Ulsan Tigers ready for AFC match, coach says

Ulsan Tigers coach Kim Ho-gon yesterday expressed his resolution to win tonight’s first-leg match of the AFC Champions League quarterfinal against Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia.

“We will keep the pride of the K-League alive and show the status of Korean football,” Kim told a press conference in Ulsan yesterday, where the match will be held.

The other three K-League clubs that entered the prestigious tournament - the Jeonbuk Motors, Pohang Steelers and Seongnam Chunma - were all knocked out at the group stage.

Ulsan finished first in Group F with four victories and two losses. Al Hilal, 13-time champions of the Saudi league, also finished first in Group D.

Korean forward Yoo Byung-soo, who scored the most goals in the 2010 K-League season, is playing for the Saudi club.

By Moon Gwang-lip