Preview: Suwon FC vs Jeonnam Dragons

Suwon FC head back to the Castle Park this Saturday after earning four points from two consecutive away games. Manager Kim Dae-eui will be satisfied with earning four points from what would be considered as difficult fixtures. Meanwhile, Jeonnam Dragons will play their second away game in a row after earning a point at Bucheon Stadium last Sunday. Will the Dragons team be successful in their second trip to Gyeonggi Province in as many weeks, or will the hosts continue to impress?Columnists Lee Young-sub and Aodan Halligan guide you through all you need to know ahead of this intriguing match-up.

Last Time Out

Seoul E-Land 1-1 Suwon FC

Manager Kim Dae-eui’s boys, whom had been greatly successful in their recent games, managed to bring a point back to Castle Park. Meanwhile, the opposing team, Seoul E-Land, had to postpone their first win of the season and also the first win on new, temporary home soil in Cheonan to the next game.

A paying crowd of 3,079 spectators were there to witness an exciting match, which could have been rare to the fans in Cheonan who were taking in a K League match for the first time. It did not take long to fulfil those fans’ wishes to catch brilliant goals on the spot either. It only took 90 seconds for the visitors to score a stunning goa; Lee Hak-min, the utility player who can operate as full back and winger, penetrated through the Leopards’ defenders with pace and sent in a sharp cross to the danger area. The deflected cross fell lead to Suwon FC’s captain, Baek Sung-dong who did not miss a golden opportunity to give his team a head start.

However, the visiting team’s lead did not hold for long as just three minutes after Baek’s goal, Douglas Coutinho equalized to bring balance to the game. After the first five minutes of the game it seemed like the 3,079 in attendance would be awarded with a flurry of goals. However, even though both teams gave it their best to bag three points the score remained even. It was a hard-fought match for both teams.

Highlights: here

Bucheon FC 1995 1-1 Jeonnam Dragons

The Dragons picked up a point at Bucheon Stadium last weekend. Jeonnam Dragons started with 4-1-2-3 formation while Bucheon FC 1995 set themselves up in a 4-1-4-1 formation. The home team went ahead at the fifteenth minute when the Dragons’ defenders failed to clear the ball and out of confusion, lead to an assist of sorts for Song Hong-min's fantastic goal. Song netted a powerful strike into the goal that proved to be unstoppable by the goalkeeper. It was his second goal of the season.

Jeonnam however, did not fail to disappoint their fans who made a long way from Gwangyang. Choi Hyo-jin, the captain of Dragons, earned a precious penalty six minutes after conceding the first goal; Kim Young-wook converted calmly to equalize. Although Jeonnam Dragons’ Kim min-hyeok was sent off in the 38th minute, the home team failed to take the advantage to take all three points. It was a game to regret for the home side.

Highlights: here

Previous Meetings

The most recent meeting between the two sides goes back to 2016, when both teams were in the K League 1 (back then known as K League Classic). It was a desperate game for both teams as Suwon needed a win to keep themselves in the division again for the next season. The Dragons needed three points to guarantee themselves a place in the top half of the split.

As both teams clearly needed a win from this game, both sides were very offensive from the start of the game. However, both sides failed to convert the numerous number of shots that were taken. The match ended 0-0 and both teams had to be satisfied with a point from this game.

Team News

Suwon FC have no players banned for this fixture and so Kim Dae-ui should have a full squad to choose form.

For Saturday's visitors Jeonnam Dragons, left-back youngster, Kim Min-hyeok is to miss this weekend’s fixture after his dismissal in the previous game at Bucheon Stadium.

The Adversary

Tactical tweaks and personnel changes reaped dividends for Jeonnam Dragons last weekend as they earned a point in their first away match of the 2019 season. As expected, head coach Fabiano Soares ditched his preferred 4-3-3 formation for the game and brought Han Chan-hee and Kim Young-wook back into midfield. Elsewhere, Park Jun-hyuk started instead of regular number one Lee Ho-seung in goal, while up front, the Dragons decided to operate without a recognised striker.

The Dragons looked pretty comfortable in their new 3-5-2 formation (until Kim Min-hyeok’s dismissal at the end), with a five-man midfield giving them a perfect blend of flair and steel. Consequently, they will most likely line up similarly this weekend.

However, Kim Min-hyeok will play no part in proceedings against Suwon due to the aforementioned sending off. Plus, Vedran Jugović will be absent after picking up a muscle tear injury in the final training session before last week’s game. The Croatian midfielder should be out for at least a month. Meanwhile, defender Kwak Kwang-seon remains sidelined with a neck injury and strikers Bruno, Macedo and Ha Tae-goon are also still working their way back to full fitness. Australian central defender, Nick Ansell, could be in line for a recall, though, after recovering from a broken rib.

Dragons head coach, Fabiano Soares, will no doubt be hoping for better luck on the injury front. In fact, Jugović’s absence last week meant that no foreign player lined up for the Dragons for the first time this season. Undoubtedly, Jeonnam badly need all four of their foreign stars fit to stand a chance of achieving their goal of promotion. However, until then, they have to start climbing up the table and thus another point, at the very least, is required this Sunday.
- Aodan Halligan

Who To Watch

Suwon FC – Chisom Egbuchulam

After some disappointing performances in the first few games, Chisom is beginning to show what he is capable of in the attacking third. Making three goals in the past three games, he is now the trusted choice for the team. Jeonnam Dragons have conceded nine goals in five league games and so Chisom should be the player to watch if he is able to capitalize on the unstable Dragons defence.

Jeonnam Dragons – Choi Hyo-jin

A living legend of K League, Choi Hyo-jon is the feisty and experienced wing-back. Choi has been capped eighteen times for the Korean national team and has played more than 200 K League games. He may be a touch slower these days but the 35-year-old is still an important player for Dragons.

In new manager Fabiano Soare's 3-4-3 formation, he plays as the right wing-back, making contributions in both in defence and offence. Choi earned a precious penalty in the previous game against Bucheon FC 1995, proving his fitness levels to cover a lot of ground. In this week’s fixture, where both teams will likely adopt the 3-4-3 system with wing-backs, Choi is likely to play in what will be key area of the pitch that could affect the outcome of the game.

Prediction

Jeonnam make a second consecutive away trip over to Gyeonggi-do this week and so fatigue is not a factor to ignore when predicting the result of the match. However, there are many more factors to consider; Suwon FC’s uprising form in the past few games with the offensive players firing on all cylinders for instance.

Predicted Score: Suwon FC 2-1 Jeonnam Dragons