Korean coaches hold first showdown in China’s Super League

Coaches Hong Myung-bo (47) and Choi Yong-soo (45) will have their first showdown as leaders of their teams in China.

Hong is coaching Hangzhou Greentown FC, and Choi is leading Jiangsu Suning FC in the Chinese Football Association Super League. They will face off each other in the 26th round match of the Super League, which will take place in Hangzhou on Sunday. It is the first time that the two will have a showdown since Choi, former coach of the Seoul FC in the K-League, moved to take the leadership of Jiangsu in June this year. Hong assumed the leadership of Hangzhou in December last year.

The two coaches are very close in the Korean soccer community, who served as national team players for the 1998 World Cup in France, and the 2002 World Cup Korea-Japan. They also played in the Japanese J-League during an overlapping period although they belonged to different teams. When Choi was agonizing over transfer to the Chinese league, he consulted with Hong more than anyone else to seek advice. In 2012, Hong served as the coach for Team Hope and Choi for Team Love in a charity soccer match, which is hosted in every December by the "Hong Myung-bo Scholarship Foundation."

The two coaches face quite different situations with their teams in the Chinese league. As of Friday, Jiangsu led by Choi is ranking second in the league with a score point of 50, by lagging six points behind Guangzhou Hengda FC (with a score point of 56), which is aiming to win the title for six consecutive seasons of the league. While garnering four consecutive wins, Jiangsu is aiming to overtake Guangzhou in the five remaining matches. As Choi's team has advanced to the final round of the Chinese FA Cup, it is set to have a showdown with Guangzhou in the FA Cup final in November.

In the meantime, Hangzhou under Hong must urgently distance itself from teams subject to potential demotion. Hangzhou is ranking 14th with a score point of 26. The team is three points ahead of Changchun Yatai FC (ranking 15th with a score point of 23), which is under the leadership of Korean coach Lee Jang-su. In the 16-team Super League, teams ranking 15th and 16th this season will be demoted the minor league in the next season.

Hangzhou led by Hong, who was a famed pullback in Asia, has a total of 30 lost goals, the fewest among the 16 teams during the season. Given the team’s ranking, the team is strong in defense, rather than offense. Jiangsu coached by Choi, who was a striker, has a total of 47 goals and is also ranking second in the goal tally. Jiangsu has given only 20 goals in this season, and is ranking third overall in defense capability. Jiangsu is superior in general, but Hong has high expectations on the match to be held home ground. Hangzhou has secured five of its seven wins at its home turf this season.

이종석기자 wing@donga.com