‘Return to Ulsan’ Joo Min-gyu, “I couldn’t refuse Director Hong Myung-bo’s Ulsan” 

“I couldn’t refuse director Hong Myung-bo’s Ulsan”. 

Joo Min-gyu, who returned to Ulsan Hyundai after three years, showed a strong will to continue winning the championship.

Ulsan started field training in Portugal on the 21st of last month. The average temperature these days in the Algarve is 17 degrees Celsius, which is perfect for training. The atmosphere is top notch.

Last week after arriving in Portugal, the entire team had time to build teamwork while touring Lisbon, the capital, which is a short distance away, to relieve the accumulated fatigue.

In addition, they are raising the atmosphere to the fullest by winning the Brentford B team and the Atlantic Cup competition. Ulsan, who played their first official game after finishing last season, achieved results that exceeded expectations. It is a team composed of young players, but it showed a fierce appearance against the Brentport B team, which is continuing the season.

Ahead of this season, Ulsan made a large-scale transfer bringing Joo Min-gyu, who was the top scorer in the K-League 1. Joo Min-gyu scored 22 goals in the 2021 season, becoming the first Korean player to score in five years. Last season, he competed fiercely for scoring with Cho Kyu-seong (Jeonbuk Hyundai).

Joo Min-gyu, who returned to Ulsan after 3 years, said, “It is a good team as expected. This is the best team in the K-League. It is a team with many good players. I’m having a good time every day,” he said. “I also had a good time in Jeju. However, when the transfer offer came from Ulsan again, I thought, ‘You were doing well’. It has been good for three years,” he said.

Regarding the time he spent in Jeju, Joo Min-gyu said, “I was really satisfied. It was a time where I could really learn a lot from the human Jumin-gyu. He has only good memories. He’s had tough times, but he’s learned a lot. He also learned a lot from director Nam Ki-il. He had a good memory and moved to Ulsan,” he explained. 스포츠토토

Regarding the reason for returning to Ulsan, he said, “I cannot refuse Ulsan’s recruitment offer led by coach Hong Myung-bo. After returning to Ulsan, whenever I see the director, I can’t approach him easily. It’s still embarrassing to see you in person. In particular, I think it’s great like watching TV,” he said. “There are many really good players in Ulsan, so I think I just have to do well. There is nothing else. Starting with (Lee) Cheong Yong-hyeong, there are many really great players such as Eom Won-sang, Bako, and Martin Adam. I just have to do my job well,” he explained.

Joo Min-gyu, born in 1990, is not young in the league. Among the roommates for this training camp, he is the youngest. He said, “I share a room with the older brothers Kim Seong-jun, Kim Ki-hee, and Jo Soo-hyuk. It’s no problem to say he’s the youngest in the room because he’s a really well-matched older brother. He feels that Ulsan’s culture remains intact. What has changed is that the runner-up team has changed to the championship team. Doing my job best is the most important thing,” he stressed.

Meanwhile, Joo Min-gyu said, “I still haven’t given up on my dream of becoming a member of the national team. Even if you are over 40, you should not give up on that dream. It’s a dream I’ve had since I started playing soccer,” he said. “It motivates me and drives me to run. It’s unfortunate that I couldn’t participate in the last World Cup, but I think it’s because I lacked my skills. He’s still dreaming because he wasn’t selected for the national team. If we win in Ulsan, we will be able to dream of the national team even more strongly.”