2025 Season Review: Incheon United | OneFootball

Just short of twelve months after the club’s first-ever relegation, Incheon United celebrated an immediate return to Korea’s top division. A year of hard work and determination culminated in promotion back to K League 1. It was a fairly straightforward season and, barring the odd bump, the title was clinched with several games to spare. But was it as easy as it looked on paper? Let’s revisit Incheon United’s 2025 season.

What Went Well

Following last year’s relegation, Incheon kept the majority of their K League 1 squad together, and this paid dividends when facing teams in a lower division. The wealth of experience across the squad – including players with international, AFC Champions League, and K League 1 title-winning pedigree – allowed the team to build victory upon victory in the early months of 2025.

The club’s new manager, Yoon Jong-hwan, set the team up to play a high-tempo, attacking style for most of the season, often leaving opponents struggling to cope. Stefan Mugoša, Gerso Fernandes, and Mo Barrow provided the firepower that any successful side requires, while a disciplined back line conceded just 30 goals across the campaign. As a result, many matches were one-sided.

As the season progressed, some teams did find ways to blunt Incheon’s frontline. By that stage, however, Incheon had already built up a double-digit lead at the top of the table. Early-season victories over Suwon Samsung Bluewings proved particularly damaging to the only side that appeared capable of mounting a sustained challenge. The second of those wins, secured in June at Big Bird, cemented Incheon’s belief that the title was theirs to lose.

The final few months of the season saw Incheon drop down a gear as it became clear the title would be won at a canter. Incheon ultimately secured the league title by six points, but in truth, the writing had been on the wall as early as spring. Even a final-day defeat to Cheongju was of little consequence, as the Blue-Black lifted the K League 2 title and returned to the top division at the first attempt.

What Didn't Go Well

Very little went wrong on the field; however, if there was one criticism of the club, it would perhaps be aimed at the manager and his over-reliance on a small core of players. A number of long-serving Incheon players featured only sparingly, despite the squad becoming increasingly threadbare and exhausted over the long summer. The manager’s reluctance to rotate when players appeared to be running on empty could easily have backfired.

Players such as Kim Dong-min and Hong Si-hoo were sent out on loan, while others, including Harrison Delbridge, vice-captain Kim Do-hyeok, and Kim Bo-seop, were effectively frozen out and restricted to bit-part roles. Meanwhile, Kim Seong-min and Kim Min-seong had to settle for fifteen-minute cameos, when ideally they would have been given greater opportunities to experience first-team football in a side that was rarely in danger of missing out on promotion.

The manager will not be able to rely on such a small group of players next season and will need to build and utilise his squad in a way that maximises the potential of everyone, while also allowing players who are struggling the time and space to recover.

Young Player of the Year

At the official end-of-season K League Awards, Park Seung-ho was named K League 2 Young Player of the Year, and it is difficult to argue against that decision. Starting 35 of Incheon’s 38 league matches, the Korea U22 international enjoyed a standout season. Notching nine goals and two assists, he became a vital cog in Incheon’s attacking machine.

Park has been in and around the Incheon first team since 2023, when he was a regular member of the club’s AFC Champions League squad. In 2024, he was ever-present until a foot injury in the summer forced him to miss several months of action. Following that setback, he struggled to regain his place in the starting line-up as Incheon unsuccessfully battled relegation.

This year, with Yoon at the helm, Park was again one of the first names on the team sheet, as the manager looked to Incheon’s youth to lead the way. Alongside Choi Seung-gu, the ever-present Kim Geon-hee, and defender Park Gyeong-seop, the core of Incheon’s Korean contingent was young and hungry. As the season progressed, so did Park Seung-ho’s influence and importance. It will be interesting to see how he performs next season as the club steps back up to the top division.

Team MVP

Whilst Stefan Mugoša and Gerso Fernandes received the plaudits for their goal-scoring exploits, 23-year-old Kim Geon-hee was the rock at the heart of the Incheon defence. Playing every minute of the season, Geon-hee proved to be a reliable defender with abilities beyond his years. Calm on the ball, able to pick a pass, and strong in the tackle, he is a player around whom Incheon will look to build future squads.

Incheon conceded just 30 league goals, a full twenty fewer than second-placed Suwon Bluewings. The old adage goes that you cannot win games if you do not score, but equally, you cannot lose them if you do not concede. Suwon dropped a significant number of points – many from winning positions – over the course of the season. While Incheon were not immune to the odd lapse, there were numerous matches in which victory was earned through defensive resilience.

Most Disappointing Player

It is often difficult to highlight weaknesses in a squad that wins a league comfortably without it feeling unfair or unnecessary. However, if there was one area that consistently caused concern, it was the goalkeeping position. Incheon started the season with three registered goalkeepers: Min Seong-jun, Lee Beom-soo, and then-new signing Hwang Seong-min. They finished the campaign with two additional options following the summer return of Korean international Kim Dong-heon and the late-season comeback of Lee Tae-hee from military service.

Lee Beom-soo had been the preferred choice in goal last season but suffered an injury in the final game of 2024 against Daegu. With all of Incheon’s substitutes already used, Stefan Mugoša famously stepped up and donned the gloves for the final twenty minutes of the year. This season, with Beom-soo still sidelined, Min Seong-jun began as first choice. Despite the solidity of Incheon’s back line, he never appeared particularly confident with the ball at his feet or when coming for crosses, and he often looked capable of making a costly mistake.

With Kim Dong-heon’s return, it was expected that Seong-jun would revert to his more familiar back-up role and that Dong-heon would take over as the number one. However, in his first game back, Dong-heon was caught in possession and conceded a costly goal against Gimpo. The following match saw Seong-jun restored between the sticks.

When Beom-soo returned to fitness, the situation began to resemble a case of “too many cooks,” with four goalkeepers available over the summer. Seong-jun was given the nod for the remainder of the season, though he continued to inspire little confidence. Since the end of the campaign, however, the three goalkeepers Incheon started 2025 with are no longer at the club: Min Seong-jun has joined Seoul E-Land, Lee Beom-soo has returned to Gyeongnam FC, and Hwang Seong-min has moved to K League 2 newcomers Yongin.

As things stand, next season looks set to be a straight shoot-out between Lee Tae-hee and Kim Dong-heon for the starting position, unless further changes occur in the coming weeks.

[Listen: 2025 Season Wrap-up]

Most Important Decision of the Off-Season

In order to prevent any repeat of 2024, Incheon will need to rebuild this winter. If Yoon Jong-hwan does not have plans for certain players, they need to be allowed to leave so they can be replaced with players he trusts and is willing to use. Incheon need bodies who can come into the squad and perform to the level the manager expects; those who cannot reach that level must make way to create space.

As of the end of December, Shin Jin-ho, Kim Bo-seop, Harrison Delbridge, Lee Beom-soo, Seo Dong-han, Kang Min-seong, Kim Hyun-seo, Kang Do-wook, and Lee Ga-ram have all left Incheon. Shin Jin-ho was an important player last season, but at 37 years old, the decision not to renew his contract was a fair one.

Harrison Delbridge has also been an important figure at the club, but with the manager now preferring other defensive options, it feels like the right time for both player and club to part ways. Delbridge deserves to be at a club where he can start regularly. Lee Beom-soo is no longer required with Kim Dong-heon and Lee Tae-hee set to compete for the number one shirt. Kim Bo-seop has long been viewed as a player with potential that has never quite been fulfilled, and a season of regular football in K League 2 could yet see him make a significant impact. The remaining departures never truly made the grade at Incheon.

In place of these players exiting, Incheon have added Oh Hu-seong from Gwangju, Yeo Seung-won from Daejeon, and Seo Jae-min from Seoul E-Land. Further additions will be required to pad out the squad, and an injection of quality in midfield – particularly to help build attacks – should be enough to see Incheon pushing towards mid-table next season.