The national team's next-generation top prospect, continuing relegation crisis 2 consecutive years in the third division relegation zone → 0 goal in the season

Feb 13, 2025

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The sun has yet to rise in the 2024-2025 season of Korea's next-generation star Bae Jun-ho.

Bae Joon-ho's team Stoke City lost 0-2 to Bristol City in the 32nd round of the 2024-2025 English Championship (second division) at Ashton Gate Stadium in Bristol, England, at 4:45 a.m. on the 13th (Korea time). The loss prevented Stoke from escaping from 19th place.

On this day, Bae Joon-ho started on the bench, not as a starter. On the bench, Bae Jun-ho had no choice but to watch his team being pushed back. Stoke began to be dragged away in the 11th minute of the first half when Anis Mehmeti, a Bristol ace, scored.

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Stoke, who failed to create an opportunity for a reversal until the middle of the second half, sought to change by putting in Bae Joon-ho in the 23rd minute of the second half. However, in the 28th minute of the second half, Mehmeti lost another point, widening the gap. Bae Joon-ho struggled, but Stoke's capabilities were insufficient. In the end, Stoke was defeated again when it ended as it was.

The Championship, which includes a total of 24 teams, will be relegated to the English League 1 (third division) directly from 22nd to 24th. Stoke is 19th, so it seems like he can afford it, but it's not real. Hull City, ranked 22nd, has 29 points and Stoke has 32 points, so it can be reversed at any time. Plymouth Argyle, ranked 23rd, has 28 points and Luton Town, ranked 24th, also has 27 points, so the gap with Stoke is not large.

Plymouth, who replaced Wayne Rooney as manager, have been on a huge rise recently and could be chasing Stoke. There are 15 games left in the league, so a rebound is needed, but Stoke's recent trend is not good. After winning two consecutive league games in early November, he has two wins, eight draws and seven losses in 17 league games. Just by looking at the flow, it shows why they are competing for the relegation zone.

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In the end, Stoke replaced coach Narcissus Pelak at the end of last year and brought in Mark Robbins immediately, but he hardly felt the effect of changing the coach. As the team stays in the relegation zone for two consecutive seasons, Bae Joon-ho's growth cannot be steep. Bae Joon-ho, who scored two goals and six assists in 40 games last season, only has five assists in 34 games this season.

Originally, he is not the type of player with excellent scoring ability, but it is certainly regrettable that his second-line resources still do not score. Ahead of this season, Stoke gave Bae Jun-ho the ace role by giving him the number 10, but he is not showing his ace-like appearance perfectly.

Just in case, Bae Jun-ho's performance is important for the remaining three to four months. As Bae Joon-ho survives, Stoke's escape from the relegation competition is the best scenario, but we have to prepare even if Stoke is demoted.