Will the wind gust from Gwangju quell even the Malaysian powerhouse Johor Darul Takjim.
Gwangju, which entered the Asian Champions League Elite (ACLE) for the first time in the club’s history by winning a surprise third place in the K League 1 in 2023, won 7-3 at home in the first round of the ACLE group stage in the 2024-2025 season against Japan’s Yokohama F. Marinos on the 17th, followed by a 1-0 victory and two consecutive wins on the way to the Kawasaki Frontale on the 1st. Gwangju is leading the group league with six points, beating Johor (4 points), Thailand’s Buriram United (4 points), and Japan’s Vissel Kobe (4 points) by two points. Manager Lee Jung-hyo, who took charge of Gwangju in 2022 and led the team to promotion to the first division for the first time in a year and advance to ACLE in the second year, is also the first Asian stage challenge, so it is truly a “rebellion of beginners.” The total ransom of the Gwangju team based on the transfer fee-specialized site “Transfermarkt” is 10.45 million euros (about 15.6 billion won), the lowest after the Australian Central Coast Mariners (5.75 million euros, about 8.5 billion won) and Pohang (9.48 million euros, about 14.1 billion won) among the 12 teams in East Asia who participated in the ACLE group league. The total ransom of Yokohama and Kawasaki, which Gwangju defeated, was 17.55 million euros (about 26.2 billion won) and 16.03 million euros (about 23.9 billion won), respectively, more than 8 billion won higher than Gwangju.
The total value of Johor’s ransom (10.83 million euros, about 16.1 billion won), which Gwangju will face at Yongin Mir Stadium at 7 p.m. on the 22nd, is also higher than that of Gwangju. Johor, who reigns as “Another Malaysia” in terms of investment size and team level, is also a big challenger to Gwangju, the first year of the ACL. Johor drew 2-2 with Shanghai Port, two Shanghai clubs, in the ACLE group league, and is racing to second place in the group league by causing a stir by beating Shanghai Shenhua 3-0. This game is a leading battle between the first and second places. Johoru is familiar to Korean soccer fans, as it won against Ulsan for 2022 and 2203 consecutive years. The team includes defender Jordi Amat, who experienced the Premier League as a Swansea City teammate of Ki Sung-yueng (Seoul), and midfielder Enzo Lombardo, who played in Spain’s Primera Liga. Real Madrid striker Hesse Rodriguez also announced his departure. Korean defender Park Joon-hyung, who played for Suwon Samsung, joined Johoru in July and is playing as the main center back. The name value of the Gwangju team can be evaluated as inferior to Johoru. However, through the past two matches, he proved that Lee Jung-hyo’s offensive soccer works on the Asian stage.
It is a variable that this game will be played at Yongin Mir Stadium, which is a neutral site, due to grass problems at its home stadium, Gwangju World Cup Stadium. There is a problem of playing a “home like an away trip” game in Yongin, more than 200 kilometers away from Gwangju, but it is encouraging that Lee Jung-hyo can play pass football in a good grass condition. Coach Lee returned after confirming that his soccer works better on Kawasaki’s quality grass. If Gwangju wins three consecutive games, it can increase its chances of advancing to the round of 16. Asani, who scored a hat trick against Yokohama, took a break in the aftermath of the A match against Daegu on the weekend and prepared for the match against Johor. 스포츠토토
On the same day, Pohang will play its third match of the ACLE group league in an away match at Buriram at 9 p.m. On the same day, Pohang, led by head coach Park Tae-ha, is currently in seventh place with one win, one loss and three points. After losing to Shanghai Shenhua 1-4, the team crushed Shanghai Port 3-0. Having emerged from a six-game losing streak by winning for four consecutive games in the K League 1, Pohang is aiming to rise in the ranking by beating Buriram. Ulsan will invite Vissel Kobe to the Ulsan Stadium at 7 p.m. on Sunday. Ulsan coach Kim Pan-gon, who has been losing for two consecutive games by losing 0-1 at Kawasaki and 0-4 at Yokohama, is committed to reviving the honor of its team that will play in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup by beating Kobe.