FC Anyang fight back to beat sluggish Busan

Busan IPark slumped to their third loss of the 2021 K League 2 season on Sunday afternoon. After taking the lead via an An Byong-jun penalty, goals from Kim Kyung-joong and Mo Jae-hyeon turned the game on its head and handed Anyang only their third win against Busan in 18 attempts.

Result

FC Anyang 2-1 Busan IPark

Key Moments

17’ – BUSAN GOAL – VAR rules handball against Anyang winger Kim Kyung-joong after Jung Hoon-sung’s cross hits him on the arm from close range. An Byong-jun rifles home the penalty. 

27’ - Save – Mang Sung-ung’s fizzing drive from 25 yards is kept out excellently by Busan keeper Choi Pil-su. 

36’ – ANYANG GOAL – Busan lose the ball inside their own half. Mo Jae-hyeon lays the ball off to an onrushing Kim Kyung-joong, who strikes the ball first time from 20 yards into the top corner. 

50’ – ANYANG GOAL – Shim Dong-woon jinks down the left wing and dinks in a cross. Jonathan heads down, and Busan defenders Lee Rae-jun and Kim Seung-woo both fail to clear their lines, allowing Mo Jae-hyeon to poke home. 

67’ – Save – Shim Dong-woon has the goal at his mercy from 5 yards out to kill the game, but the Anyang forward is denied by Choi Pil-su from close range.

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Highlights

Busan Fade after Bright Start

In the first 20 minutes against Anyang, Busan played some of their best football of the season. Kim Jin-kyu thrived in a roaming attacking midfield role, finding spaces around the Anyang penalty area to link up with An Byong-jun and Domagoj Drozdek. Busan failed to make the most of numerous half chances in the opening exchanges, but they did break the deadlock after a harsh handball decision against Kim Kyung-joong, whose arm appeared to be in a natural position when the ball struck him from very close range. 

After An ruthlessly dispatched the resultant penalty, however, Busan seemed to forget they were in a football game. All of the drive, pressing, and progressive play disappeared from their gameplan almost instantaneously, allowing Anyang to gradually gain control of the match. 

An Byong-jun was largely kept quiet by Nilson Junior and co.

Busan’s passing was off-kilter all afternoon, and after An’s opener they failed to create any chances of note, looking lethargic and disjointed throughout the second half. An injury to holding midfielder Kim Jeong-hyun early in the second half was a massive blow, forcing Kim Jin-kyu into a deeper role and essentially robbing Busan of their most creative player in the final third. Injuries are part of the game, however, and coach Ricardo Peres will once again face questions from supporters who have seen this Busan side look rudderless once too often already this year.

Anyang Worthy Winners

As good as Busan were in the first quarter of the game, they were helped by an Anyang side that looked all at sea in the opening stages. Anyang lost the ball time and again inside their own half and couldn’t keep up with the movement of Kim Jin-kyu. That all changed after Busan’s goal, however. 

Nilson Junior, a former Busan player, once again showed his pedigree as one of the second division’s finest defensive players, the Brazilian marshalling the Anyang back line and roaming into midfield to snuff Busan attacks before they even got started. Kim Kyung-joong, making his first start for the club after a winter transfer from Gangwon FC, was excellent at right wing back, often nullifying the threat of Drozdek while contributing greatly going forward. His goal was a strike of real quality, and his signing looks to be a real coup for the Purples. 

Shim Dong-woon was a game-changing substitute.

Shim Dong-woon, meanwhile, was a livewire that the Busan defence never came to grips with after he came on in the 19th minute. Despite failing to score from 5 yards out in the second half, Shim’s introduction was the see-saw moment in Anyang’s comeback victory, and coach Lee Woo-hyung deserves credit for turning this game on its head.

Busan Player Ratings

GK – Choi Pil-su – 6 – Made two top saves, good handling throughout, and quick off his line. Might have done better for the second goal. 

RB – Choi Jun – 5 – Needs to do more with final ball. 63% passing accuracy and 16.7% cross accuracy. 

CB – Kim Seung-woo – 4 – Partly at fault for Anyang’s second goal. Subbed off with injury. 

CB – Valentinos Sielis – 4 – Some wayward passing and several miscommunications with teammates. 

LB – Park Min-gyu – 6 – Another solid display at left back; possibly caught too far infield for Anyang’s opener. 

CM – Kim Jeong-hyun – 6 – Did the gritty work well before coming off injured. 

CM – Lee Rae-jun – 4 – Poor defending for Anyang winner; a largely pedestrian performance. 

RW – Jung Hoon-sung – 6 – Lively down the right, 90% pass completion. Booked for persistent fouling. 

CAM – Kim Jin-kyu – 6 – Excellent in the opening stages; influence and passing waned later. 

LW – Domagoj Drozdek – 5 – Subdued in first half, better in the second without end product. 54% passing accuracy, 11.1 cross accuracy. 

CF – An Byong-jun – 5 – Dispatched penalty well but otherwise a frustrating afternoon. Isolated. 

Subs: 

Hwang Jun-ho (on for Kim Seung-woo, 52’) – 5 – Solid enough. 

Lee Sang-heon (on for Kim Jeong-hyun, 52’) – 5 – A couple of good runs, no end product. Booked. 

Eo Jeong-won (on for Lee Rae-jun, 88’) – N/A – League debut for the 21 year-old, little time to impress.

FC Anyang Lineup:

Jeong Min-ki; Nilson, Kim Jun-seob (Shim Dong-woon, 19'), Lim Sun-young (Tamura, 63'), Kim Kyung-joong (Park Dae-han, 78'), Ju Hyun-woo, Kim Hyeong-jin, Mang Sung-ung, Jonathan, Yu Jong-hyun, Mo Jae-hyun