SEOUL-- As the last South Korean team left standing at Asia's top club football tournament, Pohang Steelers will try to do their fans and league proud by bringing home the championship trophy next week, head coach Kim Gi-dong said Tuesday.
Pohang Steelers will take on the Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal in the final of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. The match kicks off at 7 p.m. on Nov. 23 local time, or 1 a.m. Nov. 24 in South Korea.
"This is our first time back at this tournament since 2016, and our fans were dying to see us play," Kim said at an online conference held Tuesday, a day before his team's flight to Saudi Arabia. "We've overcome some challenges to reach the final, and we want to put a nice finishing touch and give our fans a big present."
Both clubs have won three AFC titles apiece, and the winner next week will become the all-time leader with four continental crowns.
Pohang went back-to-back in 1997 and 1998 and then added their third in 2009. Kim played on that 2009 squad. He will try to become just the second South Korean to win the AFC Champions League both as a player and a head coach.
"Compared to my playing days, I feel more pressure on my shoulders, but that will only make a victory more exhilarating," Kim said. "It's been a lot of fun to prepare for matches and watch my players execute their plans on the field."
With Al Hilal being the Saudi league tenant of the stadium hosting the final, Pohang will be walking into a hostile environment. But Kim said the atmosphere will not faze his players.
"We're going to wear our log with pride," Kim said. "And we'll regard local Saudi Arabian fans as ours and have fun in the final.
Pohang will also have to contend with South Korean-born defender Jang Hyun-soo as well as former Europe-based players, like Bafetimbi Gomis, Matheus Pereira and Moussa Marega.
"Up front, they have some powerful and speedy attackers," Kim observed. "But they have been exposed on defense, and we'll try to force them to run a lot."
Midfielder Sin Jin-ho, who won the 2020 AFC title as a member of Ulsan Hyundai FC, said he didn't expect to come this far with his new club. And now that he's on the verge of his second straight title, Sin wants to make the most of it.
"I don't think I'll have another opportunity like this for the rest of my career," Sin said. "It's an honor to be playing in the final for the second straight year. I'll be playing for our fans and all people of Pohang."
Forward Lim Sang-hyup, who has scored a team-high 10 goals so far in the K League 1 season, said he'll do whatever it takes to help Pohang.
"Obviously, the best case scenario for me is to score a goal in our victory," Lim said. "But even if I don't score, I want to help the club first. This is the biggest match of my career, and it will mean the world to me if we can pull it off."
Source: Yonhap News Agency