"Last place Jeonbuk" couldn't raise its head, the worst slump in 16 years
Park Jin-seop Jeonbuk Hyundai, the A-team defender, couldn't raise his head during the interview. Jeonbuk players also looked depressed while riding the team bus. Jeonbuk lost 0-2 in the fifth round of the "Hana Bank K League 1 2024" against Jeju Island at the Jeju World Cup Stadium on Thursday, and became the only winless team among the K League 1, K League 2 and 23 teams. Park Jin-seop said very carefully, "Everyone knows it is a tough situation. Players' confidence has decreased a lot." In the locker room just a moment ago, Jin-soo and Cheol-soon said, "We need to change the atmosphere. We need to show different sides. I think we need to change from the training." Jeonbuk's slow start is not new. It has shown temperament as a slow starter since the days of "Kang Hee-daeje" but eventually emerged as the top contender. However, signs of this season are ominous. Jeonbuk has remained at the bottom of the standings with only three draws and two losses in five matches without any win. It is the first time in 16 years that it has failed to secure even one win in its first five matches since 2008 when it had one draw and four losses. "The only winless team, I feel ashamed of myself," said Jeonbuk coach Pesreescu. Jeonbuk's performance told everything. It easily lost the ball in dangerous areas, creating a crisis. Cooperative plays that helped each other disappeared, and its dependence on certain players with excellent personal skills such as Lee Dong-joon and Song Min-gyu was high. "It is difficult to identify the cause of the poor performance," Park Jin-seop said. Jeonbuk, which gave the first goal to Jeju rookie Yeo Hong-kyu in the 29th minute of the first half, allowed Jin Seong-wook to score an additional goal in the 7th minute of extra time of the second half. Looking at the scene of the loss, none of the Jeonbuk players actively stepped up and tried to win the ball while Jeju goalkeeper Kim Dong-joon's long ball was bound three times wide near the penalty area of the Jeonbuk camp. Jeonbuk allowed Lee Dong-kyung to score the first goal due to a pass miss in the fourth round match against Ulsan. The team that lost confidence continued to make mistakes. While preparing for the match against Jeju, Petrescu asked his players to make mistakes, but the words did not go well. Thiago, who was substituted in the middle of the first half, wasted a chance that Song Min-gyu created perfectly in the 36th minute of the second half. Based on the K-League data portal, Jeonbuk has had 60 shots so far, making only four field goals excluding penalty kicks. The expected score xG is 6.51, the highest after Gangwon 6.91, but the actual score-to-score ratio is the lowest at 0.61. The 12 shots that Jeonbuk attempted on the day were blocked by opponent team goalkeeper Kim Dong-joon or missed the goalpost. "We are missing too many chances, not just today," Petrescu said, explaining the cause of its sluggish performance in the early days of the season. Jeonbuk lost the first point in all five of its matches, making the game difficult. As the team is chasing after, it loses its composure and has no choice but to hurry at the gate. Also, two players were directly ejected from the match. It was Nana Boateng in the second round against Suwon FC, and Kim Jin-su on the day. Kim Jin-su was shown a red card for his violent act of raising his foot towards Kim Tae-hwan while he was losing more than 32 minutes in the second half when his team was trying to catch up. "I think we are ahead of our will," Petrescu said. With major players injured, such as Hong Jeong-ho, Ahn Hyun-bum, and Hernandez, additional strikers will inevitably suffer a setback in the operation of the squad. However, Petrescu is narrowing the options for players himself. He will passively utilize midfielder Lee Young-jae, defender Lee Jae-ik, and striker Vinicius Junior General. Jeonbuk has the thickest squad in the K-League, but if it fails to make the best use of its players, its double squad will be useless. Petrescu insisted on strengthening his skills in the summer transfer market on the day, but if the current slump is prolonged, it remains to be seen whether disappointed fans will wait until summer. Jeonbuk fans who came to Jeju for an away match chanted, "Wake up, Jeonbuk." Jeonbuk wants to win its first championship as soon as possible and put out the heat as soon as possible. "If we win, the atmosphere will change," Park Jin-seop said. On Thursday, Coach Petrescu described the sixth round home game against Gangwon as the "final match" and asked his players to arm themselves. Will there be a reversal in "Jeonju Castle" this weekend.