One match to keep your eye on this round is the fixture on Friday night down at the Steel Yard between Pohang Steelers and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. Pohang enter the clash looking to maintain the pressure on Ulsan after their neighbour's recent defeats, with the Steelers picking up four points against Suwon Samsung Bluewings and Jeju United. Last weekend's clash against the Islanders proved to be a highly entertaining affair, with a five-minute spell seeing the score change from 1-1 to 3-2 in Pohang's favour, before the Steelers found a fourth late in injury time to secure all three points. Goh Young-jun, Alex Grant, Wanderson and Kim Seung-dae all found themselves on the scoresheet come full-time as the side demonstrated the threat they possess throughout their ranks.
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors also enter this class in a rich vein of form, picking up ten points from their last four outings, climbing up into fourth position and just four points off Pohang. The underwhelming start seems a distant memory now with the Green Warriors looking desperate to make up for lost time. Last weekend saw them claim a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Suwon FC thanks to Gustavo's early goal but they came close several times to conceding and will have to be more assured defensively against their opponents on Friday.
This fixture has tended to be an evenly contest affair, with Jeonbuk winning 38 of their 95 clashes to Pohang's 35. However, both games have fallen in favour of the Steelers this season, with Jeonbuk losing 2-1 in Jeonju back in early April before then tasting a 1-0 defeat in the reverse fixture thanks to Goh Young-jun.
Team of the Round
Incheon United
Despite sitting one place above the relegation spots, there are signs of things turning around at Incheon United. Boasting the joint-best league form in the last few games, picking up ten points from the last possible twelve, the Durumi are only three points off fifth place and head to the capital this weekend to face neighbouring rivals FC Seoul, having just taken the scalps of both Ulsan Hyundai and Daejeon Hana Citizen. Recent matches have also seen the form of Gerso Fernandes and Hernandes pick up with the pair scoring and assisting in the last two fixtures, both memorably combining to score a 95th-minute winner against Champions Ulsan at the Munsu Stadium.
Not only that but the team has been buoyed by the recent return of Stefan Mugoša last week and fans are hoping to see the striker in action for the first time after his transfer from Vissel Kobe. During his time in black and blue, Mugoša scored 68 K League goals in 118 appearances and was in line for last season's Golden Boot before his departure in the summer, having scored 14 by the halfway stage. While expectations are best to be tempered with the player having not seen the field much during his stint in Japan, fans would be forgiven for being excited. Mugoša's last game for Incheon was also away to Seoul, so it would be a fitting return if he takes to the field on Saturday.
Player of the Round
Fejsal Mulić
After making the switch in the winter from a relegated Seongnam FC side to nearby Suwon Samsung Bluewings, Fejsal Mulić has found it difficult to adapt to his new surroundings as both himself and his new club got off to an underwhelming start. With one goal and a lack of starts, there was growing concern amongst supporters of their new forward.
However, a goal in each of his last three games, three matches in which saw Suwon pick up draws against Daejeon and Pohang, before an emphatic win against league leaders Ulsan Hyundai, mean that the Serbian could well be playing himself into form and could prove vital in Suwon's survival attempts.
This weekend sees Suwon travel east to face eleventh-placed Gangwon FC, a team they now sit just a point behind with a win taking them off the foot of the table and in the direction of safety.
K League 1 Table
K League 1 Round 24 Fixtures
Friday July 21st
#POHvJEO: Pohang Steelers (2nd) vs Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (4th) - 19:30
#ULSvJEJ: Ulsan Hyundai (1st) vs Jeju United (8th) - 19:30
Saturday July 22nd
#SUWvGWA: Suwon FC (10th) vs Gwangju FC (6th) - 19:00
#GANvSSB: Gangwon FC (11th) vs Suwon Samsung Bluewings (12th) - 19:30
#DHFCvDAE: Daejeon Hana Citizen (7th) vs Daegu FC (5th) - 20:00
