K League players aim to make country proud at continental tournaments

Players set to participate in Asian club football tournaments starting this month said Thursday they will try to make Korea and the domestic league proud. Ulsan HD FC, Gangwon FC and FC Seoul of the K League 1 will play in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League Elite, the continent's top club event. Pohang Steelers, also representing the K League 1, will play in the second-tier AFC Champions League Two. The opening phases for both tournaments start in two weeks, and the champions will be crowned next spring. At the players' joint press conference in Seoul, Ulsan defender Kim Young-gwon said he considers a chance to play at the AFC tournament "a privilege." "We haven't been playing well in the league, and so we want to try to turn things around there," Kim said, with Ulsan, three-time defending K League 1 champions, stuck in eighth place this season with 10 matches remaining. "But that doesn't mean we will not take the AFC Champions League seriously. We know the importance of the tournament, and since we had a disappointing showing last year, we want to do much better thiWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times