Busan 0-1 Seongnam: A quick recap

This will be short, apologies. I have a small problem with my left arm (tennis elbow + cubital tunnel syndrome), so it's difficult to type. Busan lost (again), this time to Seongnam. Youngster Kim Jin-kyu made his first league start. Busan let go of one Brazilian forward and signed another.

Screenshot courtesy of kleague.com

Busan loses their 4th in a row

A paltry 1,374 turned out on a suddenly chilly July 4th to see Busan lose to Seongnam 1-0. Kim Du-hyun (Do-heon?) (김두현) converted a first half spot kick to score the only goal of the game. The loss leaves Busan firmly in the relegation playoff spot, four points adrift of Ulsan (who have a game in hand). Statistically, Busan probably deserved something from this one. The team dominated statistically, especially in the 2nd half. Possession? 59% vs 41% (67%-33% in the 2nd half). Shots? 16-6 (12-4 in 2nd half). Shots on target? 8-3 (6-2 in 2nd half).

But, the bigger news (to me) was....

Kim Jin-kyu 

Screenshot courtesy of busanipark.com

I had briefly mentioned Kim Jin-kyu in the transfer article for Busan. A youngster who has come out of the Busan IPark youth system, having attended both the U15 school (Shilla MS) and the U18 school (Gaeseong HS). Seeing him not only start, but play relatively well (the official league rating was 6.5, which no other Busan player was scored higher) was very satisfying, and hopefully Kim JK and other youth players will get more chances at a younger age.

Prior to this match, Busan fans got to see Kim Jin-kyu playing at the Suwon JS Cup a couple months ago with the U-17 national team, alongside the likes of Barcelona/La Masia starlets Lee Seung-woo and Paik Seung-ho. Here's hoping the youngster continues to grow and develop, and that we see more things like this across the league in the future.

엘리아스선수 환영합니다! Welcome Elias!

Screenshot courtesy of busanipark.com

Busan announced their first official transfer of the summer window. Out went ineffective forward Bergson, and in came another Brazilian - Elias. Elias cleared the paperwork hurdles and managed to make his team debut against Seongnam. He didn't score, but managed to get off three shots (one on target) in 30 minutes of work.