Anyang rue missed opportunities in Jeonnam stalemate | OneFootball

Yoon Jae-seok scored an injury-time equalizer to deny FC Anyang three vital points which would have effectively wrapped up the title with two matches to spare.

FC Anyang 1 (Yoo Jeong-wan 60')

FC Anyang blew a glorious opportunity to wrap up the K League 2 title on Tuesday, courtesy of Yoon Jae-seok's 93rd-minute leveler at a stunned Anyang Stadium. Victory for the Violets would have seen them pull six points clear with two matches remaining. They can still go up automatically if Suwon Samsung beat Chungnam Asan on Wednesday night.

Second-half substitute Yoo Jeong-wan looked to have won it for the home side, when he expertly hooked Yago's cross beyond Ryu Won-woo. Anyang had struggled to assert their dominance prior to the opener, thanks largely to a poor contest ruined by fouls and an indifferent refereeing performance. in total, the game featured over 30 fouls, but only four yellows. Had the referee taken the stronger stance on some of the first half fouls, we might have seen a different game.

Anyang had one last opportunity to win the game, as we approached the final of eight additional minutes. However, Brazilian forward Nicholas, benched for this game, wasted a golden opportunity, mush to the dissatisfaction of those inside the ground. Nicholas is without a goal or an assist since joining the club in the summer.

Jeonnam Dragons made the long midweek trip north in 4th spot, just a point off third but only three clear of 8th in another ridiculously tight K League 2 table. The Dragons were at one time firmly in the title picture. But their form nose-died as the summer wore on, and they arrived at Anyang Stadium having collected just nine points from a possible 33 to comprehensively end their challenge.

Incredibly, that woeful form hadn't seem them drop out of the playoff spots, helped by good fortune and rivals endlessly dropping points, or not finding form. Realistically, should Jeonnam make the playoffs, they look unlikely to advance far and even, by some miracle, they face a K League 1 team, they'll be taken to the woodshed.

Despite the presence of expert technicians, like Matheus Oliveira and Valdivia, neither team really dominated a scrappy opening half that featured 16 fouls and, somehow, only one yellow card to Jeonnam’s Kim Yong-hwan. Anyang were aggrieved by some of the heavy challenges near the visiting box and had what looked like a reasonable claim for a penalty waved away.

The best chance fell to Moon Song-woo on the stroke of half time. The midfielder was teed up by Oliveira, cut inside, and saw his right-footed drive parried into danger by goalkeeper Ryu Won-woo. The ball bounced clear of the on-rushing Kim Woon after Jeonnam survived to the break. A scoreless draw was probably a fair result, even if the home side had five shots on target to the Dragons’ two.

On 57 minutes, I looked at the clock following another Jeonnam foul and realized that absolutely nothing happened since the second half began, save for more niggly fouls. Perhaps struggling to cope with the pressure at the top, or Jeonnam's desperation to stay in the top 5, the top-start nature of the first half destroyed any chance of a good game.

And then, out of nowhere, Yago conjured some magic and Anyang went in front. The Brazilian, who started on the bench, absolutely skinned Kim Ye-sung in the box, and his cross found half-time substitute Yoo Jeong-wan. The forward showed amazing acrobatic skills to hook the ball over Ryu into the net. It was a superb finish from the 28-year-old, igniting scenes of unbridled joy inside the old stadium.

A Mexican wave had started in the opposite stand from us, and the worry was the celebration were premature thanks to a long VAR delay. The goal stood and the Jeonnam bench was cautioned for their protests. Surely, now, the game would open into the contest we believed it would at the start.

Han Ga-ram should have put the contest to bed  in the 82nd minute. Han made a lung-bursting surge from midfield to get on the end of a Yago through ball, but despite getting his shot away, it was comfortably saved by Ryu. Jeonnam had offered virtually no threat to this point, but as we know in this country, late goals are a common occurrence and Anyang needed to keep their heads to see this out.

When the fourth official announced an additional eight minutes of added-on time, boos rang around the ground. A game that featured over 30 fouls and four yellows (all to Jeonnam) is likely to have excessive extra time and that's how it proved.

With time running out, Jeonnam scored from just their second shot on target. Yoon Jae-seok, another replacement, scooped home after Anyang failed to clear one of the few assaults on their goal. The damage shouldn't be long-lasting for Anyang, but as we saw with Busan in 2023, nothing can be taken for granted.

Line ups

FC Anyang:

(31) Kim Da-sol; (22) Kim Dong-jin (c), (8) Kim Jung-hyun, (6) Park Jeong-hyeon, (32) Lee Tae-hee; (28) Moon Seong-woo, (7) Matheus Oliviera, (37) Ri Yong-jik, (13) Han Ga-ram, (71) Chae Hyeon-woo; (19) Kim Woon.

Substitutes:

(41) Kim Sung-song, (5) Kim Young-chan, (99) Joo Hyun-woo,  (16) Choi Gyu-hyeon, (9) Nicholas, (17) Yoo Jeong-wan, (10) Yago.

Jeonnam Dragons:

(51) Ryu Won-Woo; (13) Kim Yong-Hwan, (5) Go Tae-Won (c), (38) Hong Seok-Hyeon, (3) Kim Ye-Sung; (35) Choi Won-Chul; (40) Bruno Oliveira, (10) Valdívia, (23) Lee Seok-Hyun, (27) Yoon Jae-Seok; (9) Ha Nam.

Substitutes:

(1) Choi Bong-Jin, (99) Lee Chang-Hoon, (66) Lee Kyu-hyeok, (50) Kim Jong-pil, (88) Park Tae-Yong, (27) Yoon Jae-Seok, (37) Kim Geon-oh, (18) Kim Jong-Min.

The fans

The official attendance of just under 5,000 looks remarkably low, even for a Tuesday night, when the home team are on the cusp of promotion. The atmosphere, as ever, was superb. It always is in Anyang.

There were close to 100 fans in the away end. They were quiet throughout but the tying goal at least sent them home happy.

FC Anyang have two more matches to play this season, starting with the short trip up river to face Bucheon FC 1995. That game takes places this Saturday at 2 pm, meaning they have 24 hours less recovery time than Jeonnam. The following week, Gyeongnam will be in Anyang for the last round of the regular season, Will a trophy be lifted that day?

Jeonnam Dragons will return to their beautiful fortress in Gwangyang for the final time this weekend when they meet Chungbuk Cheongju at 2 pm on Sunday. Their regular season campaign will then end in Mokdong, provided they don't qualify for a play-off spot.

Best player: YagoAttendance: 4,675