This is how many goals Suwon’s foreign strikers have scored in K League 1 over the last three years.
In total, six players have scored 13 goals in three seasons, which is less than Ulsan’s In-Jong-kyu, who leads the K League 1 in goals, has scored this season (14).바카라사이트
The loss of Groening last season was particularly damaging to Suwon’s early-season form, and the lack of a foreign striker ultimately led to the humiliation of a relegation playoff.
This year, after signing three foreign strikers, the situation is no different. Acosti and Mullich have not shown the kind of goalscoring ability expected of foreign strikers in the K League, and Werik Popo, a late-season acquisition, has already been labeled a bust after appearing in just three games.
With the foreign recruitment system virtually paralyzed, Suwon have slipped to the bottom of the table in 12th place and relegation is looking increasingly likely.
The failure of foreign strikers is reflected in the numbers. Through 30 rounds, Suwon have scored just 27 goals, 11th out of 12 teams. They’re also 11th in shots taken, with 3.43 per game. For a team that plays “bottle-ball,” they’re passing a lot (243.03 short passes per game, which ranks third overall), but they’re not really creating anything.
Suwon’s scouting system, which once boasted foreign top scorers in Santos (14 goals in 2014), Jonatan (22 goals in 2017) and Tagat (20 goals in 2020), has completely collapsed in recent years.
At this point, fans are even criticizing the club for bringing in foreigners based on YouTube highlight compilations.
In general, K League clubs have a department called the operations team or the reinforcement team that observes foreigners with the club’s scouts before deciding whether to sign them, or they review players recommended by agents close to the club.
However, in the case of Suwon, there are reports that the front office has too much power and the voices of scouts, agents, and especially the manager are not reflected in the transfer process.
An agent familiar with the K League Baseball foreign transfer market said, “I know that Suwon has a stronger influence than the head coach in the process of signing foreigners.” “Recently, I recommended a foreign player to the head coach of Club A, and the head coach decided to sign the player after watching five games in a pool and discussing with the club. He was chosen by the manager and is doing well in the real league. However, in Suwon’s recruitment process, there seems to be a lack of communication between the manager and the front office. We recommended a good player to the manager of Suwon, Kim Byung-soo, but he didn’t respond,” he said.
While it is questionable whether the scouts and agents who observe and recommend players are not good enough, or whether the person in charge of reviewing and deciding on the recommendation is not good enough, it is pointed out that Suwon’s foreign striker atrocity will continue unless the “scratch the lottery” style of foreign player acquisition is changed.