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| Photo = provided by the Korea Professional Football Federation |
Jeonbuk defeated Ulsan HD 2-0 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on April 4 in Round 6 of the Hana Bank K League 1.
The result extended Jeonbuk’s winning streak to three and moved them to 4-2-1 (14 points). They leapfrogged FC Seoul (12 points) to sit alone atop the table. Ulsan remained third at 3-1-2 (10 points).
The fixture — the 100th Hyundai Derby between Jeonbuk and Ulsan — carried added significance, but Jeonbuk was the team to seize the moment.
Jeonbuk struck early. In the ninth minute, Lee Dong-jun’s cross wasn’t cleared by Ulsan defender Jo Hyun-taek, and Jo Wi-je headed home to open the scoring.
From there, Jeonbuk dictated the tempo. Ulsan struggled to gain control of the midfield and create sustained attacks.
Ulsan did threaten before halftime. In the 36th minute, Lee Dong-gyeong’s free kick found Yago, whose header went wide.
The first half closed with Jeonbuk up 1-0.
Jeonbuk made the first change early in the second half, replacing Kim Jin-gyu with Lee Seung-woo in the 54th minute as they looked to kill the game off.
Ulsan pushed for an equalizer. In the 74th minute, Yago nodded the ball on and Lee Jin-hyun followed with a shot that was straight at goalkeeper Song Beom-geun and held.
Both teams opened up late. Jeonbuk brought on Jo Wi-je and Kim Seung-seop for Yeon Je-woon and Maeng Seong-woong, while Ulsan added Benji, Heo Yul and Yoon Jong-gyu to increase their attacking threat.
Jeonbuk put the result beyond doubt in stoppage time. Lee Seung-woo drove down the left, beat defenders — even getting past goalkeeper Jo Hyun-woo — and finished to seal a 2-0 win.
Elsewhere, Jeju SK picked up their first win of the season, beating Bucheon FC 1995.
The victory lifted Jeju to 1-2-3 (5 points) and into 10th place. Bucheon slipped to 1-3-2 (6 points) and sat fifth.
Jeju took the lead in the 20th minute through Celestin and then defended the advantage resolutely, holding Bucheon scoreless through the final whistle.
[SportsToday reporter Kang Tae-gu sports@stoo.com]
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