Pohang close to making Asian history

By John Duerden

The Pohang Steelers sit on the edge of history ― once again. Somehow this team has made it to the final of Asia's biggest club competition, the AFC Champions League. On Nov. 23, the North Gyeongsang Province-based team will go all the way to Riyadh to take on Al-Hilal.

Amazingly, only two teams in the whole of Asia have managed to win three championships and they are Pohang and Al-Hilal. As Hilal, the Saudi Arabian powerhouse with 19 domestic titles, has the home advantage, it is heavily favored to win.

Pohang may have something to say about that. The team won the last of its K League titles in dramatic fashion back in 2013, taking the trophy out of the hands of the Ulsan Horang-i in the final minute of the final day of the season. Pohang has not really challenged seriously for the title since but still has a habit of upsetting Ulsan.?

That was the case last Wednesday in the all-South Korean semifinal between the two southeast coast teams. Ulsan was the defending Asian champion and also top of the K League, way above Pohang, which was way down in the bottom half of the standings, but it ended up eliminated.?

Like Al-Hilal will be on Nov. 23 in Riyadh, Ulsan was expected to win, and when the Tigers took the lead early in the second half, a place in the final beckoned. But then captain Won Du-jae was sent off for a rash tackle, and Pohang pushed forward and eventually equalized in the final minutes thanks to a header from Australian defender Alex Grant. Then came 30 minutes of extra time and no more goals, and then Pohang triumphed 5-4 in the penalty shootout.

“I'm so proud of my players and I want to congratulate them for making the final ― it was a fantastic performance,” Pohang coach Kim Gi-dong said. “I made some really quick tactical adjustments and my players followed the instructions really well. Before extra-time I told them to stick to our game plan unless I tell them otherwise.”

Pohang may be mediocre in the K League but in the AFC Champions League it had already knocked out Japanese teams Cerezo Osaka and Nagoya Grampus before meeting Ulsan. In Asia, Pohang seems to have a special kind of mojo.?

“Of course, Pohang has such a rich history and we have many experienced players who understand that and pass this on to the younger players, which is why I think we have become so strong this year,” said coach Kim, who was a player back in 2009 when the Steelers defeated Al-Ittihad, also from Saudi Arabia, in the final. “As a player, it was a great experience and such an honor to be the champion of Asia,” Kim added.

“But I still have to appear in the final because I didn't play in 2009. Now I'm in the final as a head coach, and I think it's a little more pleasurable and emotional.”

Korean teams have won 12 Asian titles, five more than Japan in second and Saudi Arabia in third. It is a proud record.

“We'll go to Saudi Arabia representing the Republic of Korea, which I am proud to do,” Kim said. “There is also a lot of pressure, as it's not easy to represent your country, but we'll give everything we have to get the result we want.”

Al-Hilal will present a tough test especially in its home city of Riyadh. The team boasts several Saudi Arabian internationals, former French international striker Bafetimbi Gomis, Moussa Marega, signed in the summer from European giant FC Porto, and Matheus Pereira. Al-Hilal beat a number of top European teams to the Brazilian's signature. Throw in a top-class coach in Leonardo Jardim, who led Monaco to the French title in 2017 past a star-studded Paris Saint-Germain, and it is understandable that Al-Hilal expects to win.

Ironically, Al-Hilal is the only other team in Asia with three continental titles. Whichever team triumphs next month will move onto a historic number four. If Pohang can manage to do so, it will be the club's greatest achievement ever.