‘Expulsion’ Gwangju coach Lee Jeong-hyo says, “As a coach, I’m so angry that I can’t say anything” after a 1-1 draw with Shanghai.

(OSEN=Reporter Jeong Seung-woo) “I’m angry because I couldn’t win.”

Gwangju FC drew 1-1 against Shanghai Haigang in the 6th round away game of the 2024-2025 Asian Champions League Elite (ACLE) group stage held at Pudong Stadium in Shanghai, China at 9 pm (Korean time) on the 3rd.

As a result, Gwangju, which added one point, took second place in the group with 13 points (4 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss). Shanghai was in 7th place with 8 points (2 wins, 2 draws, 2 losses).

In the 38th minute of the first half, Heo Yul, who received a pass from Park Tae-jun, fell in the box, protected the ball, and successfully shot through three defenders. There was a VAR review, but it was recognized as a goal, giving Gwangju a 1-0 lead.

In the 10th minute of the second half, Shanghai’s Wei Zhen hit Shin Chang-mu, who was down, with his foot, and the referee took out a red card after checking VAR. Shanghai had to play the remaining matches with 10 players.

Shanghai’s rough play continued throughout the second half. In the 25th minute of the second half, the Shanghai players knocked down Lee Hee-gyun with a series of sliding tackles, and Xu Xin received a yellow card for attempting a rough tackle. During the game, a war of nerves broke out between Jeong Ho-yeon and the Shanghai players, and the situation spread to the bench.

In the 30th minute of the second half, Oscar, who was attempting to dribble in the box, was tackled by Kim Jin-ho and fell, giving Shanghai a penalty kick. Even after the VAR review, the decision was not overturned, and Oscar, who took the kicker, calmly scored, tying the score at 1-1.

Nine minutes of extra time were added in the second half, but the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

After the game ended, coach Lee Jeong-hyo held an official press conference. Coach Lee expressed his anger, saying, “I’m angry because I couldn’t win the game. It was a game I should have won, but the fact that I didn’t win makes me so angry that I don’t know what to say as a coach.”

The following is a Q&A with director Lee Jeong-hyo.

Impressions of the game.

-If I were to express my thoughts about the season as a whole, not just today’s game, it was a difficult season, but I would like to praise the players and tell them that they worked really hard. I would like to praise the players for playing on equal footing in today’s game with only domestic players and no foreign players, and I am grateful to the fans who came to today’s away game in China to support us. We ask for your continued support.

What do you think about the fact that Shanghai Haigang had a numerical advantage in the second half when a player was sent off, but the result was not achieved?

-Our players played passively. I should have pushed harder. It wasn’t that we played carelessly, but it’s unfortunate that we played the game passively.

If you could give a word of praise to Heo Yul, who scored his first ACLE score, what would it be?

-If Heo Yul had scored a goal and it had been the winning goal, the player would have been confident and would have done well, but it is unfortunate that it did not become the winning goal. When looking at the season as a whole, a lot happened to the center back as well, and I would like to praise him. I hope that I can prepare well and show more anticipated performances next year.

In today’s game, when Shanghai Haigang was sent off and had a numerical advantage, did he play passively due to experience?

-That’s a good question. I would like to address this question differently. When I look at the squad we have, I can’t help but compare the players who played in the first half with the players who were substituted in the second half. If we do not recruit better players next season, our club will have difficulty even if we advance to the ACLE round of 16 or quarterfinals.

/reccos23@osen.co.kr