Incheon United is not smiling after a five-match unbeaten streak.
Incheon drew 1-1 with FC Seoul in the 17th round of the Hana OneQ K League 2023 at the Incheon Football Stadium on July 7. They took the lead through Gerso, but had to settle for a point after conceding a late equalizer to Seoul’s Hwang Eui-jo.
The mood is not all bad. Incheon are unbeaten in their last five matches. From Jeonbuk Hyundai (0-0 draw) on the 14th of last month, to Gwangju FC (1-1 draw), Daegu FC (2-2 draw), Daejeon Hana Citizen (3-1 win), and now today, Incheon is 1-4-1 in their last five games. While the lack of a ‘loss’ is encouraging, the lack of a win streak is pretty disappointing.
Incheon is in ninth place with 19 points. That’s not too far from the middle of the pack, where only one or two points separate the teams, but it’s a different story when it comes to points. Starting with fifth-place Daejeon Hana Citizen (25 points), sixth-place Gwangju FC, seventh-place Jeonbuk Hyundai, and eighth-place Daegu FC all have 24 points. They are separated by goal difference, with Incheon being closer to relegation-threatened Suwon FC (18 points).
Not enough wins. Incheon has the fewest wins (4) after Gangwon FC (2) and Suwon Samsung (2), who are tied for 11th and 12th. Of course, there have been games where they’ve come back from the brink of defeat to take a precious point, but the team’s inability to capitalize on opportunities to win back-to-back games is a big deal. Incheon is not smiling. 토토사이트
“We blew a chance to go on a winning streak at home,” said Incheon head coach Cho Sung-hwan after the game against Seoul, “and in the end, it’s about not being able to protect the lead.”
With the points gap in the mid-table so tight, falling further behind could put the team in even more trouble. Furthermore, Incheon will be competing in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League for the first time this year. It starts in September, and the team needs to maximize their points total before the ACL to ensure they have an easy season.
Incheon will face Suwon Samsung away on September 11. In their last round-robin meeting, Incheon broke Suwon’s 10-match winless streak. Currently, Suwon has a new head coach in Kim Byung-soo, but they have not been able to escape the bottom of the table as they have lost four straight games. It remains to be seen if they will succeed in their head-to-head sweep.