Midweek roundup

Son Heung-Min and Bayer Leverkusen got their chance for revenge against AS Monaco in the Champions League –so was revenge a dish best served cold, or did they ever get to serve it?  Meanwhile Jae got the K-League Listing already out -it’s the LAST WEEKEND of the K-League season -the door is closing rapidly (and if you’re Sangju Sangmu, there is no way out). Quick look at games midweek before Tim gets out the other weekend listing for Koreans abroad…

First to the K-League on Wednesday

 

With the draw at Seoul, Jeju is out of contention for the last Asian Champions League spot. Seoul made things infinitely harder to secure said spot, they need a few things to happen to get the last ACL qualifying position: FC Seoul MUST win at Jeju and Pohang must lose to Suwon.

 

In the other important game, Seongnam – seemingly full of spit and vigor from their FA Cup victory last Sunday, getting that vital goal in stoppage time before the half. And with those all important points, they leap frog over Gyeongnam and out of relegation danger. Gyeongnam dropping down to 11th place means if they are still there at the end of this weekend, they will be competing in the promotion/relegation playoff.  

 

    And later that day in Europe, the penultimate Champions League group match for Bayer Leverkusen – advancement to the knockout rounds within reach. Despite being at home -it almost was a carbon copy of the first match at Monaco, superior possession for Bayer, several tantalizing opportunities to score – no dice in the first half. Monaco with the few chances to counter in the 2nd, capitalized efficiently – Berbatov provided the assist – Monaco score. Just like last time. Leverkusen 0 : AS Monaco 1.  Son had his usual nifty footwork on display, but also got signals mixed up, ran into his teammates twice, accidentally blocked a shot and was not as sharp as his last CL match. Son was in great position to do damage to Monaco, getting behind the lines in another cleverly designed freekick, but Calhanoglu opted for a tepid shot saved easily by the keeper.  From what I could see, he was still a positive force for team Leverkusen, but Schmidt had other plans and he was subbed off in the 60th -scoreless at that moment in time.  Leverkusen still leads group C  (Leverkusen with 9 pts, AS Monaco 8 pts, Zenit St Petersburg with 7pts. While they qualified for the knockout rounds, Leverkusen will have to work it in their last match with Benfica on December 9th to win the group outright.  

 

…..BREAKING: this just in:

To clarify, Lee Chung-Yong has not signed a new contract, but appears to been offered a new contract.  His contract with the Wanderers ends next season.

…and I’ll categorize this in the strong rumor mill:

Kicker and other sources have also ran the same line, indicating possibly that Freiburg is trying to get Jurgen Klopp’s attention for options on Ji Dong-Won.  We’ll see what comes of this.

 

Happy Thanksgiving to all US Tavern goers and here’s hoping for a bit of world peace and some progress on the global human rights front.  peace in the middle east ya’ll.  Tavern out.

 

About Roy Ghim 454 Articles
The old Tavern Owner

9 Comments

  1. Just a clarification on Leverkusen, they will advance to the next round because Monaco-Zenit play each other on the last day (so only one could overtake Leverkusen). But Leverkusen should certainly try and win to top the group so they avoid having to play the likes of PSG/Barca/Madrid/Chelsea and such in the round of 16.

  2. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think Leverkusen have qualified to the ko stage:
    Benfica finish 4th – best point possible is 7, but they lose on h-2-h to Zenit anyhow
    Next matchweek: Monaco play Zenit.

    CURRENTLY:
    Leverkusen 9, Monaco 8, Zenit 7
    If Leverkusen lose and Zenit beat Monaco
    Zenit 10, Leverkusen 9, Monaco 8
    If Leverkusen lose and Monaco beat Zenit
    Monaco 11, Leverkusen 9, Zenit 7
    If Leverkusen lose and Monaco and Zenit draw
    Leverkusen 9, Monaco 9, Zenit 8

    If Leverkusen draw or win they’re obviously in

    So, even with the loss, Leverkusen have advanced to the playoffs, however, they don’t know what position yet, which still gives the Benfica game significant importance.

    • Understand the sentiment on yr part but it might b a bit harsh on Ji, he’s been injured through a good part of the fall. When he gets back to full fitness, then a more accurate assessment is in order

    • Ji must be a long-term BVB thing, a long-term project. It hasn’t gone to plan so far due to injuries, but I hope Klopp gets him into the first team at least this season.

      Let’s be patient. We were all praising the deities when Ji signed for Augsburg and Dortmund on the same day, so let’s just wait and see what happens for Ji. He’s not forgotten – this isn’t a Wenger/PJY kind of thing – Ji just hasn’t been fit at all this year.

      Of course, if by mess you mean his fitness level, then of course you’re right.

      • I think my comment was more geared towards the number of teams he’s ‘played’ for….it just doesn’t look good from a resume perspective. Making the captain obvious observation here. But I would much prefer he try and establish himself at Dortmund after the injuries subside than for him to be constantly loaned out or on planes to other teams.

        His situation right now is akin to a person with about 10 recently opened, $500-limit credit cards

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