'Lee Jeong-hyo' Suwon, momentum for ultimate goal 'direct promotion'... defeating 'title contender' twice in a row → now tied with the leader in points

*This content was translated by AI.

Under manager Lee Jeong-hyo, Suwon Samsung has risen from slump to make a brilliant comeback. After a steep upward trend following the season opener, Suwon, which recently wavered again, secured sole first place and successfully turned the tide.

On the 25th, Suwon Samsung achieved a decisive 4-1 victory in an away match against Busan IPark at Hana Bank K League 2 2026 Round 19 held at Busan Gudeok Stadium.

Suwon started nervously on this day, conceding the opening goal to Busan's Park Hye-seong in the 35th minute of the first half, but equalized just before halftime with a goal by Kim Do-yeon. Following that, Iluchenko, Park Hyun-bin, and Kang Hyun-mook scored consecutively in the second half, completing a fiery comeback win on the road.

With this result, Suwon recorded 11 wins, 3 draws, and 4 losses (36 points), tying with first-place Busan in points while firmly holding onto second place, which guarantees direct promotion. In this season's K League 2, only the top two teams receive tickets for direct promotion to K League 1. Suwon has proven its strength against top teams by defeating Busan, its main rival for the title, in both head-to-head matches.

Suwon's trajectory this season has been like a roller coaster. After starting with five consecutive wins and maintaining an unstoppable upward trend, they suffered their first defeat and fell into a two-game goalless slump following a 0-0 draw against Cheongju FC in Chungbuk at the seventh round.

Although they regrouped afterward, recent struggles against lower-ranked teams — including a 1-2 loss to Ansan Greeners, elimination from the Korea Cup with a 1-2 defeat against Busan Transportation Corporation (K3), and a 0-0 draw against Paju Frontier — have once again raised concerns about crisis.

Regarding the difficulty of playing against teams that drop deep defensively, manager Lee Jeong-hyo has previously expressed his frustration, stating, "Attacking teams that lower their defensive line is always a tough challenge."

In fact, while they struggled against teams building compact defenses, Suwon effectively exploited Busan's space behind the defense by pushing their line up and countering aggressively, as seen in this match.

Every scoring moment showcased tactical precision. Just before halftime, Kim Do-yeon broke through on the left flank during a counterattack and scored with a curling right-footed shot to level the score. Riding the momentum, Iluchenko scored a header with his characteristic high contact point in the 7th minute of the second half to take the lead. Then, in the 31st minute of the second half, Park Hyun-bin added another goal with a powerful left-footed mid-range shot following an exquisite passing sequence, sealing the advantage.

Just before the final whistle, Kang Hyun-mook capped off the 4-1 victory. In the dying moments of the match, Bruno Silva's shot, which had already bypassed the goalkeeper, struck the post and rebounded. Kang Hyun-mook calmly collected the ball as he penetrated the penalty area and finished with a low left-footed shot to complete the dominant win.

They are also clearly securing both performance results and future talent development. Manager Lee Jeong-hyo is driving organizational improvement by strategically utilizing young prospects such as Kim Do-yeon, Ko Jong-hyun, Lee Geon-hee, Lee Sang-min, and Kim Jun-hong at the right positions. Notably, top prospect Kang Hyun-mook, who overcame past injury setbacks, has recorded 5 goals and 2 assists in 15 matches this season, showing strong momentum to surpass his career-best performance of 6 goals and 5 assists in 23 matches during 2023 Kim Cheon (SVP).

Suwon, known as one of K League's most prestigious clubs, endured difficult times, finishing sixth in the 2024 season and suffering a bitter defeat in the promotion playoffs of the 2025 season. It remains to be seen whether manager Lee Jeong-hyo's Suwon, which has overcome numerous hurdles and even defeated first-place Busan, can finally fulfill their long-cherished dream of promotion.

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*This content was translated by AI.