Incheon United vs Ulsan Hyundai

Defending K League 1 champions Ulsan Hyundai travel to Sungui Arena Park to meet playoff hopefuls Incheon United.

Despite failing to show any kind of consistency across the opening 15 rounds (W4, D6, L4), Incheon United sit narrowly above 7th-placed Seoul in the last playoff spot. Blowing hot and cold in their three previous league outings (W1, D1, L1) perhaps best illustrates Incheon’s topsy-turvy form, albeit with one common denominator. The hosts’ notorious inability to score in abundance saw them bag precisely one goal in those three games. In contrast to their recent scoring woes, the Mariners have netted three goals apiece across their last two K League 1 clashes against Ulsan (W1, D1), including a stunning 3-1 rout in this corresponding fixture in 2023. But that’s a feat they’ve only achieved once in seven home league matches this season (W2, D2, L3).

Visiting Ulsan found their footing in the K League 1 in the previous round, dispatching rock-bottom Daejeon 4-1 at home to snap a three-game winless league run (D1, L2) and return to the top of the standings. However, a third consecutive title is very much in the balance, with a mere point separating the leading trio at the start of this round. Hitting the road could pour more trouble on the reigning champions, considering their indifferent league record away from home (W3, D1, L3), bookended by back-to-back defeats at Gwangju and Gangwon during which they only found the net once. A slow start would probably lead to another sub-par result, not least because of Ulsan’s return of three losses from four away matches when conceding first this term (W1, L3).