Jeonju’s green wave calms Ulsan’s blue waves
110th Hyundai Derby: Jeonbuk’s Cho Kyu-sung and Moon Sun-min score consecutive goals to defeat Ulsan 2-0
The blue waves of Ulsan Hyundai were swallowed up by the iron wall defence of Jeonbuk Hyundai in front of Jeonju Castle.
On the 16th round of the Hana OneQ K League 1 2023 match between Jeonbuk Hyundai and Ulsan Hyundai at the Jeonju World Cup Stadium on the 3rd, Jeonbuk defeated the leaders and fierce rivals Ulsan Hyundai 2-0 thanks to consecutive goals from Cho Kyu-sung and Moon Sun-min to move up to sixth place in the standings.
A cloudy crowd of 27,797 travelled to Jeonju World Cup Stadium in 28-degree heat, and Jeonbuk reciprocated with a stunning performance against their arch-rivals, beating Ulsan at home for the first time in 575 days to kick-start a feel-good weekend.
Crowds gathered three hours before kick-off
Three hours before kickoff, the stadium was already packed with fans from the World Cup in Jeonju. Normally, all stadium gates open two hours before kick-off, but ahead of the Hyundai derby, Jeonbuk opened all gates at 13:30, three hours before kick-off, to prepare for the huge crowd.
At 13:30, the stadium gates opened and fans who had travelled to Jeonju to watch the match began to enter one after another. One after another, fans were seen entering the stadium three hours before kick-off, preparing to cheer for the flags with rags, and some fans were seen singing cheers as they entered the stadium, expressing their desire for Hyundai to win the derby.
Jeonbuk held quite a few events for the Hyundai derby on the day. Cheerleader Lee Da-hye, a well-known Jeonbuk fan, came to the stadium to host a talk show, and there were also QR codes around the stadium to give away prizes.
The cheering was as intense as the game itself
An hour before kickoff, Jeonbuk and Ulsan players entered the stadium to warm up. As soon as the Ulsan team entered the stadium, Jeonju Castle was filled with boos. The boos came from Jeonbuk fans. In response, the Ulsan fans started chanting “Ulsan” and cheering for the Ulsan team.
Soon after, the Jeonbuk team entered the field, and the Ulsan fans responded with boos. Ten minutes before kick-off, as the teams entered the field for the match, the cheering began to intensify. The Jeonbuk fans showed their support with flag chants, and the Ulsan fans responded with muffled chants, cheering for Ulsan as their voices drifted away.
Jeonju fans could be seen cheering loudly from every seat in the stadium, and it was hard to believe that it was the same Jeonju fans who had boycotted the game just two months earlier, giving the Jeonbuk team a boost of morale.
Ulsan fans travelled all the way from Jeonju to support their team. The Ulsan fans, who travelled all the way from Jeonju to support the Ulsan team, cheered the Ulsan team throughout the game and cheered loudly for the team after the game, even in the extra time when the deficit was deepening.
The cheering was as intense as the game itself. The cheering match, which was worthy of a prestigious match, was also a factor that enhanced the fun of the Hyundai Derby.
Jun Amano, Sun-min Moon, and Kyu-sung Cho make a difference for Ulsan
From the start of the match, the overall picture was of Ulsan dominating Jeonbuk. Ulsan set up a high defensive line against Jeonbuk and knocked on the door of Jeonbuk’s goal. In the first half, Ulsan put pressure on Jeonbuk, recording four shots on target. Jeonbuk, on the other hand, played a more defensive stance against Ulsan and had to settle for a disappointing first half with only four shots on target.
At the start of the second half, Jeonbuk began to make changes, bringing starter Hapa Silva to the bench and introducing international striker Cho Kyu-sung. Ulsan tried to make a change after the introduction of Cho Kyu-sung, but the effect was minimal.
The fateful 65th minute arrived just as Ulsan’s fierce attack was knocking on Jeonju’s door. Jeonbuk benched starters Oh Jae-hyuk and Gustavo in favour of former Ulsan man Jun Amano and the destructive pace of Moon Sun-min, while Ulsan also looked to make an attacking change by benched In-Ju-gyu and brought on Hungarian bomber Martin Adam.
Jeonbuk began to turn the tide of the game with the introduction of Moon Sun-min, who was adept at making straightforward moves, and Amano Jun, who provided creative passes from the centre of the park, and eventually scored the club’s record-breaking first goal in the 83rd minute. Jun Amano received the ball from Jung Woo-jae on the right flank and spotted Cho Kyu-sung penetrating into the penalty box before quickly sending in a cross that Cho Kyu-sung finished with a perfect header to give Jeonbuk the lead.
After scoring his first league goal in 91 days, Cho Kyu-sung jumped for joy and Jeonju City was filled with cheers and shouts of support. Jeonbuk then sealed the win with a late goal from Moon Sun-min in stoppage time. In the 90th minute, Jeong Tae-wook overcame a challenge from Ulsan’s Rubik’s Cube and passed the ball to Cho Kyu-sung, followed by a Cho Kyu-sung-Song Min-gyu pass, and after receiving Song Min-gyu’s pass, Moon Sun-min neatly slotted the ball into the bottom left corner with his left foot, ending the game with the control tower ceremony.
‘It’s Orelet + Art’ Jeonbuk’s perfect finish
Before Moon could celebrate his second goal, referee Lee Dong-joon blew the whistle to end the match. The victorious Jeonbuk team started jumping and celebrating after the game, while the defeated Ulsan team approached their fans to apologise and thank them for travelling to Jeonju.
After the game, Jeonju played the famous singer PSY’s signature song “Art is” in the stadium to celebrate the victory. The in-stadium announcer also encouraged the fans to sing along to the song, creating a fantastic atmosphere. When the song ended, Jeonbuk fans chanted “Oreille” with the victorious team, signalling the end of the match 스포츠토토.
A ‘luxury match’ worthy of the derby’s name took place in Jeonju Castle. The atmosphere and events surrounding the stadium were a work of art, let alone the performance.
After a three-day break at home, Jeonbuk will look to extend their winning streak when they host Daegu FC on Wednesday (7 July), who are in the same position as Jeonbuk in the standings. On the other hand, after a two-day break that saw them suffer their second defeat of the season, Ulsan will travel to Suwon on Tuesday (6) to take on Suwon FC, who are coming off a comfortable win in the Suwon Derby.