Two longtime soccer friends, master and pupil, reunited in Suwon, South Korea. The first breath was successful.
Former national team striker Lee Kom-yeol made a positive debut in front of Suwon Samsung head coach Kim Byung-soo, a former high school and club teammate. The youngster showed promise of fulfilling the “game-changer” role Kim expects him to play.
Suwon announced on July 8 that it had signed a one-and-a-half-year contract with the veteran striker, who was playing for Chungnam Asan in the K League 2 (X Sports News reported on July 6).
A day later, in Suwon’s away game against Daejeon on July 9, Gum got his first taste of action with his new team, coming on as a second-half substitute and playing just under 30 minutes of added time. It wasn’t a long time, but he did well, getting one shot off and trying to open up the offense. Last-place Suwon also had to fight hard to come back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with the team of the moment.
Rubber Yul is a proven Class A attacking resource in the K League.
A product of Pohang Chulgongo High School and Soongsil University, Rubberyul made his K League debut with the Pohang Steelers in 2011 and has since amassed 70 goals and 29 assists in 310 career appearances. His versatility as a flanker and frontline striker is a plus, and his experience makes him an immediate force to be reckoned with.
Kim and Suwon’s coach are also priests. When Kim was a student at Pocheol Gongo, his commander was Kim. When Kim led Gangwon FC in 2020-2021, the two worked together to usher in a new era for the club.
Currently in 12th place, the lowest of the 12 teams in the K League 1, and considered the No. 1 relegation candidate, Suwon sought to rebound in the second half of the season by signing veteran striker Kim Gum-yeol, who has ties to Kim.
“I don’t have a lot of greed because he’s a ‘game changer,'” Kim said of the signing, adding, “We don’t have a lot of strikers on the bench, so we’re going to use him.” After the match, Kim praised the striker, saying, “He played little in the second half, but he tried to create sparkling chances moment by moment.”
Lee made his comeback last winter in Asan, Chungnam. After a long injury, it was difficult for him to get his body back up to speed, but he has recently improved his form considerably. On June 3, he made his comeback against Seongnam in the K League 2.
With the addition of Gum Yeol, Suwon received a huge boost to their forward attack, which had been led by Ahn Byung-jun alone. Ahn, a Korean-American, has been struggling with four goals in 19 games since Oh’s move from Scottish giants Celtic last winter, but he hasn’t had a striker to distract him from the opposition. They’ve even had the misfortune of losing Ahn at key junctures, including the FA Cup quarterfinals.바카라사이트
However, the arrival of Kim, who understands the football philosophy of the club, has given Suwon the strength to overcome the very real threat of relegation. For now, the midweek home game against Pohang on Dec. 12 will give Kim more playing time.
A game changer is a weapon that can change the course of a battle and turn the tide of a match. Kim proved in the last match that he is capable of executing Kim’s game-changing wishes. Suwon is also looking for hope.