Fresh Start for FC Seoul

No team made more headlines in the off-season than FC Seoul and no team underachieved more last year.

The controversy over the Anyang Cheetahs' move to the capital and abandonment of some of the most die-hard fans in the K-League rankled a few noses to say the least.

But the team now has a new home in Seoul World Cup Stadium and a new name that is an effort to bring them closer to the fans.

Politics aside, FC Seoul should field one of the most exciting lineups in the league and should definitely improve upon last year's dismal eighth-place finish.

The Cheetahs were cruising right along among the league leaders for the first half of the season but then the wheels fell off. One of the most talented sides on paper proceeded to lose nine of 11 matches between Aug. 20 and Oct. 12, including a 5-0 pounding at the hands of eventual champions the Songnam Chunma and a pair of defeats to archrivals the Suwon Blue Wings. In fact the only two wins during the stretch both came against last-place Bucheon.

Head coach Cho Kwang-rae was lucky to keep his job and it was most likely due to his successes of years past including the 2000 K-League title. However, he won't be able to survive another fiasco like last year.

Fortunately he has just the tools to contend with a high-powered lineup that will test the league's best defenses.

With a roster that already boasts Rookie-of-the-Year Jung Jo-gook up front, Seoul has added one of the league's top snipers in Kim Eun-jung along with the best sub around in Lee Won-sik. With Kim the team finally have a proven goalscorer for the first time since Choi Yong-soo left for Japan after the 2001 season.

The additions should offset the losses of Choi Tae-uk to Incheon United and Cho Won-kwang to France's Sochaux.

At the back they've lost some experience with the departure of Lee Sang-hun but he did not factor much into coach Cho's plans for a number of seasons. Instead, Seoul have several of the top young defenders around in Park Yo-seb and Park Yong-ho who will hopefully continue their development at the domestic and international level.

Seoul have also jumped on the Brazil bandwagon with Parana's Valentin and Renaldo, who had nine goals last year in the Brasileiro, but the team's picks have been hit-and-miss.

One player looking to improve upon his performance will be 2002 World Cup midfielder Lee Eul-yong, who was largely a disappointment after Anyang shelled out some big money to draw him away from Bucheon following his return from Turkey's Trabzonspor.

Lee has to step up this season and if he does FC Seoul can return to the upper echelon of the K-League.

Source: Andrew Carroll / Sports Editor - The Korea Times

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