Preview: Suwon Fc vs Seoul E-Land

We are now halfway through the 2020 K League 2 season. In what has been a roller coaster for both Suwon Fc and Seoul E-Land so far. Both teams have greatly improved from the season prior, and now they face off for the second time in the league.

Suwon will be looking to hang onto top spot in the K League 2, where Seoul E-Land are still letting fans dare to dream. A result for Seoul could launch them back into the promised lands of the playoffs. Michael Redmond reviews the second division super match here.

Last Time Out

Suwon welcomed the Islanders, Jeju United to Castle park on the weekend. An Byong-jun scored first for Suwon, in the 11th minute. A missed shot from Han Jung-woo fell straight to Byong-jun's feet. The goal was a simple tap in to put Suwon ahead. This was his 13th goal of the season.

Jeju responded in the second half. Lee Chang-min swung in a well-placed corner kick, which was met by a bullet header from Kim Oh-kyu. Suwon left him free and were punished for their poor defending. Jeju kept pushing for the winner and had a few more chances. Noticeably in the 89th minute of the game. Lee Dong-hyuk could have scored. He put a one on one chance with keeper Yoo-hyun, wide. Suwon then played the dying moments of the game with 10 men. Song Su-yong was shown a second yellow card. The number seven came on in the second half. He picked up his first yellow in the 85th, and then was sent marching. A lunge on Jeju's keeper Oh Seung-hoon sent him walking. Spoils were shared here in this one, which means Suwon have now not won in three games.

Full Time: Suwon Fc 1-1 Jeju United

Seoul E-Land made the journey down Daejeon World Cup stadium on Monday evening. They faced off against 3rd placed Daejeon Hana Citizen. The game was a matchup between two teams, doing a lot better than in 2019. Daejeon and Seoul both canceled each other out in the early stages of the game. Seoul had more promising chances, but they just could not put the ball in the back of the net.

Seoul E-Land and Daejeon Hana Citizen played out a stalemate in the 2020 K League 2

Daejeon and Seoul both played some good football throughout the game, but they could not break down each other's defense. Daejeon had the biggest talking point of the game. Park Jin-seop was brought down by Lee Sang-min in the 77th minute. The referee, who had a good game in the fixture, took his time with the decision. After going to VAR, the referee awarded the penalty. The decision could have gone either way. It looked as if Park Jin-seop put himself in front of Lee Sang-min, drawing in the foul to be made.

Andre stepped up for Daejeon, to put them ahead. The Brazilian blasted the ball over the bar, and the city of Seoul took a long sigh of relief. Seoul and Daejeon tried very hard to get that winning goal, but it was not to be. Seoul may feel that it was a point earned in the end, given that there was a missed penalty in the game. Seoul still now remains undefeated against Daejeon this season with one win and one draw. However, the draw for Daejeon puts them back into 2nd.

Full Time: Daejeon Hana Citizen 0-0 Seoul E-Land

Previous Meetings

The first time the two sides met this year, was back in July. The match took place  in the Seoul Olympic stadium. It was a one-sided affair, a match that Seoul would much rather want to forget. Seoul managed to play out the first half 0-0. They even had a Sukuta-pasu goal chalked off in the 45th minute. It was the second half when the floodgates opened. That man again, An Byong-jun scored first for Suwon. It took him 49 seconds after the restart to score. Suwon ran at Seoul's defense and with a well-placed shot, put the visitors ahead.

It went from bad to worse for Seoul. A free-kick into the box from Park Min-kyu saw E-Land defender Kim Sang-hyun head the ball into the back of his own net. The visitors doubled their lead. Suwon put the final nail in the coffin in the 61st minute, when Ishida tapped in a spilled ball from keeper Kim Hyung-keun. Seoul were well and truly taken to school that evening.

Full Time: Seoul E-Land 0-3 Suwon FC

Team News

Seoul E-Land went with a very heavy midfield on Monday evening, with a 3-5-2 formation. Chung Jung-yung put Park Sung-woo and Ko Jae-hyun on the wings, helping out defensively when needed. The defense was a lot better than in previous games, and props need to be given for their firm set up. The game saw a front two of Leandro and Sukuta-Pasu upfront. The two worked well off one another. However, Sukuta-pasu was subbed off for Won Ki-jong in the second half. The two summer signings Jang Yun-ho and Ko Jae-hyun once again had a good game for Seoul. They pushed forward and tackled well on the Daejeon attacks.

Lazar Arsić was given some much-needed game time in the second half. He was subbed on for Kim Min-kyun who was energetic in the first half of the game. The formation and set up of Seoul against Daejeon gave the side chances in the game.  Seoul were very unlucky to miss a couple of balls crossed into an open Citizen goalmouth. Leandro came inches away from putting Seoul ahead on a number of occasions. Suwon will attack Seoul on Sunday, so a similar set up may once again be seen. 

Suwon keeper Hyun-yoo could be a doubt against Seoul E-Land

Seoul E-Land have no suspensions ahead of the tie. Suwon will play without Song Su-yong, after being sent off against Jeju. Suwon's keeper Hyun-yoo will be a doubt in the game. He was subbed off in the Jeju game and was seen with crutches at the side of the pitch. Hyun-yoo has played every league game for Suwon this year.     

The Adversary

Suwon have been the dark horses of the division this year. When at the start of the season,  eyes were all on Jeju, Gyeongnam, Jeonnam, and Daejeon. Suwon have eight wins to their name this season. They have also been scoring for fun, with 29 goals so far. Suwon have scored more goals than any other team this year.  An Byong-jun has the majority of the goals.  Japanese attacker Masatoshi Ishida has also been scoring prolifically for Suwon, with seven.

The K League 2 is a free for all this year with a lot of teams looking to challenge for the promotion, and the title. Suwon for now are just holding onto top spot. However, they have failed to win in three games and more dropped points on the weekend could see them slide down to third.

What To Watch

It is hard to ignore the excellence of North Korean striker, An Byong-jun this year. The Suwon player already has 13 goals to his name and is leading the pack, in the golden boot race. In what is his second season at Suwon he is three goals away from doubling his goal tally from the season prior.

An Byong-jun just seems to know where the back of the net is. He has scored against every team in the league this year bar one, Jeonnam Dragons. An Byong-jun could even pip 30 goals this year if he continues to play in such fine form.

Prediction

This is a tough one to call. Suwon are not exactly in the form they were in at the start of the season. In saying that, Seoul would fear such a powerful striker in An Byong-jun. Seoul really needs to take three points against Suwon if they are to look like real contenders. If they beat them, then they will really shake things up at the top. A Suwon win would push them further up the table and closer to the promised land of K League 1 football.