SEOUL-- Hong Jeong-ho, who captained Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors to a record-setting K League 1 football championship this season, was voted the league's most valuable player (MVP) on Tuesday.
The 32-year-old center back is the first defender to capture South Korean football's top individual award since Kim Joo-sung in 1997.
Hong earned 48.98 points in voting by head coaches, team captains and media. He led all candidates with six votes each from 12 head coaches and 12 captains, and with 56 out of 118 votes from media.
Jeju United forward Joo Min-kyu, who won the scoring title with 22 goals, was the runner-up to Hong after earning 39.45 points. He had four votes from coaches, five from captains and 50 from media.
Daegu FC midfielder Cesinha and Ulsan Hyundai FC midfielder Lee Dong-jun finished third and fourth with 6.36 points and 5.21 points.
"This is such a happy day. I wondered if I could win this award as a defensive back," Hong said after receiving his trophy. "I won this award because I played on a great team under a great coach with unbelievable teammates."
The MVP honor is an icing on the cake for Hong, who celebrated Jeonbuk's unprecedented fifth consecutive title and ninth overall on Sunday. Hong was named Jeonbuk's new captain before this season after Lee Dong-gook, a club legend and the K League's all-time leading scorer, retired. Hong filled that void admirably, earning praise for both his performance on the field and leadership qualities away from the pitch.
With Hong serving as the rock on the backline, Jeonbuk conceded the fewest goals in the K League 1 this season with 37 in 38 matches.
Hong played in 36 matches this season and led all outfield players on his team with 3,315 minutes.
Hong netted only two goals this year but both came in crucial moments for Jeonbuk.
On Sept. 5, he netted an injury-time winner to lift Jeonbuk past FC Seoul 4-3, saving the club from settling for a frustrating draw against a lowly foe. Then on Nov. 28, he scored Jeonbuk's first goal in their 2-0 win over Daegu FC, a win that gave Jeonbuk a two-point cushion over Ulsan Hyundai FC heading into the final weekend of the season.
Jeonbuk then clinched their historic championship on Sunday with another 2-0 victory, this time over Jeju United. Ulsan beat Daegu FC 2-0 but still finished two points back in second place.
Hong was also named to the K League 1 Best XI for the third straight season.
Hong is the fourth Jeonbuk player to have been named MVP, joining Son Jun-ho (2020), Lee Jae-sung (2017) and Lee Dong-gook (2009, 2011, 2014 and 2015).
Hong's bench boss with Jeonbuk, Kim Sang-sik, was named the Coach of the Year. The 44-year-old led Jeonbuk to the historic fifth consecutive title in his first year in charge, following seven seasons as Jeonbuk's assistant and five seasons as a defender.
He is only the second man to win a K League title as a player, an assistant coach and a head coach with the same team.
"It's a great honor to win a championship and then such a big award in my first season," Kim said. "Over the course of the season, I felt the weight of being a head coach of a team, and I developed new respect for the 11 other head coaches in this league. They were my mentors this year."
Also on Tuesday, Ulsan Hyundai FC defender Seol Young-woo was voted the Young Player of the Year, awarded to the best player 23 or younger with under three years of K League experience who played in at least 50 percent of the team's matches.
Seol, who turned 23 on Sunday, completed his second season, and put up two goals and three assists in 31 matches. He appeared in 14 games last year.
The versatile Seol also saw time as midfielder this season.
In voting from team coaches, captains and media, Seol scored 42.29 points, beating out Suwon Samsung Bluewings forward Jung Sang-bin, who had 26.27 points.
Gwangju FC forward Um Won-sang finished third with 17.92 points, followed by Pohang Steelers midfielder Goh Young-jun with 13.52 points.
Seol led all candidates with seven votes from 12 captains and 51 out of 118 votes cast by media. He earned three votes from a dozen head coaches.
Seol dedicated his award to the late Korean football legend Yoo Sang-chul, who coached Seol at the University of Ulsan before succumbing to cancer in June.
Source: Yonhap News Agency