Head coach Cho Sung-hwan is determined to get a result against Kaya.
Incheon United (South Korea) will take on Kaya FC Iloilo (Philippines) at the Incheon Football Stadium on March 3 at 7 p.m. in the second leg of their 2023-24 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Champions League (ACL) Group G matchup.
Incheon, who are making their inaugural ACL appearance, got off to a flying start with a 4-2 win over Yokohama F. Marinos in the first leg, and their second opponent is Kaya, who are considered the group’s underdogs. Kaya qualified by winning the Philippine Football League, but were eliminated from the 2021 edition of the tournament after losing all six matches (2 goals scored and 16 conceded). They should be considered a two-win proposition as they will have an objective power differential. They also lost their first leg against Shandong Taishan 1-3.
A day before the match, a pre-match press conference was held. Coach Cho Sung-hwan said, “We shared a historic moment with our fans in the first group stage match against Yokohama. I think it was a good start because we won. We knew the importance of the first game, so it was important for us to get a win to help us get through the group stage. Tomorrow’s game is also a good start and we’ll try to build on it at home with our fans so that we can get through the group with three points.”
“It was not difficult to analyze the game against Kaya because we are playing both the league and the ACL, but we based our analysis on the Shandong game. I think the result depends on how we play more than the opponent. We will continue to play well during the league and produce results.”
A. “We shared a historic moment with our fans against Yokohama in the first round of the group stage. We won, so I think it was a good start. We knew the importance of the first game, so it was important for us to come out with a victory to help us progress through the group stage. Tomorrow’s game is also a good start, and we’ll try to build on it at home with our fans so that we can go through the group with three points.”
Q. You had a league game last weekend and you have a big game this weekend that will decide the league split. Will you be running a partial rotation and will we see any new faces?
A. “I think we can rotate in terms of cautions accumulation and fitness. Depending on how the game goes, we have 23 players on the roster, so we expect to have a lot of options.” 메이저사이트
Q. The game against Hai Phong is a wake-up call. What did you emphasize to the players?
A. “Through the ACL playoffs and a friendly against a Hong Kong team beforehand, we’ve experienced the level of competition in Southeast Asia. I don’t think there are any easy games. I don’t have any orders for the players, but I think the fans will be looking forward to tomorrow’s game because they have a strong sense of motivation and goal for the ACL stage.”
Q. How long have you been analyzing Kaya, what is your assessment and who are the threats?
A. “Since we play both the league and the ACL, it wasn’t difficult to analyze Kaya, but we based our analysis on the Shandong game. We analyzed the opponent