Koreans in Europe: Hwang In-beom gets assist in fiery Belgrade derby

Hwang In-beom’s Red Star Belgrade drew 2-2 with Goh Young-jun’s Partizan in a Serbian SuperLiga Korean derby on Saturday at Red Star Stadium in Belgrade, Serbia.

Partizan's Aldo Kalulu, left, in action against Red Star's Hwang In-beom during a Serbian SuperLiga match in Belgrade, Serbia on March 9. [EPA/YONHAP]

Hwang In-beom’s Red Star Belgrade drew 2-2 with Goh Young-jun’s Partizan in a Serbian SuperLiga Korean derby on Saturday at Red Star Stadium in Belgrade, Serbia.

It was a tight game between the two long-term rivals.

After deadlock for most of the first half, Red Star finally broke through with a goal from Uros Spajic in the 44th minute, only for Matheus Saldana to tie things up two minutes later going into the break.

Partizan drew ahead in the 49th minute, with Hwang assisting Cherif Ndiaye in the 67th to make it 2-2. Partizan saw red and went down to 10 men in the 74th, but held on to keep the score tied until the final whistle.

Partizan's Goh Young-jun, right, in action against Red Star's Srdjan Mijailovic during a Serbian SuperLiga match in Belgrade, Serbia on Saturday. [EPA/YONHAP]

Both Hwang and Goh played through full-time.

Hwang, who joined Red Star last summer, has three goals and four assists across all competitions so far this season, including one of each against Manchester City in the Champions League.

Goh, who moved to Partizan in January, scored on his debut on Feb. 17 and has started all four games since joining the club.

It took 115 minutes to reach 90 minutes of full-time at Red Star Stadium, with the game interrupted for over 20 minutes in the first half due to clashes between fans in the stands.

Red Star fans light fireworks during a match against Partizan in Belgrade, Serbia on Saturday. [AP/YONHAP]

Serbia is home to a particularly aggressive brand of football hooliganism, and nowhere is that more evident than in the Belgrade derby between Red Star and Partizan.

The two clubs have dominated Serbian football for the best part of a century, with Red Star topping the domestic league 24 times and Partizan doing so 21 times. Red Star have won the last six titles, but Partizan currently hold first by a single point.

Partizan fans light fireworks during a match against Red Star Belgrade in Belgrade, Serbia on Saturday. [AP/YONHAP]

Red Star will be back in action on Wednesday as they take on Radnicki Nis in a league game, with Partizan facing Napredak on the same day.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]