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[이데일리 스타in 이석무 기자] Ulsan Hyundai has reached the final of the Asian Football Federation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) after 8 years.
On the afternoon of the 13th (Korean time), Ulsan scored a 2-1 reverse victory in the 2020 ACL semifinal match against Vissel Kobe (Japan) at Jashim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar, thanks to Junio’s penalty kick final goal in the 14th minute overtime.
Ulsan took the final stage eight years after winning this competition in 2012. Ulsan, the only team that participated in the tournament, recorded 9 games undefeated (8 wins, 1 draw) and will have a bout against Persepolis (Iran) at 9 pm on the 19th at Al Janub Stadium in Al Wakrah.
In an interview after the game, coach Do-hoon Kim said, “It is the last game we will play with our players,” and “I will always win and return”. He said, “I expected a difficult game, but I won hard,” and said, “The appearance of not giving up until the end led to victory and advance to the final.” He added, “I want to convey my gratitude to our players and say that they have done so well.”
Although there is a lot of discomfort for winning, manager Kim Do-hoon emphasized that “rest comes first.” He said, “When I first came to Qatar, the atmosphere didn’t rise because I was disappointed with the results in Korea, and it was a difficult situation as I even lived in isolation.” In the meantime, the players played once every three days and enjoyed it. Thanks to faithfulness, I was able to reach the final.”
“I will continue this good atmosphere so that I can return to Korea with good results,” he said. “As the final match is the last game I can play with our players, I definitely want to win and return to Korea.” Coach Do-hoon Kim ends his contract with Ulsan after this season. It has not yet been decided whether to renew the contract.
Manager Do-hoon Kim reaffirmed, “As we continue to win multiple points, the atmosphere is getting better and better.”
Midfielder Yun Bitgaram also did not hide his confidence in winning. He said, “I played a difficult game by conceding first, but thanks to the desire to play until the end, we were able to reverse.”
Bitgaram Yoon admitted that the moment when Kobe’s second goal was canceled through video reading (VAR) was the turning point of the match. “It is true that the morale of our players has been revived by the cancellation of that goal. If that goal was recognized, it would have been more difficult because it would have been more difficult to follow two goals,” he said.
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