Ulsan HD is evolving into a stronger team as coach Kim Pan-gon intended.
Ulsan won 1-0 in the 32nd round of Hana Bank K League 1 2024 against Daejeon Hana Citizen at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 27th.
Ulsan, which had three points in away matches, maintained its lead with 58 points. It is five points ahead of runner-up Gimcheon Sangmu (53 points), and has maintained an advantage in the championship race.
What was more impressive than the result was the contents of Ulsan’s first half game. Ulsan plagued Daejeon with strong pressure and high energy throughout the first half. Wingsers, including Joo Min-kyu and Kim Ji-hyun, who played as two-top players, interfered with Daejeon’s build-up through systematic pressure defense. Due to Ulsan’s pressure, Daejeon’s defense was unable to execute accurate passes. Ko Seung-bum and Boyanichi overwhelmed their opponents at the waist with proper positioning and active movements.
According to Bifroleven, an analyst, Ulsan’s average position in the first half starts at 40.4 meters from the defense line. Striker Kim Ji-hyun was located 26.7 meters from the opponent’s side. Considering that Daejeon’s defense starts at the 31-meter point, Ulsan’s aggressive moves can be clearly identified.
At the same time, Ulsan maintained an average gap of 32.2 meters from the front to the last in the first half. The gap is noticeably tighter compared to Daejeon’s gap of 45.4 meters. In modern soccer, maintaining the gap is considered the core of the tactic. As it is the key point to win in a numerical fight, the team that keeps the gap narrow can perform better during offense and defense.
Ulsan’s first-half game contents and patterns were similar to Liverpool led by Jurgen Klopp in the past. It seemed to be watching “heavy metal soccer,” which presses like crazy and overwhelms the opponent with high energy. It is also the style that head coach Kim Pan-gon pursues. Coach Kim said, “It went well as planned. Looking at the past few games of Daejeon, we showed good pressing and dynamic performance. Daejeon is a team that fights very strongly, so we prepared more today. He has strong mentality and good energy,” expressing satisfaction.
In terms of recent performance, Daejeon was a team that put pressure on the front line as high as Ulsan, but the level of the first half on the day was wide. Daejeon has hardly been able to put pressure on the front line, which has recently settled down due to its strengths. It had to play a difficult game by giving up possession of the ball easily.
The first goal was scored by Ulsan in the first half, so Daejeon led the game in the second half, but Ulsan was superior in terms of the completeness of the overall tactics. It was a game that realized the difference in rankings. 스포츠토토
