▲ Lee Yong of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (L) and Kim In-sung of Ulsan Hyundai FC battle for the ball during the clubs' K League 1 match at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Oct. 25, 2020. (Yonhap)
▲ Mo Barrow of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (R) scores past Ulsan Hyundai FC goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo during the clubs' K League 1 match at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Oct. 25, 2020. (Yonhap)
▲ Ulsan Hyundai FC players react to their 1-0 loss to Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in a K League 1 match at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Oct. 25, 2020. (Yonhap)
▲ Players for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (in green) celebrate their 1-0 victory over Ulsan Hyundai FC in the clubs' K League 1 match at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Oct. 25, 2020. (Yonhap)

football-finale

History at stake as Jeonbuk take aim at 4th straight K League title

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors will chase another piece of South Korean football history this weekend, as they close in on a record fourth straight K League 1 championship and their eighth overall.

With one final matchday coming up Sunday, Jeonbuk are in first place with 57 points. They're three points ahead of Ulsan Hyundai FC. Only these two teams have a shot at winning this year's crown.

Jeonbuk defeated Ulsan 1-0 last weekend to climb to the top spot and put themselves in a position for yet another crown. They can make history by simply managing a draw against Daegu FC at 3 p.m. Sunday at home, Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, about 240 kilometers south of Seoul.

Also at 3 p.m. Sunday, Ulsan will host Gwangju FC at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of the capital. It's a must-win situation for Ulsan, who will also need Daegu to upset Jeonbuk.

Jeonbuk are tied with Seongnam Ilwha Chunma (currently Seongnam FC) for most championships in league history with seven. Ulsan, on the other hand, have had the most runner-up finishes with eight, and they've won just two titles -- in 1996 and 2005.

A Ulsan victory and a Jeonbuk loss will knot the clubs at 57 points. They'll then go to a tiebreaker, and Ulsan currently enjoy a substantial lead in the first tiebreaker, goals scored, at 51-44.

Unless Jeonbuk score eight more goals than Ulsan while losing to Daegu on Sunday, Ulsan will be able to beat out Jeonbuk for the title.

Jeonbuk defeated Daegu in each of their first two meetings this season, both by scores of 2-0. Ulsan haven't beaten Gwangju all year, with 1-1 draws in each of their first two meetings in May and September.

Ulsan will be without defender Dave Bulthuis and forward Bjorn Johnsen. Both received direct red cards two matches ago and were automatically suspended for the final two weeks of the season.

This is the second straight season in which Jeonbuk and Ulsan have taken their title battle down to the wire.

In 2019, Ulsan suffered one of the most spectacular collapses in K League history, losing to Pohang Steelers 4-1 on the last day of the season when a draw would have been enough for a title. Jeonbuk, after beating Gangwon FC 1-0, squeaked by Ulsan for their "three-peat."

Jeonbuk will also try to send off their retiring forward Lee Dong-gook with a championship. On Monday, Lee, 41, announced his plan to retire at the end of this season and make Sunday's match his last one.

Lee is the K League's all-time leading scorer with 228 goals. He has won seven K League titles, all of them wearing the Jeonbuk uniform.

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[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]