Player Ratings: Incheon United prevail in the ACL

Incheon United huffed and puffed and eventually blew Hai Phong away with two late goals at their rocking arena this evening. Incheon deserved to win but they made hard work of it. None of that will matter now as they take their place alongside Asia's elite.

This is how Incheon line-up tonight for their ACL qualifier against Vietnamese team Hai Phong.

The game is live on Sky Sports in Korea at 7.30pm.

While waiting for kick-off, why not read the @KLeagueUnited match preview?https://t.co/M3dnxTIOjc#KLeague #AFCCL pic.twitter.com/w3bpfOoqiK

— We are IUFC (@LiveFromIncheon) August 22, 2023

Here are our player ratings following a draining 120 minutes versus Hai Phong.

Kim Dong-hyeon 6

The goalkeeper could do nothing about Yuri's brilliant goal to open the scoring, nor the header off the bar at the end of the first half. The half-time deluge made the pitch and ball slippery but Kim handled well. Wasn't overly troubled after.

Oh Ban-suk (c) 6

The captain lasted 63 minutes. It was a tough outing against Hai Phong's attackers, especially Yuri, and even though the Brazilian was primarily up against Oh's partner Kim, he was drifting and causing problems everywhere.

Kim Dong-min 7

Kim had the misfortune of facing the combative Yuri who caused endless problems, especially in the first half. They continued their fierce battle through to the 120th minute. Incheon looked more assured at the back after Oh's departure. Overall, a big performance.

Harrison Delbridge 7

Playing on the left of a back three, Delbridge was strong in the air and used his left foot nicely when moving the ball forward. Was surprisingly done by Joseph on 75 minutes but thankfully it came to nothing. Made one lovely challenge deep in added time.  Huge effort.

Jeong Dong-yoon 6

Wasn't as prominent as Kang on the other flank. Moved to the left side late on and played the full 120 minutes. Went down with cramp after an exhausting effort. 

Lee Myung-joo 6

Replaced at half-time by Kim Do-hyeok and this change, with Gerso also entering the game, changed the course of game.

Moon Ji-hwan 8.5

Moon had a really good game in midfield. He looked knackered after making a series of big challenges in the second half that clearly impressed the home fans. Strong in the tackle and distributed well. Replaced just before 90 minutes.

Paul-Jose Mpoku 7

Lasted 63 minutes and was effective throughout. Had a hand in the equalizer and his combination with Mugosa was probably the best football Incheon played in the opening half.

Kang Yun-koo 7

A busy game on the left, and this is where the majority of Incheon's attacking threat came from in the first half. Didn't have the same influence after the break as the hosts went more direct. Replaced in the second-half of added time.

Cheon Seong-hoon 6

Cheon headed home Incheon's equalizer in the 17th minute but he didn't pose the same threat as Mugosa. Replaced at the break.

Stefan Mugosa 8.5

Assisted Cheon with a delicious cross and was central to Incheon's best period of play in the middle third of the first half. Saw two chances in quick succession saved by the keeper and played a big part in the winning goal. Big game from a big player.

[Read: Match Recap Incheon United v Hai Phong]

Substitutes

Kim Yeon-soo

Not on long enough to rate.

Shin Jin-ho 5

Shin replaced the class Mun near the end of regular time. His first contribution was to overhit a free kick, much to the local frustration. Shin then gave away a free kick deep in his own half to add to the tension.

Kim Do-hyeok 7.5

Took over the captain's armband in the second half. It was noticeable how much Kim upped the tempo after the break. Some lovely touches to evade defenders. This trickery led him to being cut down by a rash tackle deep in added time.

Gerso Fernandes 8.5

Was sensational at the start of the half, chasing endless lost causes, tearing past defenders and even testing the keeper with a long range drive. But like his teammates, the tempo dropped thereafter and Incheon struggled to regain the initiative. Gerso provided the assist in extra time that won the game and then added the icing with an outrageous third. They'll remember his celebration for years to come.

Hernandes Rodrigues 7

A 63rd-minute replacement for Mpoku. Will forever be known as the man who scored the winner to send Incheon to the Champions League.

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