Ulsan extend K League lead at top with win, as rival club falters again

▲ Yoon Bitgaram of Ulsan Hyundai FC (2nd from R) is mobbed by teammates after scoring against Pohang Steelers during a K League 1 match at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on May 22, 2021. (Yonhap)

▲ Cesinha of Daegu FC (C) dribbles the ball during a K League 1 match against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors at DGB Daegu Bank Park in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on May 23, 2021. (Yonhap)

▲ Lim Sang-hyub of Pohang Steelers (L) and Kim Tae-hwan of Ulsan Hyundai FC battle for the ball during a K League 1 match at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, 415 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on May 22, 2021. (Yonhap)

▲ Edgar of Daegu FC (L) and Choi Young-jun of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors battle for the ball during a K League 1 match at DGB Daegu Bank Park in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on May 23, 2021. (Yonhap)

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Ulsan extend K League lead at top with win, as rival club falters again

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, May 24 (Yonhap) -- With a thrilling victory in a regional derby, followed by another loss by their chief rival club, Ulsan Hyundai FC extended their lead at the top of the K League 1 tables over the weekend.

Ulsan had climbed to first place by beating Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 4-2 last Wednesday. Ulsan entered the weekend holding a one-point lead over the four-time defending champions, 30-29.

Ulsan then took care of business by beating Pohang Steelers 1-0 in the "East Coast Derby" on Saturday. Yoon Bitgaram's free kick goal in the 85th minute stretched Ulsan's undefeated run to seven matches (three wins and four draws). They now have 33 points after 17 matches.

Jeonbuk then suffered their season-worst third straight loss Sunday, falling to Daegu FC 1-0. They're also winless in their past six, with the most recent victory having come on April 18 against Seongnam FC.

Suwon Samsung Bluewings edged out Gwangju FC 4-3 on Sunday to leapfrog Jeonbuk and move into second place with 30 points after 18 contests.

Jeonbuk and Daegu both have 29 points, with Jeonbuk ahead for now with their edge in the goals scored tiebreaker, 28-22.

These two clubs are moving in opposite directions, though. Daegu are undefeated in their past eight, with seven wins and a draw. Their last loss came on April 10.

Things may be looking rosy for Ulsan but their upward momentum will hit a snag this week on issues outside their control.

A half dozen Ulsan players have reportedly been named to the 50-man provisional roster for the Tokyo Olympics, and those players are scheduled to receive their second dose of COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday. It will rule them out for the next league match on Saturday, against Jeju United, with all other Olympic-bound athletes and hopefuls encouraged to take some time off after receiving their shots. The Korea Baseball Organization, for instance, canceled all games scheduled for Tuesday, because players on the provisional national baseball team will get their second doses Monday.

Without identifying those six players, Ulsan head coach Hong Myung-bo said they're all starter-caliber players. Hong also wondered if the national health authorities and the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee couldn't have been a bit more flexible with vaccination scheduling for K League players. After playing Jeju on Saturday, Ulsan don't have a league match until June 20.

The K League will go on an international break in the early portion of June, as the South Korean men's national team play three World Cup qualifying matches at home. And as one of the deepest teams in the league, Ulsan are expected to have a handful of players called up for international duty.

On top of the homegrown players, Ulsan may also lose Georgian midfielder Valeri Qazaishvili early next month. Georgia recently asked Ulsan to release the 28-year-old midfielder for friendlies against Romania and the Netherlands next month.

Unlike in normal times, clubs aren't obligated to release players for FIFA-sanctioned matches during the pandemic if they require at least five days of quarantine upon rejoining their clubs. All international arrivals into South Korea must be quarantined for 14 days, and Ulsan can reject Georgia's request on that ground.

Hong said over the weekend his team hasn't made the decision on Qazaishvili yet and he wanted to know where the player himself stood on the issue.

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