Chungbuk Cheongju head coach Choi Yun-gyeom has made no secret of his desire to keep ‘loanee’ Park Jin-sung, who is rumored to be returning to his original club Jeonbuk Hyundai.
꽁머니 This season, newcomer Chungbuk Cheongju signed left-back Park Jin-sung on loan from Jeonbuk in March and has been using him as a regular in the Hana OneQ K League 2 2023. He has played 11 games in the league and recorded two assists.
“Park Jin-sung is a player we borrowed,” Choi said at the pre-match press conference for the 19th round of the league against Seongnam at Cheongju Sports Complex on March 3. “We have asked Jeonbuk to extend the (loan) period. According to the newly changed rental regulations, we have to talk to the original team again within six months.”
Choi continued, “Park Jin-sung came here to play. “If he goes to Jeonbuk, he’ll have less chance of playing because they have a lot of good players. They say Kim Jin-soo is injured, but who will I play when he comes back from injury. I will develop him well here.”
According to a soccer insider, Jeonbuk asked Chungbuk Cheongju to bring back Park Jin-sung after key left-back Kim Jin-soo was sidelined with a facial injury.
Against Seongnam, Choi started Park at left wingback in a 3-4-1-2 formation. Joji and Kim Do-hyun form the back two, with playmaker Jang Hyuk-jin supporting them. Along with Park, Peter, Hong Won-jin, and Kim Myung-soon form the midfield. Lee Min-hyung, Lee Hansam, and Lee Jung-taek are the three backs, with Park Dae-hyun in goal.
Chungbuk Cheongju has been on a roll lately, going unbeaten (2 wins, 1 draw) in their last three matches. The team has seen a “perfect resurgence” of sorts, with foreign striker George scoring four goals in the last three games. “He’s a young player, so he’s had his ups and downs. In the middle of the season, he received fewer balls due to the team’s poor performance,” Choi reflected, “but he made up for it through personal training. I also gained some experience in Korea,” he said, citing “adaptability” and “hard work” as the secrets to his resurgence.
This was an “evening game” at 7pm. However, it was played in sweltering conditions with a temperature of 31 degrees and a humidity of nearly 50 percent. “It’s important to take advantage of the atmosphere,” Choi said. “It’s important to take advantage of the atmosphere,” he said.
Meanwhile, Seongnam’s coach Lee Ki-hyung, who has lost four straight matches, made a major change to his lineup. He started midfielders Park Sang-hyuk, who had recovered from injury, and the speedy Park Ji-won. Instead of Kris, he started ‘Chungbuk Cheongju native’ Denilson up top. Denilson was happy to see Choi before the game.
Forward Jin Sung-wook, who was brought in on loan from Jeju, started on the bench. “He and I used to live together in Incheon, so I was happy to see him again after a long time,” said Lee. “I thought he was slimmer than before and had less power, but he still had the same instant movement and decision-making. However, I’ve only been back from injury for two weeks, so I’m not at my best. I expect him to be very active and sacrificial once he recovers from his injury.”