Gangwon FC vs Phnom Penh Crown Predictions
Gangwon FC take on Phnom Penh Crown in an AFC Champions League Two Group H encounter on Thursday.
Gangwon have been in poor form, and they could struggle to see-off their Cambodian visitors.
Phnom Penh Crown +1 Asian handicap is my best bet.
Crown to Test Struggling Hosts
- Gangwon failed to win 13 of their last 16 matches
- Phnom Penh Crown are unbeaten in their last 6 matches
- Phnom Penh Crown are unbeaten in 6 of their last 8 matches (AFC competitions)
First Meeting Between Gangwon and Phnom Penh Crown
Gangwon FC and Phnom Penh Crown will meet for the first time on Thursday.
Gangwon Claim Much-Needed Win
Gangwon return to continental action after a 2-0 home win against Bucheon FC 1995 in the K League 1 on Friday.
After a tight and goalless first half, Kim Dae-won's 72nd-minute penalty finally broke the deadlock before Kim Gun-hee added a second eight minutes later.
Despite a poor first-half performance, Chung Kyung-ho's side deserved their victory. Gangwon outshot Bucheon 11-4 and registered an xG of 1.74 compared to the visitors' 0.79.
The Bears had endured a four-game winless run before last weekend’s hard-fought KL1 success.
Over a longer period, Chung Kyung-ho's side have won only four of 18 games played since the start of July.
Gangwon began their AFC Two campaign with a disappointing goalless draw at Kitchee last month. The Hong Kong side secured a point despite playing the last 20 minutes with ten men.
Crown Make Winning Start in Asia
Phnom Penh Crown make the trip to Korea having not played since a 2-1 victory against Kuching City in their AFC Champions League Two opener last month.
Moses Dyer scored twice as the Cambodians made a winning start to their continental campaign.
The Red Singha were worthy winners on the night. They had 56% possession, outshot their Malaysian visitors 13-9 and registered six efforts on target to Kuching's one. An xG of 1.94 compared to 0.49 also reflected the hosts' dominance of the contest.
Oleg Starynskyi's side are now unbeaten in six games played since the start of May.
Crown began their domestic season with a pair of 2-2 draws, first at home to NagaWorld and then away to Angkor Tiger.
The Cambodian Premier League runners-up are competing in AFC Two for the second time, having reached the knockout stages in 2024.
Gangwon FC vs Phnom Penh Crown Team News
Gangwon FC: (4-4-2) Park Cheong-hyo; Hwang Mun-ki, Shin Min-ha, Marko Tuci, Abdelkarim Mammar Chaouche; Mo Jae-hyun, Kim Dong-hyun, Seo Min-woo, Kim Dae-won; Choi Byung-chan, Kim Gun-hee.
Gangwon boss Chung could make one or two changes to the side that eventually overcame Bucheon.
Jesse Sekidika and Kang Seong-yun are in contention to start after coming on at half-time last weekend.
The KL1 hosts have no reported injury issues.
Phnom Penh Crown: (4-1-4-1) Um Vichet; Riku Matsuda, Raul Feher, Rick Ketting, Eam Ratana; Choun Chanchav; Valeriy Hryshyn, Bong Samuel, Callum Timmins, Guytho Mijland; Moses Dyer.
Crown boss Starynskyi could keep faith with the team that defeated Kuching City. Moses Dyer is expected to lead the attack after his match-winning brace.