'6 games winless in May, 11 runs' Anyang's zombie soccer goes to the real test
'6 games winless in May, 11 runs' Anyang's zombie soccer goes to the real test
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FC Anyang has been put to a real test for the promotion season.
Anyang, which played the 15th round of Hana Bank K League 1 2025 at Anyang Sports Complex on Sunday, lost to the Pohang Steelers 0-2. Anyang ranked ninth with 17 points.
Anyang played its first 11 K-League matches rather well. As a promotion team, it met Ulsan HD in its opening game and beat the latter 1-0, before beating the latter 1-0 away to Daegu FC in March, and in April, it beat Gangwon FC, Suwon FC, and Jeju SK at home in succession, aiming for the top split beyond the mid-tier by April with five wins and six losses.
Anyang fell into a slump in May, however. It had a tough schedule. The first match in May was an away match against Daejeon Hana Citizen, which was ranked first at the time, and Anyang lost 1-2. Three days later, the team invited FC Seoul to its home ground, which tied the match 1-1 after fierce competition as the derby involved emotions. Just before the match against Pohang, the team lost 0-2 away to Jeonbuk Hyundai, which is currently ranked first in the league.
The most devastating moment for Anyang's performance came when they met in succession at Daegu FC, the league and the Korea Cup. Daegu was a team that was moving around in the relegation zone, leaving its sparkle behind at the beginning of this season. Anyang, however, had to settle for a 2-2 draw after hardships in the home game of the league against Daegu. Even so, it was possible thanks to Edgar's own goal. The team lost 1-2 even though it was a home game in the following week's Korea Cup. It had no win in six games in May, with two draws and four losses.
Above all, the loose defense system was a problem. Anyang has allowed a total of nine goals in nine league games since its 2-0 win against Gangwon, the first game in April. In May alone, the team allowed a total of nine goals in five league games. Including Daegu and the Korea Cup, it has 11 goals in six games. The bigger problem is that the team did not allow a large number of goals in one game. Anyang allowed two goals each in all games in May except for the match against Seoul.
A fundamental problem has become a thin layer of players, which has been pointed out as Anyang's weakness even before the start of the season. Notably, Kim Jung-hyun, Lee Young-jik, Choi Kyu-hyun, and Han Ga-ram were absent from the midfielder lineup at least once due to injuries or abnormal physical conditions. Furthermore, even if only one or two players were injured, the number of midfielders was absolutely insufficient, so the team had no choice but to attract and use players who had just recovered, which has become a vicious cycle that leads to recurrence of injuries. For example, Kim Jung-hyun repeatedly leaves business trips and absences after being injured in April.
Anyang's defense tactics also lost their power due to the opponent's response and Anyang's decreased concentration. Given that the main midfielders and center backs are not small in age, Anyang has been controlling its opponent's offense by thickening the central area of the stadium rather than pressing them from above. The use of anomalous three-backs also made it difficult for opponents to enter the center. Recently, however, when Anyang's defense has lost concentration, opponents frequently attack it. In the first scoring scene of the match, Auberdan's forward pass and Lee Ho-jae's one-touch pass penetrated Anyang's defense. In the second scoring scene, when Kim In-sung received Jorge's cross, Kang Ji-hoon completely missed Kim In-sung and bowed his head.
Coach Yoo Byung-hoon expressed his strong will to overcome the crisis by preparing other strategies in the future. "As we stress response to defense, we are now taking defensive form. We need to apply aggressive pressure to form a higher line. We will make mistakes as offensive players participate in defense, but when offensive players are deployed, we will play aggressive defense," he said in a press conference after the game. 메이저사이트
Captain Lee Chang-yong also vowed to work harder. After the game, I met with reporters in the mixed zone (joint coverage area) and said, "I'm thinking a lot about what to say when we don't have good chemistry while playing. I think I'll have to talk a lot with the coach," and analyzed the cause of the slump, saying, "I think the cause is that individual plays came out little by little rather than promises to the team because I gained confidence while doing unexpectedly well in the first round robin."