Preview: Seoul E-Land vs Bucheon 1995

 

Seoul E-Land left it very late to claim all three points in the last round of the 2020 K League 2 season. The Leopards clinched a 1-0 victory against Gyeongnam FC and put themselves into 4th place.  With only five games left of the season, Seoul will look to continue winning ways. They will face off against Bucheon 1995. A side who have now failed to win in nine games. Michael Redmond previews this one here. 

Last Time Out

Seoul E-Land welcomed Gyeongnam to Jamsil last Saturday afternoon. The Capital club was looking to leapfrog Gyeongnam who were in 4^th place by the start of the game. Seoul was very solid in defence and very disciplined at the back. Throughout the game both sides had chances. Seoul looked the more likely to score. In a feisty affair, Seoul picked up two yellow cards and Gyeongnam picked up four.

Seoul E-Land left it until the 86^th minute to strike. When a charging Leandro ran down the wing and put himself into The Reds’ box. The Brazilian then made a short cross into Ko Jae-hyeon for the Daegu loanee to tap it into the back of the net. Redemption of sorts could be said as Ko Jae-hyeon missed a big chance in the round prior against Suwon FC. Seoul held onto the lead and with Jeonnam also dropping points, they put themselves back into a playoff position.

Full Time: Seoul E-Land 1-0 Gyeongnam FC

Bucheon 1995 faced off with Jeonnam Dragons on Saturday. Jeonnam were looking to secure three points and go back into the top four. Bucheon had other ideas however and they struck first in the game. It was just after the 50-minute mark when Cho Soo-chul finished off some nice passing from the home side. He struck the ball from outside of the box to break down the Dragon’s defence.

Bucheon managed to hold onto their lead for 21 minutes.  Hernades made an excellent run and crossed the ball into Lee Jong-ho. The 28-year-old striker took a quick turn and his shot managed to beat Bucheon and level the game. Both teams cancelled each other’s chances out and neither team could find a winner. Jeonnam has now not won in two games. Where Buhceon has not won in nine. 

Full Time: Bucheon 1995 1-1 Jeonnam Dragons 

Previous Meetings

The first time the two sides met was a little bit more memorable for Leopard fans this year. After going 2-0 down in Bucheon Stadium. Seoul E-Land fought hard and ended up winning the game 3-2. The last time the two sides met was back in August when it was a lot more one-sided ordeal. In a game which saw some fans return back to Jamsil for the first time since November. Seoul ran out 3-0 winners.

Leandro scores the first goal when Seoul E-Land faced Bucheon 1995 back in August. 

Leandro struck first in the 30^th minute with an excellent run and slotted the ball past Bucheon’s keeper, Choi Bong-jin. The second half saw Won Ki-jong come into the game in the 56^th minute. It took the forward 12 minutes to score his first goal. The final goal came once again from the substitute in the 81^st minute. A brace for Won Ki-jong boosted his confidence and gave Seoul all three points in the game. 

Team News

The big news coming out of the Seoul E-Land camp this week is the call up for Lee Sang-min and Kim Tae-hyeon to the Korea U23 squad. With both of their national games being on Friday and Monday. The games will be in-between the Bucheon game and they will be unavailable. Lee Sang-min has not missed a league game this year for Seoul and Kim Tae-hyeon has also been a featured almost every round. Chung Jung-yong will now have to set up his team differently now. We will more than likely see Kim Su-an be at the back, filling in for Lee Sang-min.

 The last round saw Leandro start once again in the side. The boss has been using him as a second-half impact sub in recent games. However, he was given a full 90 minutes against Gyeongnam. Sukuta-Pasu was also replaced in the second half with Won Ki-jong who was influential towards the end of the game. Seoul will have no suspensions for the Bucheon game. However, the loss of two players may prove to be a big headache for the Gaffer. Seoul has been playing mostly 3-5-2 this season, with the two wingers dropping back for defensive support. As we may be seeing a slightly patched-up team on Sunday, he may go back to a traditional 4-4-2.  Either that or he will have full confidence in his side to continue their good run of 2020 and play his trusted formation. 

[LINK: K League 2 Round 23 Preview]

The Adversary

It has been a few months that Bucheon fans will rather want to forget. The team has now not won in nine games and they are currently freefalling down the table. It was not always the way however as the side won four of their first five games. Something just has not clicked recently for Bucheon and they are almost replicating Seoul E-Land's 2019 poor summer stretch. Bucheon's problems do come from both the front and the back. They have only scored 12 goals this year, and have also conceded 27. 

It has been a season fans may want to forget for Bucheon 1995 in the 2020 K League 2. 

Bucheon will also have to play the game on the weekend without Cho Soo-chul. The midfielder has scored three goals this year and has been a permanent name in the line up each week. Cho Soo-chul also scored the goal in the draw against Jeonnam in the round prior. Bucheon will have to work without his addition against Seoul. Bucheon needs to get points on the board. They are only two points now off the bottom with the season quickly coming to an end. A Seoul win and other results going in Ansan and Asan's favour could see Bucheon bottom of the league come Sunday evening.   

What To Watch

Bucheon fans look to William Barbio for the goals this year. The 27-year-old is playing his first season in Korea and has three goals to his name. Barbio has been only missed two league games so far this season. Barbio may wish that he had slightly a few more goals in this campaign.  It could come down to first season jitters but the talent is there from the Brazilian attacker.  

Prediction

Once again, a very tough one to call. Seoul has had Bucheon's number twice this year. One more win and it could be a clean sweep. Even with this, Seoul has really struggled against the teams towards the foot of the table this year. It is if they switch off when they do not have a big game feel. Seoul will be desperate to stay in that playoff position. The team looked overjoyed by fulltime on the weekend so the desire to want it is there. 

Seoul will need to bring their A-game on Sunday. Bucheon will be desperate to get three points and stay above 10th place. Bucheon have failed to score many goals throughout 2020. However, with the absence of two of Seoul's defenders, this could be the game to try and get some more. Seoul will have the early kick off on Sunday as Jeonnam will play Chungnam Asan at 4pm. Gyeongnam will play on Saturday against FC Anyang. Seoul can not slip up as if they do, either one of the two teams could pounce on their position.