‘Post Cho Kyu-sung’ Park Jae-yong (23 – Jeonbuk Hyundai) is the new star of Jeonju.
토토사이트 Park started the K League One 25th round match against Incheon United at the Jeonju World Cup Stadium on 6 June, scoring the opening goal in the 14th minute and leading Jeonbuk to a 2-0 victory with a solid performance. Park picked up a ground ball from Han Kyowon inside the penalty box, controlled it accurately and rattled the net with a quick-tempo right-footed shot. With this goal, Jeonbuk easily won the match and secured their ninth consecutive home win.
The game marked the debut of Park Jae-yong for Jeonbuk and the K League One. After joining Jeonbuk from FC Anyang in the summer transfer window, Park made an immediate impact on his debut and made a splash in front of the Jeonju home fans.
Park is a striker who was brought in to fill the void left by Cho Kyu-sung’s departure to Denmark. Like Cho Kyu-sung, he’s a long 193cm striker with a lot to offer in terms of post play, delivery and link-up play. He shares a lot of similarities with Cho, including being a former Anyang youth player and having good looks.
However, there was a question mark over him as he had yet to play in the top flight and was still a bit of an unknown quantity, despite being good enough to make the Asian Games squad. Park overcame the concerns and proved his potential by scoring an early goal. Veteran defender Hong Jung-ho said: “I didn’t really know Jae-yong, but after training with him and watching him play against PSG, I was surprised. He’s much better than I thought. He has good strength, delivery, and link-up play. I think he has the qualities to become a player like Cho Kyu-sung. The players and staff are happy with him. I think foreign players will be stimulated by him,” Park praised Jae-yong.
Jeonbuk has a lot to worry about in the front line with the departure of Cho Kyu-sung. Without the disruptive power of foreign players, Cho’s absence will be felt in a big way. Gustavo has scored just two goals in 21 games, while Hapa Silva has three goals in 20 games. That’s why Hong Jung-ho talked about the stimulation of foreign players.
For Park Jae-yong, the pressure is on. Cho Kyu-sung emerged as a national star at last year’s World Cup in Qatar and has been a regular striker for the national team. For Park, who is only in his second year, the pressure is palpable. “Of course there is pressure,” he said, “but I think it’s my goal. I want to be like him, too. When he heard I was coming to Jeonbuk, he contacted me first. I was grateful. He told me a lot of good things, saying that I could do well. I have a long way to go to catch up with him. I’d say it’s a work in progress. I’m not even halfway there,” he said.
Still, he has to overcome. As long as he wears Jeonbuk’s number 10, Park Jae-yong will have to fulfil the task entrusted to him. “I’ve only played my first game. I like my teammates, so I think I can be more helpful to the team if I do a little better,” he said, adding, “I think I can be eliminated if I don’t focus a little bit.” He vowed to grow into a player worthy of Jeonbuk.