An Byong-jun strikes knockout punch in Nakdong Derby

An Byong-jun scored the decisive goal as Busan IPark secured victory in the Nakdong River Derby over Gyeongnam FC on Saturday evening. While Busan put in their most assured performance of the season so far, Gyeongnam will rue a missed penalty by Lee Jeong-hyeop, who fluffed his lines against his former club.

Result

Gyeongnam FC 1-2 Busan IPark

Key Moments

BUSAN GOAL – 35’ – Kim Jin-kyu swings in a tantalising cross from the left flank and right back Choi Jun stoops to direct it into the corner. 

Save – 39’ – Choi Pil-su makes a double save to deny Baek Sung-dong, the first a smart volley, the second a side-foot with the goal gaping. 

BUSAN GOAL – 62’ – An Byong-jun swivels between two Gyeongnam defenders and is tripped. He picks himself up to stroke home from the spot. 

Penalty Miss – 72’ – Lee Jeong-hyeop beats Choi Pil-su to a loose ball and is tripped by the Busan keeper, but the striker’s low penalty is easily saved. 

GYEONGNAM GOAL – 94’ – Ko Kyung-min gets between two Busan defenders to nod home Baek Sung-dong’s cross against his former club.

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Highlights

An Byong-jun beats Lee Jeong-hyeop to headlines

It was billed as a matchup between two of the K League’s biggest name strikers: Busan IPark’s An Byong-jun against Gyeongnam FC’s Lee Jeong-hyeop. Each did well to earn a penalty, but only one converted their golden chance from the spot. 

While An Byong-jun coolly slotted in his fourth of the season, Lee Jeong-hyeop could only pass his penalty tamely into Choi Pil-su’s gloves. It was the strike of a player drained of confidence since his summer move from Busan. Lee did score a brace in the FA Cup in midweek, but the national team striker is still without a league goal for Gyeongnam despite playing in all of the club’s seven games so far. 

Lee Jeong-hyeop scored 13 goals for Busan when they were promoted in 2019.

A fan favourite at the Gudeok for several years, Lee’s departure was lamented by the Busan faithful, but Gyeongnam supporters might still be wondering what all the fuss was about. While the 29 year-old struggles in front of goal for his new club, Busan’s hotshot North Korean striker continues to look the complete package.

Peres Finds Balance with 5-4-1

Busan keeper Choi Pil-su with defenders Hwang Jun-ho, Valentinos, and Park Ho-young

Ricardo Peres opted to play with a back three for the first time in the league this season, and the change in formation brought about Busan’s most fluid performance of the year so far. Although the back three of Hwang Jun-ho, Valentinos Sielis, and Park Ho-young were not faultless, they did dominate in the air, while wing backs Choi Jun and Park Min-gyu impressed with roaming performances down the flanks.

The change in shape also seemed to bring the best out of midfield duo Kim Jeong-hyun and Kim Jin-gyu. The latter especially thrived in a box-to-box role, linking up with the front three while also spraying passes effectively and helping to break up Gyeongnam’s play. 

With An Byong-jun putting in a robust shift up top and Domagoj Drozdek and Lee Sang-heon looking lively either side of him, Busan always looked dangerous despite not dominating the game. Busan may have conceded late and missed out on their first clean sheet of the season, but Peres will be delighted that arguably for the first time this year, Busan looked good over 90 minutes rather than only for short spells. Busan fans can expect the 4-5-1 to stay.

Busan Player Ratings

GK – Choi Pil-su – 8 – Vital double save to deny Baek at 1-0; penalty save made up for clumsy foul.

RWB – Choi Jun – 7 – Good in both directions, and an excellent header to open the scoring. 

RCB – Hwang Jun-ho – 7 – Solid for the most part – no nonsense defending. 

CB – Park Ho-young – 6 – Won header after header, but caught out positionally once or twice. 

LCB – Valentinos Sielis – 6 – Some wayward passing early on, but solid enough defensively. 

LWB – Park Min-gyu – 7 – Another assured performance; becoming Busan’s Mr. Consistent. 

RW – Domagoj Drozdek – 7 – Always lively, good feet and vision; just can’t get his first league goal.

CM – Kim Jeong-hyun – 7 – Bustling and combative. 

CM – KIM JIN-KYU – 9 – Outstanding all round. Led the team for passes (60), pass accuracy (90%), key passes (2) and interceptions (5). Cracking cross for the opening goal. 

LW – Lee Sang-heon – 7 – His best Busan showing to date. Drifted into dangerous areas and linked with teammates well. 

CF – An Byong-jun – 8 – Great turn to win the penalty, cool to convert it; also hit the bar with a thunderous long range drive. 

Subs: 

Park Jeong-in (for Drozdek, 71’) – 6 – A welcome return from injury. 

Sung Ho-young (for Lee Sang-heon, 79’) – 6 – Helped see the game out with energy down the left. 

Kim Dong-woo (for Hwang Jun-ho, 88’) – N/A

Gyeongnam FC Lineup:

(4-3-3) Son Jung-hyun; Kim Ju-hwan, Kim Young-chan, Lee Kwang-seon, Kim Dong-jin; Baek Sung-dong, Bae Seung-jin (Lim Min-hyuk, 46'), Do Dong-hyun (Jang Hyuk-jin, 46'); Hwang Il-su, Lee Jeong-hyeop, Hernandes (Ko Kyung-min 66').