"It is true that the mood was not good after the 0-7 defeat against Seoul." Sudden resignation rumors for Yoo Byung-hoon coach... He achieved promotion and survival, yet 'leaving like this'?

*This content was translated by AI.

Amidst sudden rumors of FCAnyang's K-League 1 head coach Yoo Byung-hoon stepping down, one match stands out as impossible to overlook when discussing the background: the shocking 0-7 loss to their "biggest rival," FCSeoul.

A soccer industry official told StarNews on the 29th regarding the recent mood between Coach Yoo and Anyang: "It is true that the atmosphere has not been good since the 0-7 defeat against Seoul."

Anyang drew 1-1 in an away match against BucheonFC held at Bucheon Stadium on this day.

After the match, something unexpected happened. Coach Yoo did not attend the official press conference.

An Anyang club official who entered the press conference room instead of Coach Yoo explained, "Coach Yoo said he would accept a fine."

When asked about the reason for Coach Yoo's absence, the official replied, "I think it might be due to the team's performance."

However, even bigger news followed. Rumors surfaced that Coach Yoo would step down after this Bucheon match.

Regarding the resignation rumors about Coach Yoo, an Anyang club official told StarNews: "I also learned of this from reading the article for the first time. I think we need to verify the facts."

It is true that Anyang's recent momentum has not been good. Including this draw against Bucheon, Anyang managed only one win and one draw in four losses across six matches played in August. At the beginning of this month, they even suffered a four-game losing streak.

Most notably, on the 22nd, they suffered a shocking 0-7 defeat against their biggest rival Seoul in a home match.

This was not a result that could be dismissed as a simple loss. At home, and against their most sensitive rival, they collapsed by a staggering seven-goal margin.

The matchup between Anyang and Seoul also has a special historical background. Anyang LG relocated its base to Seoul in 2004, and thereafter, Anyang established the civic club FCAnyang in 2013. Due to this history, matches between the two teams are considered a special rivalry even within the K-League.

Losing 0-7 at home against such an opponent inevitably caused significant shock. Indeed, soccer industry officials also reported that the team's mood was not good after the heavy defeat against Seoul.

Anyang seemed to turn things around with a victory in their previous match against Incheon United, but they could only manage a 1-1 draw in the away game against Bucheon, failing to build on their winning momentum.

Coincidentally, this Bucheon match was Coach Yoo's 100th career K-League game.

Until just before the match, the atmosphere was quite different. Ahead of his 100th game, Coach Yoo expressed: "I am deeply moved. I never thought I would reach 100 games. The fact that I could play up to 100 games is due not only to my own efforts but also to my colleagues, players around me, and many others. I will work even harder."

Among the 100th games, the most memorable moment was achieving promotion to K-League 1 along with winning the K-League 2 title in 2024.

Coach Yoo is the manager who turned Anyang's long-standing dream of reaching the first division into reality. Having played for Anyang during his playing days, Coach Yoo later served as the club's senior coach before becoming the official head coach in 2024. From his debut season as a manager, he led Anyang to the top of K-League 2, achieving the club's first-ever promotion to K-League 1.

The achievement did not end with promotion. He also demonstrated competitiveness at the first division level, leading the team to survival. By delivering major achievements in both promotion and survival one after another, he left a meaningful mark on the club's history.

This season, if we look only at the standings, the situation is not completely collapsed. Anyang currently sits in 6th place in K-League 1 with 8 wins, 10 draws, and 8 losses (34 points). The gap to third-place Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (38 points) is only four points. Depending on the results of remaining fixtures, they are still in a position where they could aim for an even higher ranking.

Therefore, the sudden emergence of resignation rumors has been received as even more surprising.

A coach who wrote a new chapter in Anyang's history by achieving promotion and survival one after another now finds himself in a situation where he might leave the team at the end of his 100th K-League game.

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*This content was translated by AI.