‘ACL Away loss’ Choi Chul-soon made no excuses “Artificial turf is an excuse… We were not prepared. Our fault for not preparing properly”

“It’s because we didn’t prepare properly.”

‘Veteran’ Choi Chul-soon (36, Jeonbuk Hyundai) made no excuses for the ‘shock loss’.

The Dan Petrescu-led Jeonbuk lost 0-2 on Monday (Aug. 8) at the Jalan Besar Stadium in Jalan Besar, Singapore, in their fourth Asian Football Confederation Champions League (ACL) Group F match.

With the result, Jeonbuk and Lion City are tied at two wins, two losses, and six points apiece. With a one-goal lead on goal difference, Jeonbuk is now one place above Ryan City in second place.

Jeonbuk conceded the first goal in the 22nd minute. Zivkovic dedicated the goal with a non-stop right-footed shot. They conceded another goal to Djivkovic 10 minutes into the second half. In the end, they couldn’t avoid defeat.

After the game, coach Dan Petrescu said: “It didn’t go exactly the way we wanted. There were injuries, fatigue, etc. Ryan City hadn’t played an official match for a long time, so they were fresh. But they played the game they wanted to play. But it didn’t go the way we wanted it to go.”

Choi Chul-soon, a Jeonbuk veteran, said, “It’s very disappointing to lose such an important game. It’s been a long time since I played, and I’m sorry for the players. I’m also sorry for the fans. I should have helped them to stabilize the atmosphere on the field, but I couldn’t do that, which is the biggest regret.”

There was a disadvantage for Jeonbuk on this day: the players, who had always played on natural grass in Jeonju Castle, had to quickly adapt to the artificial turf in Ryan City. It was a huge advantage for the home team, but a disadvantage for Jeonbuk.

However, Choi Chul-soon said, “Talking about natural grass is just an excuse. It’s because we didn’t prepare properly. We needed to turn the tide with the win against Ryan City, but we couldn’t do that. I, as a senior, should try harder. I should have taken the lead,” he said, bowing his head in apology.

“When you play a lot of games in a short period of time, the players’ fatigue level goes up. I should have been the one to set the tone that we can do well, but I didn’t do a good job,” he said.

Midway through the second half, there were some Ryan City players on the ground, even though it wasn’t a big fight. “It can happen in soccer,” Choi said. I think it’s inevitable. We will do our best to avoid such situations in the future.”

Jeonbuk now has two ACL group matches left.

At the end of the group stage, the top team from each group (five from East Asia and five from West Asia) will automatically qualify for the round of 16. The top three second-place teams from each region will also qualify for the round of 16. 무지개토토

Choi concluded, “We have two games left. We need to prepare well. We need to prepare well.” Choi encouraged the players to work together to win.

Finally, he said, “My pride is bruised. We didn’t win any trophies. I’m sorry, and I’ll try to do a better job on the field than with words,” he emphasized.