Gyeongnam snatch a draw in Solteo thriller

Park Dong-jin's late header salvaged a thoroughly deserved point for Gyeongnam FC on a wild night in Solteo. Gimpo blew a 2-goal lead after the break but had numerous chances to win the game. It was a great contest in very hostile conditions.

Gimpo FC 2 (Leonard Pllana 33', Luis Mina 46')

Gyeongnam FC 2 (Lee Jong-won 54', Park Dong-jin 80')

Gyeongnam FC will make the long trip home after a brilliant fightback saw them claim a deserved point in a hot and humid Solteo Stadium on Sunday night. The journey will be even more enjoyable after some epic last-ditch defending and superb goalkeeping in added-on time kept Luis Mina at bay.

Leonard Pllana opened the scoring on the half-hour, sweeping home Choi Jae-hun excellent cross. It was against the run of play but when Luis Mina struck 60 seconds after the break, the game looked over for the visitors. But Park Dong-hyeok, under immense pressure this season, made key second-half changes to wrestle control of the game back for his side. It was the sort of fighting spirit we don't always associate with Gyeongnam this season, but if they can maintain this level of never-say-die attitude, a surprise play-off run can't be discounted.

At 409 kms from stadium to stadium, this is Gyeongnam’s furthest away trip in K League 2. According to Naver, a taxi home would set you back a cool 386,000. Not only are the kick-offs late for a Sunday, but the humidity was off the charts. Players, fans, and officials must be eagerly awaiting the return of mid-afternoon games. One Gimpo staff member confessed that she can’t take much more of the heat.

As fatiguing as the weather was, it was a more pleasurable experience than my last visit to Solteo when persistent rain created a waterlogged field that looked unplayable. The Cup tie went in Jeju’s favor, allowing Gimpo to concentrate on their faltering play-off challenge. At least it was dry and I could make out the planes landing at Gimpo Airport; a nice distraction when the wind blew and the temperatures dropped throughout the second half.

Both teams made numerous changes to their starting lines up following last weekend’s result. Gimpo held Suwon Samsung to a draw here in Solteo, whereas Gyeongnam drew 3-3 at home to Cheonan City FC. The obscenely hot weather means squad rotation is imperative but two men who were unlikely to sit this one, Leonard Pllana and Luis Mina, combined for the game’s first-half chance on seven minutes. Pllana did well down the right to create space for a cross, but Luis’ effort lacked the power to cause problems.

Almost immediately, Gyeongnam came close to breaking the deadlock but Lee Sang-hyuk got down really low to prevent a goal-bound header from Park Dong-jin squeezing into the bottom right corner. It was all Gyeongnam in the opening quarter but Luis Mina almost bent a shot in from the edge of the box to remind the visitors of his threat on the break.

Last season, Gimpo knocked Gyeongnam out of the playoffs in Solteo. The way the season is developing for both clubs, there is no chance of a similar situation occurring in 2024. Gyeongnam made the strange decision to remove Seol Ki-hyeon after finishing fourth. His replacement, Park Dong-hyeok, has been hanging on to his job for weeks. Either they’re planning on a long-term rebuild in Changwon, or the owners have decided this season is over, and replacing the manager would be fruitless and potentially expensive.

Gimpo started the game in 9th spot, but were just three points from 5th. After accumulating a healthy number of points during their stadium redevelopment-enforced countrywide tour, the move back home hasn’t produced the impact many would have expected. But with Pllana, Luis, and 19-year-old Jeong Gang-min pulling the strings in midfield, manager Ko Jeong-eun has the raw materials to turn this around.

Jeong Gang-min, the shaggy-haired number 6, known locally as the“super rookie”, will have a bright future in the game. After 5 K League 1 appearances for Daejeon Hana this campaign, he moved to Gimpo on loan and he looks like a real player. He played a part in setting up Leonard Pllana for the opener on 33 minutes. Jeong fed captain Choi Jae-hoon who roared past several Gyeongnam defenders into the box, teeing up Pllana for the Kosovo winger to expertly fire home first time with his left foot.

The goal was probably against the run of play but that’s what happens when you don’t convert your best chances and you allow Pllana to stand unmarked 10 yards from goal. Manager Park look on in deep frustration but he’s probably used to that now. His side failed to muster another chance and that was half-time.

Whatever Park said to his men at the break clearly didn’t work. The second half wasn’t even a minute old when Luis Mina scored a sensational individual goal. There was nothing on when the Colombian retrieved possession just inside the Gyeongnam half. He meandered his way down the left touchline, but cutting inside and rattling an unstoppable drive into the top corner. It was pure class from a gifted forward that came from nowhere. The impressive Jeong was the man to lay on the pass for the marauding Luis.

Luis went close with a free-kick soon after but then Gyeongnam got the goal they thoroughly deserved, despite a ridiculously long VAR check. New signing Lachlan Wales was an effective outlet down the right for Gyeongnam and his brilliant cross, under pressure, was headed home by Lee Jong-eon. It was just Lee’s second of the season.

The VAR delay was for a possible handball in the build-up by Gyeongnam’s Lee Min-hyeok. It wasn’t close to his arm, and, if anything, the midfielder was pushed off the ball creating the awkward landing position. Nevertheless, we had a one-score game.

Gimpo sacrificed their captain, who had a fine game in central midfield, as Gyeongnam’s stranglehold grew stronger. Gimpo had chosen to on their slender lead, with Luis Mina completely isolated. The striker, a hero in these parts, spent the last 30 minutes running down blind alleys and chasing hopeful long balls in his general direction. Gyeongnam were turning the screw nut it wasn’t manifesting itself in clear-cut chances.

They needed to take risks to grab the equalizer they deserved but it left them vulnerable from Pllana and Luis on the break. The clock ticked by agonizingly for the home support.

With 10 minutes to play, Park Dong-jin grabbed the goal Gyeongnam’s doggedness deserved. It was a messy goal, but like the first, came from a header. This time Kim Jin-rae’s cross from the left was headed home with one of Park’s teammates lying injured in the back of the net. The former FC Seoul striker cupped his ears to the away support as the away players celebrated wildly in front of their dugout

Both teams wasted numerous golden opportunities in the seven minutes of added-on time. Go Dong-min was inspired in the away goals, a one-man wall against the relentless wave of Gimpo attacks. Luis Mina will have nightmares about the keeper's brilliance towards the end of the game. Gyeongnam were full value for their point but those final moments were epic.

Line ups

Gimpo FC:

(1) Lee Sang-wook; (3) Park Kyung-rok, (4) Lee Yong-hyeok, (77) Conor Chapman; (8) Kim Joon-hyung, (23) Choi Jae-hun (c), (25) Lim Do-hoon, (21) Seo Jae-min, (6) Jeong Kang-min; (11) Leonard Pllana; (21) Luis Mina.

Substitutes: (31) Son Jeong-hyeon, (20) Kim Min-ho, (36) An Jae-min, (72) Kim Sung-ju, (33) Lee Hwan-hee, (15) Seo Bo-min, (17) Jaejal Jae-min.

Gyeongnam FC:

(1) Go Dong-min; (15) Woo Ju-seong, (4) Han Yong-soo, (5) Kim Hyeong-jin, (63) Kim Jin-rae; (33) Park Won-jae; (22) Lee Kang-hee, (2) Lee Jong, (26) Lee Min-hyuk; (50) Park Dong-jin (17) Lachlan Wales, (7) Felipe Fonseca.

Substitutes: (13) Kim Min-jun, (18) Lee Jun-jae (33) Park Won-jae, (10) Felipe Saravia, (45) Bachana Arabuli, (16) Kim Hyoung-won, (6) Song Hong-min).

The fans

Gimpo games are interesting from the media seats. It is basically 90 minutes of fans screaming Luis's name every time he touches the ball. Bur across, the main supporters' group was loud and busy throughout. In reality, there's nothing too special about Solteo.

Massive respect to the away fans for showing up after a poor season on a Sunday night in Gimpo. They got the result they deserved.

Gimpo FC will be returning to Solteo next weekend when Ansan Greeners make the trip up from Wa~ Stadium. Despite the early season redevelopments which saw an enforced away schedule, Gimpo have now caught up with the number of road games and will surpass it against the Wolves.

Gyeongnam will be delighted to return to Changwon immediately after the game. This is the furthest away trip for them in K League 2. They host play-off contenders Chungbuk Cheonju next Saturday. They will then hit the road again for two more matches, one of which will be at Chungnam Asan, who are looking to plant another nail into former manager Park Dong-hyeok's reign.

Best player: Go Dong-min
Attendance: 2,017