Busan I-Park’s dreams of winning its first-ever professional soccer K League 2 title were dashed in the last minute by a ‘narrow miss’.
Busan drew 1-1 with Chungbuk Cheongju after conceding an equalizer from Thul just before the end of the final 39th round home match of the Hana OneQ K League 2 2023 at Busan Asiadju Stadium on the afternoon of the 26th.
In a match played around the same time, Gimcheon Sangmu beat Seoul Eland 1-0 to dramatically take the lead in the final minute of the season, ending Busan’s dream of winning its first ever K League 2 title.
Busan, which finished the season with 20 wins, 10 draws and six losses (70 points), eventually fell behind Gimcheon (22 wins, 5 draws and 9 losses – 71 points).
The direct ticket to the first division, which is awarded to the winner of the K League 2, went to Gimcheon. After finishing the regular season in second place, Busan will now try again for promotion to the top flight through the promotion playoffs (PO).
Busan was promoted in 2019, when they also went through the PO, finishing second.
With the score tied at 0-0, Busan had a golden opportunity in the 35th minute.
Choi Jun sent a cross into the box from the right flank, where Kim Chan rushed in and connected with a powerful diving header.
The shot was headed straight at the goalkeeper, but the power of the shot forced Jung Jin-wook to make a difficult save and it fell in front of Ramas, but Ramas’ follow-up shot went wide of the crossbar.
With the offense unresolved, Park brought on striker Park Dong-jin at the start of the second half and midfielder Kang Sang-yoon in the 13th minute to increase the intensity of the forward pressure.
In the 22nd minute, Busan hit the ground running. Kang Sang-yoon sent a cross that Eo Jung-won finished with a precise header that hit the post.
However, a minute later, Pesin scored the game-winning goal to erase the disappointment. After intercepting a misplaced pass from Jung Jin-wook, Ramas slipped in a penetrating pass, and Pesin sent the home fans into a frenzy with a cool left-foot finish.
Chungbuk Cheongju, who lost possession of the ball as Busan upped the ante, didn’t have much of a chance until the middle of the second half.
After 40 minutes of the second half, Busan went into a ‘hardening’ mode, calling most of its players to the penalty box except for frontline Kim Chan, and seemed to protect the clean sheet after a physical defense.
However, just before the end of the game, a cross from the right flank was headed in by George, who overcame defense and pressure to dramatically equalize in a difficult position, and Busan’s championship dreams were dashed. 파워볼