Week 10: Big Review of K League 2 | OneFootball

A weekend of vastly contrasting weather conditions presumably impacted the enjoyment for fans of all clubs. Gimpo FC showed off their modest redevelopments at Solteo on a roasting Saturday afternoon. Across the province, Seongnam ambushed a dreadful Suwon team in the rain and Gyeongnam continue to pick up points.

Gimpo FC 0

Bucheon FC 1995 1 (Lee Jeong-bin 94')

Solteo Stadium

4,143

Shirts off and three points for Bucheon.

Exactly 150 days since their play-off draw with Gangwon FC, Gimpo FC returned to a redeveloped Solteo for the early kick-off on Saturday. The result, and performance, was not what the 4,000-strong crowd expected after Lee Jeong-bin's late winner deservedly saw the points depart on the team bus to Bucheon. Gimpo started brightly but faded noticeably as Bucheon took control. Leonard Pllana is a proper footballer, though. He should be in K League 1.

Lee was the unlikely goalscorer. Having come off the bench, this was his first goal of the season and only the fifth in his career. Lupeta, who could have scored a hattrick, thought he had given Bucheon a half-hour lead when racing on to Bassani's delayed through ball after a brilliant turn, but was correctly ruled out for offside. Bucheon had numerous chances to win this before Lee's last-gasp goal.

Chungnam Asan FC 1 (Kim Seung-ho 74')

FC Anyang  1 (Kim Seung-ho, OG, 78')

Yi Sun-sin Stadium

2,715

Chungnam Asan wingback Kim Seung-ho did what few players have ever done on a blazing hot Saturday in Yi Sun-sin. Kim netted twice in four minutes, once for his team and then quickly added the equalizer for Anyang. His left-footed penalty put Asan ahead but soon Kim was helpless knocking home Kim Woon's delivery. Anyang's equalizer came down to Asan goalkeeper Shin Song-hoon inexplicably tearing off his line leaving his wingback vulnerable inside.

This match was completely ruined by terrible officiating, prolonged VAR interruptions and bizarre VAR timings. Asan forward Kang Min-gyu was given a straight red for planting his studs in Choi Gyu-hyeon's lower leg. The onfield decision was ridiculously overturned following a review. Choi was unable to take further part in the game. Then the referee was called upon to review an infringement in the Anyang box. He awarded a penalty but between the initial contact and review, 5 minutes 45 seconds had passed. In that time, Anyang had a goal ruled out for the third time in the match.

Seongnam FC 2 (Leanardo Ruiz 33', Kim Hun-min 97')

Suwon Samsung 1 (Lee Sang-min 99')

Tancheon Stadium

8,252

Three defeats already for Suwon in the second tier.

Did you ever think you'd see the day when Seongnam FC and Suwon Bluewings would meet in K League 2 at the exact same time as Suwon FC versus Gangwon FC in K League 1? A great reminder of how far these former champions have fallen. The spoils, however, belong to the Magpies after a goal in each half knocked a woeful Suwon off top spot. Whilst Kim Hun-min's settler was a thing of beauty, the defending for Ruiz's opener was comical; every Suwon defender was ball watching a free kick allowing the Colombian to head Seongnam in front.

The full time stats proved to be grim reading for the Bluewings. 60% possession and about a dozen shots off target. Since the commanding win in Anyang a fortnight ago, Yeom Ki-hun's outfit have dropped 5 points from 6 against bottom half teams. Lee Sang-min pulled one back late on and Suwon had another chance to steal a point but overall, it was an unacceptable outing.

This result - Seongnam's brittle confidence, Suwon's good away form, and Suwon's solid(ish) defense on the road - brutally exposed my pre match report below.

Jeonnam Dragons 1 (Ha Nam 58')

Gyeongnam FC 3 (Arabuli 33', 51' and 70')

Gwangyang Stadium

1,042

Hattrick hero Bachana Arabuli celebrates his second goal with the away fans.

Bachana Arabuli had scored one goal in his five games in Korean football but the Georgian is now up to four after this hattrick on the south coast. Gyeongnam are now unbeaten in five and up to 5th following a terrible start to the season. The late concession in Suwon last Sunday will hurt them but this was a great way to rebound from that obvious disappointment.

Jeonnam played almost half of this game with 10 men following Shin Il-soo's second yellow card for handball immediately after the break. The referee initially awarded a free kick but that was upgraded to a penalty. Arabuli's converted spot kick, combined with Shin's red, ended the contest. The conditions were so miserable in Gwangyang it looked like a covid-era game due to all the vacant yellow and black seats. Gyeongnam are motoring, Jeonnam are winless in five.

Cheonan City FC 1 (Lee Gwang-jin 71')

Ansan Greeners 1 (Ma Sang-hoon, OG, 63')

Cheonan Stadium

1,008

Last season's basement dwellers served up a first half classic on Monday evening. 0 corners, 0 shots on target, 2 shots on goal. The only excitement coming from two Ansan yellow cards.

The second half was, thankfully, a more entertaining affair. Centre back Ma Sang-hoon picked up a yellow card and then powered a header into his own net with 30 minutes to play. Ansan's lead was short lived, when Lee Gwang-jin met Moon Geon-ho's sublime pass to rescue a point for the hosts. We'll leave it there.

Goalscorers Bruno Silva and Kim Myung-soon in Mokdong.

Bruno Silva continued his excellent start to the season with a sixth goal in eight appearances for Seoul E-Land. Combined with his three assists, Silva accounts for 50% of Seoul's goals in  2024.

Kim Myung-soon scored the first goal of his career to earn his side a share of the spoils. Kim enjoyed some K League 1 experience with Jeju United before joining Cheongju in 2023. He featured regularly for his new side and the young defender is again a key member of the promotion chasing club.

Busan IPark sat out Round 10.

Up next...

Saturday

Busan IPark vs. Chungnam Asan FC

Ansan Greeners vs. Seoul E-Land

Suwon Samsung vs. Cheonan City FC

Sunday

FC Anyang vs. Gimpo FC

Gyeongnam FC vs. Seongnam FC

Bucheon FC 1995 vs. Jeonnam Dragons

Chungbuk Cheongju FC have a much-needed rest.