Incheon United, playing in the Asian Champions League (ACL) for the first time in its 20-year history, was unlucky not to advance to the round of 16 despite winning four games in the group stage.
Incheon won their final Group G match of the 2023-24 ACL on Nov. 13 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila, Philippines, 3-1 on away goals from Park Seung-ho, Choi Woo-jin, and Kim Do-hyuk.
However, at the same time, Yokohama F Marinos (Japan) defeated Shandong Taishan (China) 3-0 to advance to the Round of 16. All three teams are now 4-2, but Incheon (-1), which trails Yokohama (+1) and Shandong (0) on goal difference, slipped to third in the group and out of the Round of 16. Kaya is winless in six matches. In this edition of the ACL, in addition to the five East Asian group winners, the top three teams in each group advance to the Round of 16.월카지노
With veterans like Delbridge, Mugosa, Shin Shin-ho, and Lee Myung-joo out with injuries, Incheon benched Jerso and Hernandez in favor of young blood, including 23-year-old Chun Sung-hoon, 22-year-old Hong Si-hoo, 20-year-old Park Seung-ho, and 19-year-old Choi Woo-jin.
Incheon found themselves in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper in the sixth minute when Kim Do-hyuk lost the ball in the halfway line, but Kim Dong-heon was able to make the save. After escaping the danger, Incheon took the lead in the sixth minute. Park Seung-ho sent a left-footed early cross from the opponent’s right side toward the doorway, and the ball bounced once on the ground in front of the goalkeeper before being sucked into the left corner of the goal. Hong Sihu, who passed the ball to Park Seung-ho, was credited with the assist.
Incheon added another goal in the 25th minute. After receiving a ball from Mpoku in the back, Choi Woo-jin opened the scoring with his left foot. The assistant referee raised his flag for offside, but the goal was upheld after a video assistant referee (VAR) review.
Incheon pulled one back in the eighth minute of the second half. Kaya’s corner kick was poorly punched by Kim Dong-heon, who then conceded a header to Simone Rota, who won an aerial contest with Mpoku. Incheon tightened the reins by bringing on Gerso, Hernandez, and Park Hyun-bin, but were unable to add to their lead, before Kim Do-hyuk drove a wedge into the match when he converted a penalty kick that substitute Kim Jun-yup had secured by drawing a handball foul in the box in late stoppage time. Incheon’s last match of the year saw them beat Yuzhong but ultimately failed to reach the round of 16, leaving them deeply disappointed.
Elsewhere in the K League, three teams advanced to the round of 16: Jeonbuk Hyundai, who finished second in Group F with four points after defeating Bangkok United 3-2 at home, and Pohang Steelers (16 points) and Ulsan Hyundai (10 points), who earlier finished first in Group J and second in Group I, respectively. Jeonbuk and Ulsan punched their tickets to the Round of 16 ahead of Group H runner-up Melbourne City (Australia – 9 points) and Group J runner-up Urawa Reds (Japan – 7 points). The round of 16, which will be played home and away, will be held next February. The draw is scheduled for April 28.