AFC Secondary League Preview: Cebu’s Top Ten Foreign Players Lift Dreams, Jeonbuk Hyundai’s Form on the Rise

On September 19 at 8 PM, the first round of Group H in the AFC Secondary League will see Filipino team Cebu host Korean team Jeonbuk Hyundai at Talisay City.

Cebu is not a powerhouse in Asia. In last season’s AFC Secondary League, they were grouped with MacArthur, Phnom Penh FC, and Shan United. They finished the group stage with one win, one draw, and four losses across six matches, scoring four goals and conceding nineteen, ultimately finishing bottom and exiting the tournament. The team is coached by 79-year-old former Turkish Super Lig coach Atı Gökşu, and half of the squad consists of Filipino players while the other half are foreign players. Among them, four are Turkish, three are Japanese, and three others hail from Africa and Brazil. These foreign players have significantly contributed to Cebu’s success in the Philippine league and fuel their hopes for an upset in the AFC arena.

Jeonbuk Hyundai has struggled in the K League this season, currently ranking 10th out of 12 teams. However, since mid-August, their form has improved, with three wins and one draw in their last four league matches, including victories over Pohang Steelers and Incheon United, and most recently a 6-0 thrashing of Suwon FC, boosting their momentum.

In terms of head-to-head records, the two teams have never faced each other directly. According to AFC records, Jeonbuk Hyundai has never played a Filipino team in official AFC matches. However, in recent seasons, Jeonbuk Hyundai’s record against Southeast Asian teams has not been impressive. In 2021, they were dragged into a penalty shootout by Thailand’s Buriram United in the AFC Round of 16. In 2022, they drew with Vietnam’s Hoang Anh Gia Lai, and last season, they lost away games against Thailand’s Bangkok United and Singapore’s Lion City Sailors in the AFC group stage.

In terms of key players, Cebu’s standout is their number 10 foreign player, Surinamese attacking midfielder Samoranhão, who has scored 11 goals and provided nine assists in his last 12 league matches. For Jeonbuk Hyundai, left winger Kim Byung-Hwan (five goals and two assists in 23 league appearances this season) and forward Song Jin-Yeong (three goals and one assist in eight league appearances this season) are both sidelined due to injuries.

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