K League 1 (1st Division) leader Ulsan HD has reached the quarterfinals of the 2024 Hana Bank Korea Cup with a hard-fought victory.
Head coach Hong Myung-bo's Ulsan defeated Park Dong-hyuk's Gyeongnam FC 3-0 on penalties after the two sides were tied 3-3 after 90 minutes and 4-4 in extra time in their round of 16 home match at the Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan on Monday.
After conceding an early goal to Gyeongnam's Cho Sang-joon in the first 15 minutes, Ulsan took advantage of their numerical advantage when their opponent was sent off in the 42nd minute. The referee awarded Ulsan a penalty kick and showed Lee a red card after Gyeongnam's Lee Min-ki blocked his shot with his arm just before it entered the net.
However, even after the 1-1 tie, Ulsan was unable to take control of the game. Gyeongnam's Lee Min-hyuk scored a goal to regain the lead in the 17th minute of the second half. Ulsan looked like they were going to take the lead in the second half with back-to-back goals from Ataru in the 30th minute and Eom Won-sang in the 34th minute, but in the 39th minute, Gyeongnam's Lee Jong-un neutralized three Ulsan defenders with his quick movement and scored with his right foot to tie the game at 3-3.
Gyeongnam fought back to make it 4-3 in the 12th minute of extra time when Seol Hyun-jin's left-footed mid-range shot found the back of the net. Ulsan escaped elimination in the 10th minute of the 안전놀이터 second half of extra time when Kim Min-woo's left-footed shot that hit the opponent's goalkeeper directly and deflected off the post was a lucky goal. In the penalty shootout, backup goalkeeper Moon Hyun-ho came up big in the shootout, and Ulsan booked their place in the quarterfinals.
Jeonbuk Hyundai was stunned by a lower league team. Jeonbuk lost 0-1 to Gimpo FC in an away match at the Gimpo Solter Football Stadium. It was a dismal year for Jeonbuk, who slumped to 11th place in the K League 1, the worst finish in the league, and an early exit from the Korea Cup, the only competition they had a shot at winning this season.
Kim Doo-hyun, the highly touted new head coach of Jeonbuk, has yet to record a win in four official matches (1-3).
At the Incheon Football Stadium, Incheon United narrowly missed out on a spot in the quarterfinals with a 4-3 penalty shootout victory over Gimcheon Sangmu after the teams played to a 0-0 draw in extra time.
Gwangju FC advanced to the quarterfinals for the second straight year with a 3-2 away win over Bucheon FC. Gwangju took an early lead with three goals in the first half from Lee Eun-hee (two) and Gabriel.
Only two of the eight matches finished inside 90 minutes, and six of the matches went to penalty kicks. Six teams - Pohang, Gwangju, Ulsan, Incheon, Seoul, and Daejeon - punched their tickets to the quarterfinals in K League 1, while two teams - Gimpo and Seongnam FC - punched their tickets to the quarterfinals in the second division.
Head coach Hong Myung-bo's Ulsan defeated Park Dong-hyuk's Gyeongnam FC 3-0 on penalties after the two sides were tied 3-3 after 90 minutes and 4-4 in extra time in their round of 16 home match at the Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan on Monday.
After conceding an early goal to Gyeongnam's Cho Sang-joon in the first 15 minutes, Ulsan took advantage of their numerical advantage when their opponent was sent off in the 42nd minute. The referee awarded Ulsan a penalty kick and showed Lee a red card after Gyeongnam's Lee Min-ki blocked his shot with his arm just before it entered the net.
However, even after the 1-1 tie, Ulsan was unable to take control of the game. Gyeongnam's Lee Min-hyuk scored a goal to regain the lead in the 17th minute of the second half. Ulsan looked like they were going to take the lead in the second half with back-to-back goals from Ataru in the 30th minute and Eom Won-sang in the 34th minute, but in the 39th minute, Gyeongnam's Lee Jong-un neutralized three Ulsan defenders with his quick movement and scored with his right foot to tie the game at 3-3.
Gyeongnam fought back to make it 4-3 in the 12th minute of extra time when Seol Hyun-jin's left-footed mid-range shot found the back of the net. Ulsan escaped elimination in the 10th minute of the 안전놀이터 second half of extra time when Kim Min-woo's left-footed shot that hit the opponent's goalkeeper directly and deflected off the post was a lucky goal. In the penalty shootout, backup goalkeeper Moon Hyun-ho came up big in the shootout, and Ulsan booked their place in the quarterfinals.
Jeonbuk Hyundai was stunned by a lower league team. Jeonbuk lost 0-1 to Gimpo FC in an away match at the Gimpo Solter Football Stadium. It was a dismal year for Jeonbuk, who slumped to 11th place in the K League 1, the worst finish in the league, and an early exit from the Korea Cup, the only competition they had a shot at winning this season.
Kim Doo-hyun, the highly touted new head coach of Jeonbuk, has yet to record a win in four official matches (1-3).
At the Incheon Football Stadium, Incheon United narrowly missed out on a spot in the quarterfinals with a 4-3 penalty shootout victory over Gimcheon Sangmu after the teams played to a 0-0 draw in extra time.
Gwangju FC advanced to the quarterfinals for the second straight year with a 3-2 away win over Bucheon FC. Gwangju took an early lead with three goals in the first half from Lee Eun-hee (two) and Gabriel.
Only two of the eight matches finished inside 90 minutes, and six of the matches went to penalty kicks. Six teams - Pohang, Gwangju, Ulsan, Incheon, Seoul, and Daejeon - punched their tickets to the quarterfinals in K League 1, while two teams - Gimpo and Seongnam FC - punched their tickets to the quarterfinals in the second division.