Yago’s winner sends Ulsan back to Final A
Ulsan HD beat Bucheon FC 1995 2-1 in Round 32 of K League 1 at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium on the 17th. Bucheon went ahead in the 15th minute through a free kick from Park Jeong-in, a product of Ulsan’s youth system, and Ulsan’s apparent equalizer by Jeong Seung-hyeon in the 27th minute was ruled out for a Yago offside after a VAR review of about eight minutes. Ulsan leveled in the 54th minute with a left-footed shot from Lee Jin-hyeon, and after Bucheon’s Kim Seung-bin was sent off for a second yellow card in the 60th minute, Yago scored the winner in the 83rd. It was Yago’s 16th goal of the season, keeping him atop the scoring chart. Now on 50 points, Ulsan held second place and clinched a Final A spot for the first time in two years, which also means leaders FC Seoul (65 points) can no longer seal the title in Round 32. Bucheon, winless in eight, stayed 11th with 32 points.
Source: Sports Kyunghyang
Seoul’s Klimala named September’s best
FC Seoul striker Klimala has won the EA SPORTS K League Player of the Month award for September, chosen by the Korea Professional Football League. It is the first individual award of his career. The winner is decided by combining votes from the league’s Technical Study Group (60%), fans on the K League website (25%) and FC Online users (15%). Klimala played in all four of Seoul’s September matches and scored three goals, including a brace in a 2-1 win over Jeonbuk Hyundai in Round 29 that earned him Round MVP honors. His combined score of 38.60 put him ahead of Italo (Jeju, 27.55), Lee Myung-jae (Daejeon, 24.67) and Lee Yu-hyeon (Gangwon, 9.18), with first place in both the fan and FC Online votes proving decisive. Klimala will wear the award patch on his jersey for the rest of the season.
Source: Interfootball
Rotated Gangwon stunned by Phnom Penh in ACL2
Gangwon FC lost 2-1 to Cambodia’s Phnom Penh Crown in their second group-stage match of the 2026-27 AFC Champions League Two at Gangneung Stadium on the 15th. With the K League 1 race for a Final A spot in mind, Gangwon rotated their squad, starting Park Sang-hyeok, Abdallah, Hong Chul and Kim Do-hyeon and filling the remaining positions with players who had seen little action. After conceding just before halftime in the 44th minute, Gangwon leveled through an Abdallah penalty in the 61st minute, but a late tackle by Jeong Seung-bin gave away a penalty in the 78th minute that decided the match. The defeat leaves Gangwon with one draw and one loss in the group. Sports Seoul pointed to a lack of finishing, as well as the absence of VAR, which meant a fall inside the penalty area could not be reviewed.
Source: Sports Seoul
Jeonbuk GM: “We must beat Jeju”
Winless in four straight league games, Jeonbuk Hyundai host Jeju SK in Round 32 of K League 1 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium at 2 p.m. on the 18th. Jeonbuk’s mood sank further with a 2-0 loss away to Vissel Kobe in the AFC Champions League Elite last Wednesday, and they have slipped to fifth with 44 points. With only seven points separating second from ninth, the result could shake up the table considerably. Jeonbuk lead the all-time series 47 wins to 23 draws and 23 losses, but this season’s two meetings are split 1-1, with the away side winning both. “Beating Jeju is a must for us to reach Final A and climb into the top tier,” said Jeonbuk general manager Lee Do-hyun. “We’ll prepare so that the fans who come to the stadium can enjoy a win along with a variety of events.”
Source: Interfootball