Nine of Ulsan’s previous 10 matches had seen someone get their name on the scoresheet, and all signs pointed to that happening again, considering Fluminense’s lightning start. Fewer than two minutes had passed before Jo Hyeon-woo was forced into two sublime saves.
Ulsan’s number one expertly pushed Paulo Henrique Ganso’s volley to safety before, from the resulting corner, the South Korean international acrobatically flicked the Brazilian’s fierce strike over the crossbar. The one-way traffic continued as the game approached the quarter-hour mark, as Juan Pablo Freytes’ header flew only narrowly wide.
Fluminense’s superiority was eventually rewarded spectacularly in the 27th minute as Jhon Arias fired a rocket of a free-kick into the top corner. And it didn’t take long for the Brazilians to nearly double their lead as Jo produced two quick-fire saves to keep out Gabriel Fuentes.
However, a devastating conclusion to the first half from a resurgent Ulsan left Fluminense shell-shocked. First, a clinical counter-attacking move from inside their own half gave the order for Lee Jin-hyun to fire Um Won-sang’s misfired effort across goal straight into its intended target. Then, a roll of reversals deep into stoppage time saw Lee put his delightful delivery straight onto Um’s head to give the reigning K League 1 champions an unlikely lead.
Against the run of play, Um should have made it 3-1 after 56 minutes. However, instead of netting again, the striker contrastingly ended up in a pile on the floor after firing his effort wide. In an effort to get back into the game, Renato Gaucho made a triple substitution just shy of the hour mark that included the introduction of Nonato.
The Fluminense manager’s alteration took only seven minutes to make an impact, as the midfield maestro expertly side-footed his effort into the far corner to set up an intriguing final 24 minutes.
After being denied earlier in the game, there was nothing to stop Freytes from wheeling off in celebration with his teammates in the 83rd minute as he slammed home Germán Cano’s cross-shot.
An end-to-end evening of entertainment was eventually settled in Fluminense’s favour in second-half stoppage time as Keno authoritatively headed home Arias’ cross to send the Brazilians into pole position in Group F. Meanwhile, the defeat leaves Ulsan at the bottom of the group with zero points, ultimately confirming their exit from the FIFA 2025 CWC.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Juan Pablo Freytes (Fluminense)
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