Osmar (34, FC Seoul), who wore the captain’s armband for the first time in 7 years, revealed the reason for the rebound.
Seoul won 3-1 in the 12th round of the ‘Hanawon Q K League 1 2023’ against Gwangju at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 9th.
Ahead of the Gwangju match, Seoul took a change. Ilyuchenko, who was captain all season, put down the armband and Osmar became the new captain. While cruising to second place in the league, attention was focused on the reason for the replacement as the captain suddenly changed.
Seoul coach Ahn Ik-soo revealed that there was a request from Ilyuchenko. Before the game, coach Ahn said, “I had a lot of worries myself in the process of improving my personal condition. He said he wanted to put down the captaincy and focus on improving his performance.” Then he said, “Because he is such a professional player, he went through several trials. But he had a strong will of his own,” he explained the reason for his replacement.메이저사이트
The new captain is Seoul’s ‘living legend’ Osmar. Osmar has been active in the Seoul uniform from 2014 to the present, except for 2018, when he played for Cerezo Osaka (on loan). In 2016, he also lifted the league championship cup as the captain of Seoul. In the match against Suwon Samsung on the 22nd, Osmar became the most foreign player (255 games) in the history of the Seoul club.
Osmar wore an armband and started in the match against Gwangju. Osmar’s influence continued. He faithfully fulfilled his role as a link between defense and midfield. As Osmar took center stage, Seoul also won a pleasant victory. In a 1-1 situation, Na Sang-ho’s volley and Park Dong-jin’s additional goal won the match.
Osmar, who met with reporters after the game, said, “I knew Gwangju’s style and expected it to be a tough game. It was important both with and without the ball, but I am satisfied with the victory.”
Regarding the claim, “It is not a big change. Even when he wasn’t captain, he tried to lead the team. The decision was up to Ilyuchenko. I heard that he talked to the coach because he needed to regain his confidence. He hopes to lead the team well himself. He received a lot of congratulations and the players are cheering for him.”
After Osmar became captain, he also revealed a conversation he had with Ilyuschenko. Osmar said, “At first, I was very surprised to hear about the change of captain from the manager, and he talked to Ilyuschenko. Ilyuchenko said it was the best decision for the team. He thought it was right to focus on his current condition.”
Osmar emphasized his traditional leadership role with pride. Osmar said, “At this age, armbands don’t mean much (laughs). The main thing is to talk to the judges and take pictures. Our team has leaders such as Ki Sung-yong and Ko Yo-han. I am one of them. Of course it’s something to be proud of. There is also pride in being the first to represent the team when entering the game. The rankings are good these days, so I’m proud that a lot of fans came.”
With 23 points (7 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses), Seoul consolidated its 2nd place position and pursued Ulsan Hyundai (31 points) in 1st place. Coincidentally, Seoul’s next opponent is Ulsan. Seoul and Ulsan will face off at Ulsan Munsu Stadium at 2:30 pm on the 14th.
Although he was in a position to challenge for the championship, Osmar was adamant. Osmar said, “It is more important to win the next game against Ulsan than to win. Lately, we’ve been thinking too much about the next step, and our ranking has dropped. I made a mistake and collapsed while going ahead, not in the immediate game. We talked about this with the players. Right now, I’m just concentrating on one game at a time. That part was different from before and it was an opportunity for the team to become stronger,” he emphasized.
The K-League this season is feeling the spring with many spectators flocking to each round. Same goes for Seoul. Seoul recorded 154,954 spectators in five home games before the match against Gwangju. The average attendance was 30,991. 10,236 spectators visited Sangam even though the match against Gwangju was played on a Tuesday evening.
“It’s definitely different when there are a lot of spectators,” Osmar said. Seoul is the largest city and the most populous, and I am proud of it. The players show good performance while playing, but I also want to express my gratitude to the club staff who are working hard in various places.”
“One thing is certain, a large home crowd is a big help to us. When we reach 30,000, 40,000, or 50,000, the players already enter the stadium with the feeling that the game is tilted towards us with a 70/30 ratio, not a 50/50 fight. It is a very important part for the players,” he thanked the fans.