Hong Myung-bo to stay at Ulsan Hyundai until 2026

Ulsan Hyundai signed a three-year contract extension to keep manager Hong Myung-bo with the club until 2026, Ulsan announced Wednesday.

A picture of Hong Myung-bo shared on Ulsan Hyundai's official Instagram account on Wednesday after his contract extension with the team [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Ulsan Hyundai signed a three-year contract extension to keep manager Hong Myung-bo with the club until 2026, Ulsan announced Wednesday.

The contract extension came after Hong saw huge success with the team. He first took the helm in 2021 and led Ulsan to the K League title last season for the first time in 17 years.

He has continued that success this season, with Ulsan recording a six-game winning streak in the early days of the season and now sitting on top of the league table — 12 points clear of the second-place Pohang Steelers as of Wednesday.

“If the past was the time when I analyzed and built the team, I will work to establish Ulsan as a leading club that represent the K League from now on,” Hong said in an Instagram post shared by the club on Wednesday. “The fans are the strength and motivation for our players and me. I will continue to do my best for all those who love and support Ulsan.”

Hong’s influence on the team this season has been clear, especially in attack, as he ordered his players to play all-out attacking football.

Ulsan have been the most prolific team in the league with 49 goals in 24 matches — eight more goals than the second most amount of goals by FC Seoul with 41 — thanks to Hong’s style of football.

Ulsan crashed out of the Korean FA Cup after losing to Jeju United in the quarterfinals, but their road to the league title seems promising, with no teams having been able to seriously challenge the league leaders in the league.

This season may be the first time in history Ulsan win a back-to-back league title.

Their next game is against Daegu FC, set to kick off at DGB Daegu Bank Park on Saturday.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]