The K League 1 Wrap-Up: Dangerous Daejeon, Joy for Jeonbuk, Awesome Anyang, and Other Cliché Alliterative Comments | OneFootball

Plenty of goals, some surprising results, and a phenomenal welcome to K League 1 for FC Anyang. It was a great opening round of top-flight action this weekend, and in a brand new column, Nathan Sartain looks at some of the main talking points.

Going into the opening day, Daejeon would have been dreaming about the kind of ruthlessness they showed in Saturday’s 3-0 victory at Pohang Steelers’ Steelyard. After all, it took 13 attempts for the Purples to win on their travels last year, and they managed a total of 19 points from away fixtures. But it’s positive starts like this which highlight the value Hwang Sun-hong has brought to the club since his summer return. Sure, he might not be the flashiest of managers - though he’s certainly been unafraid to have Daejeon pressing high - yet he has brought indisputable results.

Before his arrival, the Purples were firmly stuck in a relegation battle, and perhaps even one of the favourites to face the drop. Yet they ended up in eighth, six points clear of any danger, and ultimately three points behind the points total they managed in their first season back in the top-flight. With new signings like Joo Min-kyu hitting the ground running too, maybe a Daejeon team led by Hwang Sun-hong could reach Final A this campaign? Of course it’s too early to tell for sure, but nobody can argue with their first round result, that’s a certainty.

As for Jeju, they displayed a similar type of effectiveness in their 2-0 triumph over FC Seoul. You’d argue on the balance Seoul had some decent chances, but it was the Islanders who were more clinical, and largely comfortable in defending anything their opposition threw at them. Still, strong home form is no stranger to Kim Hak-beom, who won 11 times with Jeju at the Jeju World Cup Stadium in 2024, and guided his team to the fourth-best home record in K League 1. They’ll seek to use that to their advantage again going forward, because it could be a difference-maker as the season progresses.

Welcome, New Managers!

In Gus Poyet’s first step into K League 1 management, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors came from behind to beat Gimcheon Sangmu 2-1. The Green Warriors played some good football here, attacking with impetus, and in contrast to last year, did not lose confidence when behind. There were promising signs all round, with 16 shots being taken (eight on target), and a real limiting of their opposition in the second-half. Jeon Jin-woo scoring will afford him plenty of confidence too, after he started to hit somewhat of a stride in latter parts of 2024.

For Jung Kyung-ho, however, his first official game in full-time management will come with a lot of learning. His Gangwon side took the lead against Daegu after soaking up a fair amount of pressure, but did not look comfortable at all throughout the game. Misplaced passes, a lack of high quality chance creation, and in general an absence of urgency, this was not what he’d have envisaged when taking over the Bears, who were well and truly beaten by a Daegu side that grew in confidence throughout the 90', sensing the game was there to be taken. On the bright side, Lee Ji-ho gave a good account of himself, building on a solid pre-season, and will perhaps be disappointed he didn’t grab a goal shortly after his smart assist for Vitor Gabriel’s headed effort.

Anyang's Debut Victory

A clean sheet and injury time winner, what more can you ask for? FC Anyang did themselves, and their fans, proud in their top-flight debut. It was a battling performance for the most part, with the Violets happy to soak up pressure in the hopes of gaining counter-attacking opportunities, conceding 15 shots (eight on target) in the process, while seeing just 27% of the ball. But all that matters is the final score, and Anyang’s new signing Bruno Mota is already looking the business for a side who will be desperate to ensure they can now build some momentum, and ultimately work towards staying in K League 1 in their first year here.

In short, it was the proverbial fairy tale start for FC Anyang, a frustrating opening for Ulsan, and as such it’ll be intriguing to watch where both teams go from here.

The Miscellaneous Stuff

If you asked 100 K League fans which game would end 0-0 this week, very few would’ve predicted it’d have been the match between Gwangju and Suwon. But that’s how opening rounds can be, with neither side clinical, and both arguably a tad cagey.

Speaking of opening rounds being unpredictable, every Final A team from last year lost this week except for Suwon FC. For some sides, that might be a wake up call, but for others, they’ll have to hope it won’t lead to any sustained poor runs.

And that’s about everything really. It was an enjoyable first week of K League 1 action, which will hopefully carry through for the rest of 2025. At the very least, the league looks to again be increasingly competitive.