Joo Min-gyu did not intentionally contact coach Jeong Jo-guk, who joined Hwang Sun-hong’s interim leadership system.
Ulsan HD won 1-0 against the Pohang Steelers in the opening match of the “Hana Bank K League 1 2024” at Munsu World Cup Stadium in Ulsan at 2 p.m. on the 1st.
The two teams were in a tight race from the beginning of the game. They had several chances and scored side by side, but suffered a regret that offside was declared. First, Ulsan scored a goal by Kim Min-woo, who received Um Won-sang’s ground ball cross in the 34th minute of the first half, but an offside foul was declared. Then Pohang also scored Jorge, but this was also offside.
With the first half ending 0-0, Ulsan broke the balance just six minutes into the second half. Ataru crossed from the left toward the gate. The ball was not caught by Joo Min-gyu, but it was sucked into the goal. This goal became the final goal, and Ulsan became the final winner.
We met in the mixed zone with Joo Min-gyu, who won the opening match of the East Coast Derby. Joo did not score a goal on the day, but he led the attack by playing full time.
Prior to the match, Hong Myung-bo had praised Joo’s physical management. “He is in very good physical condition. His body fat is excellent, and he is currently ranked third to fourth in our team,” Hong said.
In response, Joo Min-kyu said, “I think the coach told me to do better. I think all the players are preparing for this year more special than I’m in better shape. As the coach said, other teams will not let us win three consecutive league titles. All the players are aware of that and are preparing with caution.”
In the meantime, Joo Min-kyu said, “I think the coach said a good thing because I scored a goal on the last Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) stage. But I hope you look forward to this season because all the players are preparing with a unique mindset.”
Joo Min-gyu, who was the top scorer last season, is still the pride of a native striker and represents K-League 1. However, he was always far from being a member of the national team. Only Paulo Bento and Jurgen Klins were not invited under the current coach system.
However, a change has occurred recently. Klinsmann has been replaced, and the national team will be run under interim coach Hwang Sun-hong during the upcoming A-match period in March. Although he is an interim head coach, a Korean national team leader will lead the team for the first time in a long time. In addition, Jeongjo-guk, who had a relationship with Joo Min-gyu as a player-coach in Jeju, joined the team as a coach.
In fact, coach Jeong Jo-guk visited the Ulsan-Pohang match to check on players. Joo Min-gyu, who was the best striker in the league last season and recently scored in the round of 16 at ACL, is also likely to be called.
However, Joo Min-kyu said, “I don’t expect that much just because the coach of the national team has changed. Expectations may have increased by 0.1 percent from the previous one. However, being selected for the national team is a matter of thinking after doing my part in the team as much as I can.” 유흥알바
In addition, Joo Min-kyu has not contacted coach Jeong Jo-guk on purpose to avoid burden since he joined the national team. “I have not contacted him on purpose since he joined the national team. It is not easy to treat him like before. I did not know that he was coming today. It is not that he does not contact me, but I do not think I will be able to. I do not want to put pressure on him,” Joo replied carefully.