K League is about to bid farewell to empty stands, as the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism allowed spectators to enter the stadium.
All football matches in South Korea will now welcome fans back starting August 1st.
Of course, things will look differently as only 10% of the stadium capacity can be filled. For example, Seoul World Cup Stadium, which can hold up to 66,704 fans, would only be filled with about 6,600 people. the away side stand will remain closed, and all tickets must be reserved online.
K League
This is especially exciting for Gwangju FC, who recently moved to a brand-new, football-specific stadium. Gwangju’s new stadium handles up to 10,000 spectators. The Phoenix had their first game at their new home last weekend against Suwon Samsung Bluewings. It was the historic match, but not a memorable one for Gwangju, as they were beaten by Suwon 0-1 with a goal from Park Sang-hyuk in the 49th minute. Now they would have to wait for another week to show that first victory to fans. Suwon, meanwhile, grabbed their first victory since June 16th, and it was Ju Seung-jin, the new interim coach’s first victory in two matches after succeeding Lee Im-saeng.
Two title contenders, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Ulsan Hyundai hammered FC Seoul and Sangju Sangmu 3-0 and 5-1 respectively. Two high-profile newcomers of Jeonbuk, Gustavo Henrique from Brazil and the Gambian international Modou Barrow both made a debut for their team. Gustavo even scored his first goal with a header in the 62nd minute and Barrow, despite failing to find the net, has left a good impression with the fans.
Junior Negrão was on fire for Ulsan yet again by scoring a brace with his solo effort. But Lee Dong-gyeong’s fabulous curling shot at the last minute was a true screamer. This was the moment that the young South Korean international, who hasn’t been getting many opportunities this year, let people know that he’s back on track. This was Lee’s first league goal this season.
Chinese Super League
Chinese Super League also resumed action but in quite a different way. The league is divided into two groups, eight teams each. All games of Group A are scheduled to go through at the city of Dalian, while Suzhou will host Group B. Top 4 teams of each group will be qualified to the Championship Stage, while the bottom 4 will go to the Relegation Stage.
The player of the week was surely Marouane Fellaini. The former Premier League star gave his team Shandong Luneng a precious 3-2 victory over Dalian Professional with three goals. His curly head was yet again the center of attention, completing a header hat-trick in only 8 minutes. Two powerhouses of the league, Guangzhou Evergrande and Shanghai SIPG grabbed a victory as well over Shanghai Shenhua and Tianjin TEDA respectively.
V League
If one league comes, the other league goes. V League has postponed Matchday 12 because of the new COVID-19 case in the city of Da Nang. It is the first community-wide coronavirus case in about 100 days in the country. V League now faced the second mid-season postponement of the year. The first suspension took place after Round 2 and lasted until early June.
J League
All J1 League fixtures last weekend went through as scheduled, except the Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs. Nagoya Grampus one. This matchup got cancelled since Kazuya Miyahara, a Grampus defender, tested positive for COVID-19. It is the first case that a player or a staff got infected after the league resumed. One staff member of a J2 League club, Avispa Fukuoka, also tested positive.
J League hasn’t made an official statement on whether they will suspend the league or at least shift back to closed-door games, although it should be making this important call any day now.
Photo via Marouane Fellaini’s Instagram account.
