2025 Season Preview: Pohang Steelers | OneFootball

After a 2024 season filled with ups and downs, Pohang Steelers look to dig their boots into the ground in the constant upstream battle of K League 1. With key additions entering year two of the Park Tae-ha era, can the Steelers make their way back to the top of the table?

Last Season

14 Wins, 11 Draws, 13 Losses / 53 Points / 6th

53 goals scored, 50 goals allowed

Ended the season on a six-game winless skid

What Happened?

Simply put: A lot. Pohang was a serious title contender at one point in the season, looking to challenge fierce rivals Ulsan HD in their quest for a third-straight league title. After hitting a mid-season slump and being bit hard by the injury bug, they ended the season mid-table. The final 16 league matches of the campaign saw them pick up just three victories.

Injuries to leading scorer Lee Ho-jae, who netted nine in league play, and center back Lee Dong-hee meant that the Steelers were short-handed for much of the year's second half. Still, there were encouraging signs.

Jorge Teixeira, who signed from second-division side Chungbuk Cheongju FC in the previous window, was beginning to find his footing. Despite beginning the year as the team's backup, Yun Pyung-guk hit a strong vein of form, capturing the starting role between the sticks in the final months of the season.

The Steelers enter the 2025 season ranked fifth in the AFC Champions League Elite. A win over previously undefeated Vissel Kobe helped them avoid sliding too far down the table, and they are now a few points away from securing entry into the knockout stages.

While a sixth-place finish in the league is far removed from continental spots, Pohang defeated Ulsan HD in the Korean Cup to win back-to-back in the competition, earning a spot in the AFC Champions League Two for the 2025-26 campaign.

Notable Moves

As it has been for the past few years, Pohang's transfer window purse strings have been rather tight. A cash-plus-player trade brought in talented left-back Lee Tae-suk from FC Seoul for the price of Kang Hyun-mu. The deal cleared out an already crowded goalkeeper room while bringing in a national team-level player, a positive deal for the future of Park Tae-ha's squad.

Pohang's past few transfer windows have been characterized by one marquee yet underrated signing supported by free signings. This year's marquee signing is Brazilian winger Juninho Rocha, who enjoyed a breakout 2024 with Chungnam Asan FC. Pohangreportedly beat K League 1 runner-up Gangwon FC to secure his signature, with a package centered around youngsters Choi Hyun-woong, Kim Jung-hyun, and cash getting the deal across the line.

As always, the club was heavily involved in the free agent market, bringing in pacy winger Kim Beom-su, who was most recently with Ansan Greeners FC. A handful of university and high school athletes also joined Pohang's ranks, with some of the most notable names being Ajou University's Cho Sang-hyeok and Tongmyong University's Han Hyeon-seo.

Towards the end of 2024, the club announced they were retaining several key players for the new season, including captain Wanderson, new starting goalkeeper, Yun Pyung-guk, and defender Jonathan Aspropotamitis — who after a rough start at the club found his footing to end the year.

A few notable names left the team, too. Jeong Jae-hee left for greener pastures at Daejeon Hana Citizen, fullback Kim Ryun-sung moved closer to home to Jeju SK, midfielder Yoon Seok-joo moved to Seoul E Land, and up-and-coming prospect Kim Myung-jun made a long-awaited transfer to Europe with a move to Genk.

Key Player

While the performances of Brazilian striker Jorge are sure to be examined under a microscope this campaign, compatriot midfielder Oberdan will play a crucial role in the team's achievements this year.

Under both Park Tae-ha and previous manager Kim Gi-dong, Oberdan has almost always been a starter, with injury or recovery from injury being the only things to keep him on the bench.

He plays a key role in Pohang's build-up football, which sees the team move the ball from its defensive third up towards its most creative in the attacking third. He's expected to be joined by Kim Jong-woo or Han Chan-hee in the midfield pivot of a 4-4-2.

He was the only Pohang player to be honored at the 2024 K League Awards, given a spot in the league's Best Eleven as a midfielder. Oberdan's position seeing no big-name additions via the transfer window speaks volumes on his importance to the team, and his ability and availability will be key at the Steelyard.

Young Player to Watch

With Hong Yun-sang, born in 2002, exhausting all of his eligibility as an under-22 player, Pohang will need to turn to somebody else to comply with league rules if they wish to make the most of their bench this season.

Cho Jae-hun, who spent last season on loan at Jeonnam Dragons, could be who Park Tae-ha looks to fill that role. Cho, while not the paciest or strongest player on the pitch, possesses technical ability that could look to make the most out of an early run by an attacking player. The link-up play between him, Hong, Lee Ho-jae, Jorge, and Juninho could be crucial in Park Tae-ha's attacking philosophy this season.

Midfielder Kim Dong-jin, who fell out of favor after playing a prominent role in the middle of the year, also possesses great technical ability, but has been shaky when holding the ball. He and Cho are most likely to share the U22 duties this season.

If Cho and Kim are hurt or unavailable, young striker Cho Sang-hyeok could be used as a match starter, and the same could be said for 2004-born center-back Lee Gyu-baeg.

Biggest Question

Can the players stay healthy?

In 2024, it seemed as though every positive stretch was abruptly ended with an injury to a key player. Lee Ho-jae, Lee Dong-hee, Han Chan-hee, Oberdan, and Hong Yun-sang all missed time at some point with an injury. If he is able to keep its star players on the field, Park Tae-ha has proven that he can put up a fight against the top teams in the league.

While Park has an abundance of depth in attacking positions thanks to the retention of players like Kim In-sung and Baek Sung-dong, the team is just one or two injuries in central defense or midfield away from needing a youngster to step up.

Reason to Watch

Who doesn't like a re-run? 2024 was the introduction of 'Tae-ha Drama', which saw the Steelers capture last-minute victories all across the nation before eventually sinking into their end-season form. Pohang will be out to prove to the rest of the league that their rich vein of form to open the year was not a fluke, and that if not for injuries, they would have finished far higher than sixth.