K League in 2025-2026 AFC Champions League Match Day 7 Preview

K League sides in continental competition will take to the field for their first competitive matches of 2026 in midweek, looking to shake off any rust and continue their pursuits of 2025-2026 AFC Champions League glory.

AFC Champions League Elite

Tuesday 10th February

Vissel Kobe (1st, JPN) vs. FC Seoul (5th) - 19:00 KST

FC Seoul will play their first competitive match of 2026 away to AFC Champions League Elite leaders Vissel Kobe, as the continent's premier club competition resumes for Match Day 7. Seoul had been in decent form before the winter break, earning five points from their last three ACLE outings, the last being a 1-1 draw with Melbourne City. Vissel Kobe, meanwhile, were able to preserve their place in first with a 2-2 draw at home to Chengdu Rongcheng, making it three unbeaten following wins over Ulsan and Shanghai Shenhua. Kobe got their domestic campaign up and running on Friday in the J1 100 Year Vision League, away to Kyoto Sanga, drawing 1-1 then winning 4-1 on penalties. 

Kobe's clash with Ulsan was one of two against K League opposition in the 2025-2026 edition of the competition, the other being a thrilling 4-3 loss away to Gangwon. Seoul, meanwhile, have faced J.League opposition just once so far this campaign, earning a 1-1 draw away to Machida Zelvia last September. Kobe will be a tough nut to crack for Seoul, with the J1 League champions leading the way for clean sheets with four and having shown their attacking prowess with the second-most touches in the box and the best shot conversion rate in the competition of 18.8%. Seoul, meanwhile, rank first for accurate passes per match, so will be expected to have lots of possession of the ball, despite being the away side, and rank fourth for big chances created. 

Seoul will have to be wary of Yoshinori Muto, Kobe's goal scorer on Friday, who ranks second for shots on target per 90 with 2.7, ranks first for successful dribbles (75%), and has two goals and one assist to his name in the ACL. The capital club will be looking to new recruit Song Min-kyu to fill Jesse Lingard's shoes. Song has featured in AFC club competitions 18 times, scoring five and assisting one.

[READ: K League in ACL MD6 Recap]

Wednesday 11th February

Gangwon FC (9th) vs. Shanghai Port (12th, CHN) - 19:00 KST

Gangwon FC got off to a great start in their debut ACL season, but form tailed off towards the end of 2025, and now the Bears sit outside the qualification group. Jeong Kyung-ho's men are ninth, but just a point behind Johor Darul Ta'zim, Buriram United, and Ulsan, and face basement side Shanghai Port next. The Chinese Super League giants have managed to pick up just two points from their first six ACLE matches, owing to draws with Sanfrecce Hiroshima and JDT. They also lost 3-1 to FC Seoul in what is so far their only clash with a K League side this campaign.

Gangwon's continental bow brought a 2-1 home win over Port's city neighbours Shanghai Shenhua, but was followed up by a 1-0 loss away to Chengdu Rongcheng. Gangwon will look to control the game with the lion's share of possession, having racked up the highest so far among teams in the East side of the competition with 59.9%, but will be looking to get more shots on target, ranking ninth in that regard. Shanghai Port are the reigning Chinese Super League champions and were not among the teams deducted points for match fixing. Although unlikely, qualification to the Round of 16 is still mathematically possible, but it would take two wins from their last two games, and for results elsewhere to go their way.

Kim Dae-won will be Gangwon's player to watch, creating 3.1 chances per 90 on average and 13 overall as the Bears' best in that regard and the best among players in the East side of the competition. But if Gangwon can create chances, they'll need to find a way past Port goalkeeper Wei Chen, who ranks third for save percentage (81.8%) and first for saves per 90 with 6.8. 

Ulsan HD (8th) vs. Melbourne City (4th, AUS) - 19:00 KST

Ulsan HD begin life under new manager Kim Hyun-seok with the visit of A-League Men side Melbourne City. They do so sitting just inside the qualification group for the Round of 16, but will need to start picking up wins if they are to reach the knockouts. The Horangi lost 3-1 away to Machida Zelvia in their last ACL outing, and are on a run of three without a win. City, meanwhile, sit fourth having put together a run of four matches unbeaten with three victories. Their most recent outing was a very credible 1-1 draw away to FC Seoul. Domestically, Melbourne City are seventh in the table following five wins, seven draws and five losses, with just two wins in their last six, however. On Saturday, City played out a 1-1 draw with Western Sydney Wanderers.

Ulsan rank fifth for shots on target per match with 4.8, but will need to improve their conversion rate which stands at just 7.8%. The Horangi have also found it hard to create meaningful chances, ranking seventh for big chances with 12 and just five goals scored. City have been clinical with seven goals scored from 10 big chances, but 2.5 shots on target per match might not be sustainable. If Ulsan can defend well against their A-League counterparts, they could emerge with all three points.

Darijan Bojanic will be key to Ulsan again this season and indeed this Wednesday. The Swede is first for accurate passes per 90 at 68.9, while Max Caputo, despite being on the bench against Wanderers at the weekend, is City's top scorer domestically with six and has two goals in ACLE thus far. It'll be the first-ever meeting between the two teams, but Ulsan have a record of nine wins, three draws and three losses versus Australian opposition, and are unbeaten in their last nine, while City have two wins and one draw from just three meetings.

AFC Champions League Two Round of 16

Thursday 12th February

Pohang Steelers vs. Gamba Osaka (JPN) - 19:00

In AFC Champions League Two, Pohang Steelers host Gamba Osaka on Thursday in the first leg of their Round of 16 tie. Pohang won four of their six Group H matches, losing just one but face a Gamba Osaka side that won all six of their Group F matches, keeping four clean sheets and conceding just two goals. Gamba finished ninth in the J1 last season and managed just five away wins from 19 matches. They began the new domestic campaign with a 0-0 draw in the Osaka derby, but won 5-4 on penalties, in what turned out to be a 10 vs. 10 affair with Takeru Kishimoto sent off on 84 minutes and Hayato Tanaka for Cerezo.

Thursday's contest might prove to be a tight affair with both teams boasting solid defenses, conceding just two goals each so far. Pohang have racked up the most possession so far with 69.7%, while Gamba rank third in that regard with 68.6%, having both played against teams that defended in low blocks. Pohang rank third for shots on target per match with 6.5, while Gamba are the competition's best passers wth 581.2 accurate passes per match.

Pohang faced Gamba in the 2012 ACL group stage, earning two wins - 2-0 at home and 3-0 away. Gamba have a record of eight wins, six draws and 11 losses against K League opposition over the years, with the most recent meetings being against Jeonbuk in 2021. In Korea, Gamba's record reads three wins, three draws, and five losses.