Sydney FC kick off their 2019 Asian Champions League campaign against Ulsan Hyundai FC on Wednesday as they invite the Korean team to the raucous Jubilee Stadium.

Somewhat ominously, Sydney play against the exact same group that Victory played against last season, where Victory put in a fighting effort to earn eight points, but it was not enough for them to get out of the group.

Sydney’s group has been labelled the ‘Group of Death’, but fortunately for the Sky Blues, they start their ACL journey with the weakest opponents of the group. Unfortunately for the Minor Premiers, Ulsan are quite a strong side and are probably the second best team in South Korea this season.

Ulsan, also known as ‘Horangi’ or ‘Tigers’ in English, only officially kicked off their season this past weekend where they beat Suwon Bluewings. Even with a victory, they are yet to hit full stride so now might be the perfect time to strike, but they must beware for they might be poking a sleeping tiger.

Here’s a deeper look at Ulsan Hyundai and what to expect from the Korean team.

2018 Season

Ulsan enjoyed a relatively good 2018 as they came third in the league, only two points behind the surprising Gyeongnam FC but a whopping 23 points behind the powerhouse that is Jeonbuk Motors.

The Tigers had a strange knack for dropping unnecessary points when playing away from home and they only won five times on the road last season. Their immense home form was what brought them to the ACL this year, but concerns might still lie in how they play away and they will be tested immediately as they make the journey to Sydney.

Last year’s ACL campaign was average, if not slightly disappointing, as they progressed from a difficult group in second place but fell to their country rivals Suwon in the first knockout hurdle.

Ulsan are a strong team though and they have everything in their arsenal to compete for all the competitions they are in this season, so they should certainly not be taken lightly.

Player to watch out for

Ulsan’s signing of the Brazilian journeyman Junior Negrao turned out to be an inspired piece of business for the Koreans as he was the focal point for everything in attack, notching up 22 goals in a spectacular first season at the club.

Already scoring in the Asian Champions League qualification match in what was a 5-1 mauling of Malaysian team Perak, suggesting him and his team might not need any time to get into fourth gear.

Now in his second season, it wouldn’t be surprising for Negrao to improve on an already excellent first year and take Ulsan to the next level in a bid to bring home some silverware.

Tactical overview

Ulsan manager, Kim Do-Hoon, is privileged to have talent at his disposal across the whole pitch — from back to front.

At the top he has Negrao who will put any chance or even half-chance into the back of the net, but just behind him they might have one of the best playmakers in Korea in the name of Mix Diskerud. The USA international is capable of penetrating any team with his defence-splitting passes.

In a tactical sense, Do-Hoon instructs his team to play out from the back with Park Yong-Woo playing a crucial role as a number six who shields the defence from opposition attacks and, more importantly, connects the defence with attack.

Former Borussia Dortmund left-back and captain Park Joo-Ho as well as Kim Tae-Hwan are deployed as wing-backs with complete freedom to storm up and down the wings, at times almost playing as auxiliary wingers. They especially enjoy overlapping their wide partner and creating overloads that are almost impossible to deal with unless the opposition have hard-working wingers that are willing to track back themselves.

Their relentless attacking mentality can lead to them getting caught out if they lose possession and the opponents are in position to counter with speed and decisiveness, especially if they take advantage of the out of position full-backs.

They are also quite weak when it comes to dealing with crosses, whether that be from set-pieces or just from open play. They can be caught napping as opponents charge the box and fail to appropriately deal with aerial balls into the box.

If the Sky Blues are to beat Ulsan, they should look to play a direct and aerial game while also trying to make the most out of set-pieces with careful and precise instructions.

Miscellaneous facts

The Tigers have the oldest average aged squad in Korea at 29. Do-Hoon clearly relies on experience and knowledge rather than youthful naivety and innocent flair.

Ulsan are a fluid passing team with the highest number of passes in the 2018 K League with an average of 450 passes per game.

Interestingly, Ulsan had one of the lowest shot rates in Korea last year, but they made up for it by being the most accurate, with 40.67% of their strikes hitting the target. This suggests that the squad have been trained only to shoot when in positions that have a strong chance of at least testing the keeper.

Ulsan’s 2-1 victory against Suwon Bluewings this past weekend involved a goal from Negrao and for Suwon, a first goal for former Brisbane man Adam Taggart.