'Side by side' Kim Ki-dong and Lee Jung-hyo, one of them will not receive the 'Director of the Month Award'

*This content was translated by AI.

Competition for the Coach of the Month Award in March between Seoul coach Kim Ki-dong (55) and Suwon coach Lee Jung-hyo (51) also intensified as professional soccer K League 1 FC Seoul and K League 2 Suwon Samsung continued their "opening victory march" side by side.

While Seoul, led by head coach Kim Ki-dong, has already completed its March K League 1 schedule with all four wins (12 points), Suwon, led by head coach Lee Jung-hyo, will challenge the opening five consecutive wins through an away match against Yongin FC on the 28th.

Starting with beating Incheon United 2-1 on the 28th of last month, the opening game of the K League 1, Seoul won 2-1 against Jeju SK on March 15, 1-0 against Pohang Steelers on the 18th, and 5-0 against Gwangju FC on the 22nd.

Although Ulsan HD matches have been postponed to next month due to the 2025-2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League Elite (ACLE) schedule, and played one game less than other teams, Seoul is alone in the lead with 12 points, 10 points, and 2 points (loss + 8).

However, 'Lee Jung Hyo-ho' Suwon is also winning 2-1 against E-Land in Seoul on the 28th of last month, 1-0 against Frontier FC in Paju on the 7th of this month, 2-0 against the Jeonnam Dragons on the 14th, and 3-0 against Gimhae FC on the 21st.

In the process, Suwon scored eight goals and lost only one goal, recording a +7 margin, and if it wins the away match in Yongin, the last game of the month, it can complete the K League 2 schedule in March with the difference between winning and losing five consecutive games.

Coincidentally, both coach Kim Ki-dong and coach Lee Jung-hyo have also carved their names in the history of each club as the head coach who led the first four consecutive wins. Naturally, fans' eyes are also on who will be the main character of the K League's March Coach of the Month Award, which will be announced by the Korea Professional Football Federation early next month.

The Federation selects and announces the K-League Coach of the Month Award through the Technical Committee every month. The problem is that it does not divide K League 1 and K League 2, but only one coach who received the best evaluation throughout the entire K League can win the award. In some cases, either Kim Ki-dong or Lee Jung-hyo will not receive the K-League Coach of the Month Award, even if they lead the victory.

A federation official said on the 25th through Star News, "Unlike the award for players, this month's Coach of the Month award has few targets. "If it is operated by league such as K League 1 and K League 2, there is a lack of absolute parameters," he said. "There are no plans to divide this month's coach award winners into K League 1 and K League 2."

If the two coaches, who led the team in the lead along with the opening victory, compete, Seoul coach Kim Ki-dong of the top league, K League 1, will be more advantageous. In fact, in the past six seasons since the 2020 season, the winner of the Coach of the Month Award has more than doubled to 32 times for the K League 1 coach and 14 times for the K League 2 coach. If Suwon's victory over Yongin is canceled, the weight is more likely to be on head coach Kim Ki-dong.

However, if Suwon, led by head coach Lee Jung-hyo, wins the match against Yongin on the 28th, wins one more than Seoul, and the effect of Lee Jung-hyo, who is leading the K League 2's box office, is reflected in the evaluation of the Federation's technical committee, Lee Jung-hyo may beat head coach Kim Ki-dong to win the award.

Manager Kim Hyun-seok, who led Ulsan HD with 3 wins and 1 draw, and manager Cho Sung-hwan, who led the K League 2 Busan I'Park with no loss in the opening four games (3 wins and 1 draw), also showed leadership enough to seek the award in the previous season. However, the impact of K League 1 manager Kim Ki-dong and K League 2 manager Lee Jung-hyo in the first month of the opening is so strong that the opportunity has to be postponed next time.

Head coach Kim Ki-dong will be the second head coach of Seoul since August 2024 and the fifth in his personal career, including when he was coach of Pohang Steelers (3 times), while head coach Lee Jung-hyo will challenge for the first time since taking office in Suwon and the fourth time in his personal career, including three times when he was coach of Gwangju FC. The winner of this month's director award will receive a prize along with a commemorative trophy produced by the federation. Winners will be announced early next month.

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*This content was translated by AI.