Incheon United sets sail for Asia, and a massive away fan base travels to support the team.
Incheon United (South Korea) will host Yokohama F.Marinos (Japan) in the first leg of their 2023-24 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Champions League (ACL) Group G match at the Yokohama International Stadium in Yokohama, Japan, at 7 p.m. on June 19.
Incheon, coached by Cho Sung-hwan, finished fourth in the K League 1 last season. They qualified for the ACL playoffs based on their FA Cup result. They qualified for the knockout stage with a 3-1 victory over Hai Phong (Vietnam) on August 22, thanks to goals from Chun Sung-hoon, Hernandez, and Gerso.
This is the first time in Incheon’s history that the club has played in Asia. They were drawn with Yokohama (Japan), Shandong Taishan (China), and Kaya FC-Iloilo (Philippines). As of last season, Yokohama won the J1 League, Shandong was runner-up in the Chinese Super League and won the FA Cup, and Iloilo won the Philippine Football League. 카지노사이트
Obviously, Yokohama and Shandong are tricky opponents. Yokohama are second in the league with 15 wins, 6 draws, and 6 losses (51 points), although they have faltered recently. Shandong is also in second place with 13 wins, 8 draws, and 4 losses (47 points). Incheon will be hoping to make a statement against them and advance to the tournament.
The historic first match is just one day away, as Incheon travel to Yokohama for their first group game. After a 2-1 victory over Jeju United on the 16th, Incheon flew to the showdown on the 17th.
A large number of away fans are traveling to Japan to cheer them on. “As of the 17th, 558 away seats have been sold,” an Incheon official explained to ‘Interfootball’ on the 18th. Already, about 600 people are ready to do battle. With about two days to go until kickoff, the number is expected to increase.