Professional soccer K League 1’s ‘last place’ Suwon Samsung kept the flames of its ‘escape from the bottom’ alive with a dramatic come-from-behind victory over Suwon FC in the ‘Suwon Derby’ despite 10 men.
Suwon came from behind to win 3-2 in the 36th round of the Hana OneQ K League 1 2023 Final B at Suwon Sports Complex on Wednesday.
With the win, 12th-ranked Suwon (29 points) regained the top spot in the standings from 11th-ranked Gangwon FC (30 points), who had won the previous day.
Meanwhile, 10th-ranked Suwon FC (32 points) is now two points behind Gangwon, putting a red flag on their chances of staying in the top 10.
The gap between the ‘last place’ Suwon and Suwon FC has also narrowed to three points.
Determined to catch up to Gangwon, Suwon started four foreign players – Acosti, Kazuki, Bassani, and Werikpopo – in the starting lineup.
Suwon focused on attacking early in the first half and harassed the Suwon FC backline.
In the fourth minute of the first half, Bassani’s penetrating pass was picked up by Werikpopo and his right-footed shot from the right side of the penalty area was blocked by the goalkeeper who made a great save from close range.
Suwon, who had raised the level of their offense, were outnumbered in the 14th minute when Kazuki was sent off for a rough challenge.
Kazuki, who was engaged in a nervous battle with Suwon FC‘s Kim Do-yoon in his own half, lost his temper and pushed him hard with his arm, prompting the referee to show Kazuki a red card after a video assistant referee (VAR) review.
Suwon FC improved their ball possession against the 10-man Suwon and finally took the lead in the 30th minute.
Central defender Uno Gomes, who joined the attack from a corner kick on the left by Yoon Beom-garam, scored with a header from the right side of the goal area.
But Suwon would not go down without a fight.
Suwon scored in first-half stoppage time on a corner kick from the right side of the box, and after the goalkeeper was punched out, defender Volul Acosti slotted home with his right foot from the left side of the goal area to make it 1-1 at the break.
Suwon fought back and turned the game around in the eighth minute of the second half through Ahn Byung-jun’s mid-range shot, but Suwon FC’s Kim Hyun equalized with a header in the 15th minute to make it 2-2.
Despite being outnumbered, Suwon continued their offense and introduced Mulich in the 26th minute.
Within seven minutes of taking the field, Mulicic sent a ball into the goal area near the front of the penalty area, where an onrushing Kim Joo-chan caught it and finished with a right-footed shot.
Kim’s goal proved to be the game-winner, and Suwon secured a valuable three points away from home.
At Incheon Stadium, fourth-placed Jeonbuk Hyundai (54 points) battled fifth-placed Incheon United (53 points) to a 1-1 draw.
Jeonbuk, who have a long way to go to chase down third-placed Gwangju FC (58 points) for a spot in next year’s Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) elite playoffs, had to settle for just one more point.
After a goalless first half, Jeonbuk conceded a goal to Incheon’s Kim Do-hyuk in the 15th minute of the second half, but Park Jae-yong’s header in the 22nd minute saved them from defeat. 파워볼사이트