Daejeon Hana Citizen captain Joo Se-jong, who succeeded in escaping without a win in four games, showed his determination to advance to Final A (sixth round) in the first season of promotion.
Daejeon won 3-1 thanks to Kim In-gyun’s first goal, Yoo Kang-hyeon’s additional goal, and Thiago’s key goal in the 31st round match of ‘Hana One Q K League 1 2023’ against Suwon Samsung held at Daejeon World Cup Stadium at 2 p.m. on the 23rd. He succeeded in escaping without a win in four games.토토사이트
With 14,810 spectators attending the stadium on this day, Daejeon got off to a good start by scoring two goals in the first half alone. In the 14th minute of the first half, left-back Seo Young-jae’s shot that entered the penalty box was blocked by the goalkeeper, and Kim In-gyun scored his 7th league goal by slotting in the second ball.
In the 34th minute of the first half, Yoo Kang-hyun received a sharp pass from defender Jo Yu-min, beat the goalkeeper, and then calmly scored to widen the lead. With this goal, Yoo Kang-hyun scored his K League 1 debut goal and his first goal of the season in 20 league games this season.
Daejeon goalkeeper Lee Chang-geun also showed a great save to help the team win. In the extra time of the first half, Suwon was awarded a penalty kick and Daejeon was on the verge of conceding a goal, but Lee Chang-geun did not allow a goal as he read the direction of kicker An Byeong-jun’s shot accurately.
In the second half, Daejeon gave up a chasing goal to Suwon’s key midfielder, Kazuki, in the 12th minute of the second half, but was awarded a penalty kick due to a handball foul by Suwon defender Park Dae-won in extra time in the second half. Thiago, who replaced Yoo Kang-hyun in the second half of the game, successfully completed the goal, putting a wedge in the win.
Thiago also scored his 14th league goal with a penalty kick that day, igniting the competition for top scorer in K League 1. With his key goal against Suwon, Thiago is now the league’s leading scorer with 14 goals along with Joo Min-gyu (Ulsan Hyundai).
With a 3-1 win over Suwon, Daejeon added 3 points to reach 41 points (10 wins, 11 draws, 10). The ranking is still 8th in the league, but Jeonbuk Hyundai in 6th place, which is the Final A Maginot Line, has 43 points (12 wins, 7 draws, and 11 losses), so there is still a possibility of advancing to the top split. On the other hand, Suwon, which failed to accumulate points, maintained 22 points (5 wins, 7 draws, 19 losses) and 12th place in the league.
Daejeon veteran midfielder and captain Joo Se-jong, whom we met in the mixed zone after the game, expressed his thoughts about the game, saying, “It was a very important game, and I feel good because the players’ hard preparation paid off.”
Regarding the reason for playing evening games again and then playing daytime games again, he said, “Coach (Lee Min-seong) deliberately changed the training time to 2 p.m. and prepared for a week, but as we continued to play evening games, the pattern changed to daytime games, so I lost a lot of concentration. “I prepared more thoroughly by talking with the players away,” he said.
Before the game, Daejeon was on a winless streak with 2 draws and 2 losses in 4 games, and Suwon was also on a 3-game losing streak, so both teams were desperate for a win.
Regarding the factors that determined victory and defeat, Joo Se-jong said, “First of all, the fans who came to our home games in large numbers were the biggest strength. Second, of course, we were as desperate as Suwon, but Suwon were players fighting with pressure and worried about relegation. “Well, I think it was effective because we felt less pressure and prepared more comfortably to play our own game,” he explained.
Joo Se-jong, who was promoted to K-League 1 with Daejeon, made remaining his number one goal before the start of the 2023 season, saying, “I calmly think we are in 12th place.” As time passes, Daejeon is now in a situation where it is possible to not only remain in the league but also advance to the top split in the promotion season.
Regarding this, Joo Se-jong said, “The first goal was to stay, and we are in a good situation where we can advance to the top split. In fact, I think that if you are a professional, you should seize this opportunity when it comes, so the remaining 2 “I am preparing hard because I think if I play well in the game, a good opportunity will come,” he said, expressing his expectations.
He added, “Even if we go to the lower split (Final B), we may decide to stay before the split starts, so I think we need to prepare better.”
Daejeon, which has the last two games of the regular season left, will travel to Gangwon FC on the 1st and host Jeju United at home on the 8th. If they win both games, there is a high possibility of advancing to the semifinals depending on the results of the competing teams.
As the season neared its end and little by little they began to prepare for next year, Joo Se-jong said, “This year was the players’ first K-League 1 season, so they lacked a lot of experience. However, the players gained experience by playing each game one by one.” Looking back on this season, he said, “They are showing signs of winning these difficult games.”
He said, “First of all, in preparing for next year, it is important to show consistent performance in the stadium. Today, we were winning 2-0, but the tempo of the game dropped in the second half, and we conceded goals and had many crisis situations, so if we make up for these things, we will improve next year.” “I think we will show better soccer and become a stronger team from the next game,” he asserted.
Joo Se-jong also spoke about Yoo Kang-hyun, who scored his first league goal after joining Daejeon on this day. Yoo Kang-hyun, who was the top scorer in K League 2 last season by scoring 19 goals in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, entered K League 1 wearing a Daejeon uniform ahead of the 2023 season, but scored his debut goal in K League 1 and Daejeon against Suwon. It was silent for 19 games before it exploded.
About Yoo Kang-hyun, who finally solved the goal drought, “He was the top scorer in K-League 2 last year, and he knows scoring goals better than us, so rather than scoring goals, (Yoo) Kang-hyun let go of the pressure and was more comfortable. “He helped me prepare,” he said.
He added, “Actually, as a striker, if you don’t score a goal, you’ll be stressed, but I think Kang-hyeon has prepared well because we joke around a lot to help him train and live more positively.”
Veteran midfielder Joo Se-jong, born in 1990, left Japan’s J-League Gamba Osaka in July of last year and joined Daejeon. As soon as he joined, Joo Se-jong became the core of Daejeon’s midfield and was selected as a veteran player and best 11 member in the ‘PLAYER OF THE YEAR’ fan vote for the 2022 season.
Joo Se-jong, who received a lot of love from Daejeon fans, completely transferred to Daejeon last January and was also appointed as team captain ahead of the 2023 season. Since then, he has appeared in 24 league games, scoring 1 goal and 2 assists, and has played a key role in the Daejeon midfield, successfully leading the club in its first season of promotion.