K. League Preview: Championship, relegation sections begin

The K. League’s Championship Round begins this weekend with Jeonbuk Motors seeking to secure the title with plenty of time to spare.

The final five rounds will see the top six compete against one another and the bottom six do the same.

Jeonbuk are 10 points clear of second-placed Suwon Bluewings and boast a vastly superior goal difference.

If Jeonbuk win away to Seoul, and Suwon lose at Ulsan, the league trophy will head to ‘Fort Jeonju’ for the third time in six seasons.

Jeonbuk will be confident of keeping up their part of the bargain. Choi Kang-hee’s team have only been beaten once in their last 11 matches – that loss coming on penalties against Seongnam in the semi-finals of the Korean FA Cup – while goalkeeper Kwon Sun-tae has kept five successive league clean sheets.

Seoul and Jeju United are both five points behind Pohang Steelers, who hold the last AFC Champions League qualification slot.

Jeju visit Pohang two weeks after beating them 3-0 at home. United have, however, lost on their last two trips to the Steelers.

Yang Dong-hyun helped Ulsan snatch the final place in the top six with three goals and two assists in their last two games of the regular season.

The 28-year-old striker will be out to extend Ulsan’s unbeaten record in home matches against Suwon, which currently stands at six games.

At the other end of the table, four teams are embroiled in the battle to avoid slipping through the relegation trapdoor.

The bottom team will go directly into the second flight, while the second-last finishers enter a relegation/promotion playoff.

Sangju Sangmu prop up the table, two points behind Gyeongnam and Seongnam, with Busan I’Park two points clear of the drop zone.

Sangju host Busan as Gyeongnam visit Incheon United.

Seongnam entertain a Jeonnam Dragons side with little to play for after being pipped to the final place in the Championship Round.