New football club vows fierce 'Seoul derby'

E-Land FC coach Martin Rennie

By Nam Hyun-woo

Seoul E-Land FC, a new football club which will jump into the K-League this season, vowed Thursday it will present a fierce “Seoul derby” for fans within a short period of time.

The E-Land FC, the first company-owned professional football club since Suwon Samsung in 1997, held a news conference at the Lexington Hotel in Yeoido, Seoul, ahead of its first training session at Hyochang Stadium.

“Seoul is a fantastic city, but doesn't have a derby. It is maybe one of the only football cities in the world that doesn't have a derby,” coach Martin Rennie said. “We’re going put that in place and hope fans are even more excited than we are.”

The Seoul-based club will make its debut in the second-division K-League Challenge this year. Expectations are high that the club will advance to the K-League Classic and make a fierce derby with FC Seoul, one of the favorites in the top-flight.

Since the club announced its establishment in April, it has signed a number of hidden talents and high-profile players, such as goalkeeper Kim Young-kwang and midfielder Kim Jae-sung who experienced the World Cup with the national team. Their transfer to a second-division team came as a surprise to local fans.

“I'm really excited to be going into this battle with two players who have such high profile in this country and who achieved so much in their careers. I saw hunger in our players' eyes and determination to be one of the best teams in this country,” Rennie said.

The 31-year-old midfielder, who has spent most of his professional career with 2013 K-League Classic champions Pohang Steelers, confessed that he hesitated at first before making the surprise move.

“But when I first met with the coach, I got a strong belief in promotion to the top-flight in a short period of time,” Kim said. “Since then, I have never regretted my decision. Another thing I expect a lot is the Seoul derby. For that, how we spend the preseason training will be most important and our coaching staff is doing what other team's staff members aren't doing so far.”

Kim, who played in the 2010 World Cup, has appeared in 278 games since his K-League debut in 2005 and recorded 29 goals and 28 assists. He initially played in wing positions, but Rennie expects him to play well as a box-to-box midfielder.

Goalkeeper Kim Young-kwang left Gyeongnam FC to join the new club. During his international career, he played 17 games as an A-team member, conceding 15 goals.

“I have solid trust in Rennie's coaching ability to advance to the first division. Like me, all my teammates believe that there could be a chance of promotion within this year. For that, fans' support is the most significant, because we exist for them,” the 31-year-old goalkeeper said.

Rennie also echoed Kim's remark. “Sometimes in professional football, there's a disconnect between fans and players and coaches. Sometimes, everyone feels that players are above the fans. And that's absolutely not the case we want. Without the fans, we don't really have the club.”

After the first training session, the club invited a number of fans to the stadium and offered them a chance to meet E-Land FC players.

Unlike other K-League clubs, their training schedule is less intensive. From next month, the players will be drilled for three weeks in Namhae, South Gyeongsang Province. Then, they will fly to North Carolina for a two-week training session. The entire period of training will likely be six to seven weeks.

The coach explained that scientific studies show that less than eight weeks is the optimum period and training any longer than that will have a negative impact on players going into the regular season.