It’s a ‘six points’ game.
K League 1’s 11th-ranked Gangwon FC (2W10D11L, 16 points) and 12th-ranked Suwon Samsung (3W6D14L, 15 points) will meet for the third time this season. The match will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 22 at Gangneung Sports Complex in the 24th round of the K League One 2023.
There are three standings that have remained unchanged in K League 1 this season for nearly three months. The first is ‘top dog’ Ulsan Hyundai, which hasn’t moved from first place (17 wins, 2 draws, 4 losses, 53 points) since March 19. The other two are 11th-ranked Gangwon and 12th-ranked Suwon. They haven’t moved from their positions since April 30 (end of round 10). That’s why they’re considered the two weakest teams in K League 1.
Finally, the position of Gangwon and Suwon could be reversed. After 23 rounds, only one point separates the two teams. The gap of 8 points at the end of round 10 has narrowed. All eyes will be on round 24 for both teams. If Suwon can pull off a win, the last place in the league could change hands in just 83 days.
Gangwon and Suwon have a lot in common. Both have been in crisis since the beginning of the season. Draws and losses piled up without a win, and fans became angry. Gangwon didn’t register a win until the ninth round and Suwon until the 11th round. 먹튀검증
The way they dealt with the crisis seemed to be different. Suwon made the decision to change their head coach in May. Around the same time, Kangwon chose to keep their captain. However, Kangwon also failed to rebound in the standings, and in June, they pulled the managerial change card.
Another similarity is that it’s taking time to see the effects of the change. Gangwon hired Yoon Jeong-hwan on June 15, but the team is winless with four draws and one loss. Suwon has won two, drawn four and lost six in 12 games since Kim Byung-soo took the helm, but had to go through a tunnel of nine games without a win (four draws and five losses) in between.
Both teams were also active in the summer transfer market. As of July 19, Gangwon had signed five players and Suwon four to prepare for the second half of the season. In particular, Gangwon made an aggressive move by signing four foreign players (Gabriel, Kang Touji, Yago, and Wellington).
In the previous two meetings between the two teams, Suwon had won one and drawn one. It was Kim Byung-soo’s first win as head coach of Suwon.