Yonichi, who firmly defended the back of Incheon United, returned to the Incheon Football Stadium and showed off his skills.
Incheon, which played the fourth round of the Hana Bank K League 1 2024 at Incheon Football Stadium on Tuesday, beat Daejeon Hana Citizen 2-0. Gerso and Hong Si-hoo scored back-to-back goals. Incheon, which had two consecutive draws in away matches after losing the opening match at home in the first round, reported its first win at home again.
Just like in the second and third rounds, Yonichi started in the middle of left Obanseok, right between Kim Yeon-soo and three-back, and displayed stable defense. He led the defense and tied up the opposing strikers. After Daejeon’s starting strikers Guterte, Kim Seung-dae, and Guterte were replaced early on due to unexpected injuries on the day, he faced off against Mafia, but minimized the number of shots fired by the Daejeon’s frontline strikers twice and shot on target one time. He did not allow any lost point.
It blocked the ball from being delivered to the opposing strikers, and blocked the ball from leading to a dangerous situation in advance. According to “Non-Proleven,” which provides additional data from the K-League, the two teams recorded nine successful competitions for aerial ball and ground. In particular, he frequently bumped into the giant Mrapa, measuring 195 centimeters tall and weighing 91 kilograms, and won seven out of eight competitions. In addition, he recorded 11 times of clearing, six times of blocking, three times of interception, and two times of blocking.
The match was more meaningful as it was the first return match of Yonichi to Incheon Football Stadium in eight years. Yonichi had played in Incheon in 2015 and 2016. Since then, he has played in Japan and China, and despite interest from various clubs last winter, he gave up many conditions and chose to return to his former team, Incheon. He watched the opening round at home from the bench, and began to be used as a starter from two consecutive away games in the second and third rounds. Then, in the fourth round when he returned home, he finally stepped on the ground of Incheon Football Stadium with his home fans watching.
When together in the past, Yonichi was Incheon’s pride, as he struggled to compete at the bottom of the standings. His solid defense made him in the K League 1’s best 11 for the second consecutive year. In 2015, when Yonichi was holding out, Incheon’s defense also recorded the smallest number of goals lost in the league. Returning after a long time, Yonichi did not disappoint his fans, who remembered his energetic days in his mid-20s, and he showed off his unwavering skills to lead his team to a scoreless victory.
Incheon coach Cho Seong-hwan is also satisfied with the player’s performance. “He is playing a central role in defense. The fans give high marks to the player’s performance and personality. He is still showing his performance in the past,” he said in a press conference after the match. 업소알바
“It was my first game at home since I returned. It’s really nice to win my first game of the season in front of our home fans,” said Yonichi, who was interviewed at the joint coverage area after the game.
Just as Yonichi showed the same solid performance as he did eight years ago, Yonichi feels that Incheon fans still cheer enthusiastically. “Incheon fans give us tremendous support every game. It is a great motivation,” he said. “The fans are still the same. They always show the same love, passion and support for the team. I am grateful to the fans who always give me great strength.”