K League 1 Round 15: When Will Pohang Steelers Withdraw from the Title Battle? Seoul Star Recovers Physically at Least

The K League 1 continued with its 15th round of matches on the evening of May 28th. Teams like Pohang Steelers, currently struggling along with two other title contenders, seem unable to shake off their recent poor form, potentially prolonging the suspense in the K League title race. Even in this round, Pohang Steelers may not be able to break their current slump.

Last weekend, Lin Ga-de finally completed his first full match in the K League. For players like him, the K League should pose minimal difficulty, and as long as his physical condition recovers, his sharpness will return quickly.

Gwangju FC faced Pohang Steelers in a pivotal match. Gwangju, who finished third last season, is having a rough season and may only satisfy themselves with qualifying for the championship playoff or avoiding relegation. Their decline in performance is primarily due to a decrease in defensive capabilities. Less than halfway through the current season, they have conceded six more goals than they did throughout the entire previous season. Gwangju's form has shown signs of improvement since entering May. They managed victories against relegation-threatened Jeju United and Daejeon Citizen, and even made defending champions Ulsan Hyundai bow down to them.

Pohang Steelers, the runners-up from last season who started this season impressively, have recently struggled. They have gone three consecutive matches without a win, marking their longest winless streak this season. Meanwhile, league leaders Ulsan Hyundai also lost two matches during the same period, but Pohang Steelers failed to capitalize on these opportunities to narrow the gap, which is quite regrettable. In their recent match against FC Seoul, Pohang started perfectly, forcing an own goal from the opponent in less than five minutes. However, their recent form has indeed been poor. FC Seoul dominated the game and took control of the field. They equalized just before the end of the first half. In the second half, both teams entered a stalemate. Seoul showed more aggressiveness, substituting five attacking players within 18 minutes. However, it was Pohang who regained the lead with a penalty in the 80th minute. They only needed to hold on for the last 10 minutes to end their winless streak, but they played increasingly without confidence and were scored against by Seoul, resulting in a near draw.

In their first encounter this season, Pohang Steelers were in good form, narrowly defeating Gwangju 1-0 at home. Now both teams are struggling with issues of inadequate attack, and this match may not see much improvement from either side.

Jeonnam Dragons faced Seoul. At the beginning of the season, Jeonnam's smooth short-pass penetration cooperation was impressive. It was hard for fans to imagine that a team without foreign aid and the most mobile players in the K League could play football so similar to the peak of Barcelona. Jeonnam's record is also very good. At one point, the defending champion Ulsan was suppressed to occupy the top of the table. However, as the top team's attention to Jeonnam increased, their ability to grab points also declined significantly. In the last round against Ulsan Hyundai, the team with the most K League titles, Jeonnam completely took the initiative on the field. The desolate giants Ulsan are really able to bend and stretch. They didn't even go out of the thunder pool in the whole game, and even if they got the ball right, they only passed in their own half, and finally Jeonnam was dragged into a 0-0, I believe that Jeonnam will such as, match, have the one success, assist.