Incheon United vs. Ulsan Hyundai – K League 1, September 20, 2020

It’s bottom versus top this Sunday as Incheon looks to extend its recent good run of form by doing what hardly anyone else has been able to do this season – beat Ulsan.

The Horangi has dropped a few points in the last few weeks though, so there could well be another upset on the cards.

BetOnline has obviously not been swept along with the Incheon revival hype and has priced this one heavily in favor of the league leaders. The Horangi hasn’t won a game in the last three however, so there may be some value in the draw bet. But it would take a brave person to back Incheon for the win.

Incheon couldn’t buy a win in the first 15 weeks of the season. But now it has been victorious in four of the last six and has managed to reach the same points total as Suwon directly above it in the table. That achievement is nothing short of incredible – but there are still seven games of the season to go to escape relegation.

The way Incheon has played recently, I wouldn’t bet against the club staying up – but managing to beat Ulsan is another thing entirely. The Horangi won the game earlier in the season by a crushing 4-1 scoreline and with the kind of firepower the visiting team possesses, Incheon needs to be on top form on Sunday.

That attacking strength has faltered in the last few weeks however. After disappointing draws at home to Daegu and Gwangju, Ulsan lost to Jeonbuk in the week – a result that blows the title challenge wide open once again. Junior did manage to convert a stoppage time penalty to add to his impressive goal tally, but there will be a few nerves at Ulsan at the moment.

A comprehensive win against the club at the bottom of K League 1 on Sunday would dispel a little of that anxiety but there is now the added pressure of seeing how Jeonbuk has got on for the players and management.

Even with the poor results in the last few weeks, Ulsan is still two points clear at the top of the table and the favorite to win the title. But manager Kim Do-hoon has to ensure that his players go into the game against Jeonbuk in a few weeks as comfortable as possible – and that means a win against Incheon on Sunday.