this should be a fairly comfortable win for Jeonnam, but the Jeolla team is in terrible form, winless in their last six outings (3 draws, 3 losses). Among those results was a 1-0 loss to Seongnam up at Tancheon. Jeonnam has little to fear in terms of relegation. A point from their five games would likely be enough to guarantee them safety (two points would definitely do it). So, I wonder a bit about their motivation levels. Seongnam on the other hand should be plenty motivated, just goal difference above Gyeongnam for the playoff spot. And Seongnam have been in better form as of late, so they could spring an upset, but I think Jeonnam will probably see this one through.

Predicted result: Jeonnam 2-1 Seongnam
TV: None
Stream: None

Sangju vs Busan

Two teams that have largely going in different directions, at least in terms of form. Busan hasn’t lost in their last six (3 wins, 3 draws) while Sangju has lost seven of their last 10 matches in the league. Sangju does though have a superior record against Busan this season, having won the earlier match in Sangju and drawn Busan twice in Busan. Busan’s away form has been pretty poor overall, but a decent showing away to Seoul last weekend should give some hope that Korea’s second largest city will still have a top flight team next season.

Predicted result: Sangju 0-2 Busan
TV: SPOTV+
Stream: Naver, Daum, Afreeca

Incheon vs Gyeongnam

Gyeongnam is a slightly puzzling team right now for me. Sometimes they put in these really resilient performances against teams much better than them, and then they fall to pieces against teams they can beat. Incheon falls somewhere in between, and that makes this one hard to predict. Incheon isn’t safe from relegation as they are six points clear of their opponents, but at the same time it’s hard to see them really falling back into the mix. On paper this should be an Incheon win, but part of me wants to say it’ll be a draw.

Predicted result: Incheon 2-1 Gyeongnam
TV: CJ Hellovision Incheon
Stream: Naver, Afreeca

K League Challenge Fixtures (round 34)

Ansan KP vs Gwangju FC – Saturday 2pm KST
Suwon FC vs FC Anyang – Saturday, 4pm KST
Daejeon Citizen vs Bucheon 1995 – Saturday, 4pm KST
Daegu FC vs Gangwon FC – Sunday, 2pm KST
Chungju Hummels vs Goyang Hi – Sunday, 2pm KST

TV Listings

Suwon vs Anyang – T Broad Suwon
Daejeon vs Bucheon – CMB Daejeon
Daegu vs Gangwon – MBC Daegu

Stream Listings

All matches will be streamed through Naver, Daum, and Afreeca

K League Challenge Notes

• Should Daejeon gain a point and Ansan lose, or should Daejeon win their match,  Daejeon will be crowned champions and gain automatic promotion to the K League Classic *should Daejeon and Ansan both win, Ansan would mathematically be able to reach Daejeon’s point total, but Daejeon’s vastly superior goal difference would virtually assure them of the title*
• Should Gangwon gain any points and Suwon FC drop points, Suwon FC would be eliminated from playoff contention
• Should Gangwon win and Daegu fail to win, Daegu would be eliminated from playoff contention