Ulsan's Hong Myung-bo "No K League 1 victory ceremony yet, focu
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"It's good to have the experience to deal with the players," says Ulsan away to Johor on the 7th
Head coach Hong Myung-bo speaking at the press conference on June 6
Ahead of their Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) away match against Johor Darul Ta'zim (Malaysia), defending K League 1 champions Ulsan Hyundai head coach Hong Myung-bo has called on his players to be focused as he sees the match as a watershed in their progression through the group stage.
"I think this game is important for us to advance to the round of 16," Hong said at a press conference in Malaysia on June 6. "We won against Johor at home, so I think our opponent will be well prepared. We will prepare well in the remaining time and achieve a good result."
Ulsan will take on Johor at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Johor, Malaysia on July 7 at 9 p.m. (KST) in the fourth match of Group I of the 2023-2024 ACL.
Ulsan has two wins and one loss in the group stage (6 points) and sits in second place in Group I behind Kawasaki Frontale (Japan - 3 wins, 9 points).
Having clinched their second consecutive league title early with a 2-0 win over Daegu FC in the 35th round of the K League 1 on March 29, they can now focus their efforts on the ACL.
Johor (P3), currently third in the group, will be more confident as Ulsan defeated them 3-1 in the third leg at the Munsu Football Stadium last month on April 24.
Rubikson scores a goal
Ulsan's Rubixson celebrates with teammates after scoring his side's second goal during the 2023-2024 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) group stage match between Ulsan Hyundai and Johor Darul Taqim of Malaysia at Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, South Korea, on Oct. 24.
"We've won the title in the K League 1, but we haven't done any ceremonies yet, which means our players can focus on the ACL and take it seriously," Hong said, emphasizing that they will continue to focus on the ACL.
"It's their home game, and Johor needs a win, so I think they'll come out aggressive. There will definitely be some difficult periods, but if we can handle them smartly, we can win."
"In our last game, we won despite having one man sent off, and we played a good game. It's important how we focus on the game rather than focusing on the number of players, whether it's one or 11," said Hong, adding, "Tomorrow, we will try to predict and prepare for our opponent in an equalized situation."
Ulsan also faced Johor in the ACL group stage last year and came away with bad memories of the city, where the group's matches were pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ulsan suffered from "home field advantage," being assigned a training field with poor grass and not being able to train at the stadium where the games would be played, and were eventually eliminated with two losses to Johor alone. 카지노사이트