Daejeon Hana Citizen vs Gwangju

Daejeon Hana Citizen entertain Gwangju at Daejeon World Cup Stadium in a pivotal K League 1 fixture, with a playoff berth at stake.

Goals on either side of halftime, both of which came before the hour-mark, fired Daejeon to an all-important 2-1 win at Gangwon in midweek K League 1 action, ending their poor run of four defeats from five competitive matches (D1) beforehand. Despite clinging to a penultimate playoff spot, they cannot afford to rest on their laurels, with seventh-placed Jeonbuk Motors only one point behind. But after losing three of their last four home top-flight outings (W1), including two in a row by an aggregate score of 4-1, Lee Min-sung’s men won’t be brimming with confidence. Adding to this sentiment, they are winless in their last five league meetings with Gwangju (D3, L2), failing to get on the scoresheet three times in this run.

Daejeon’s wayward home form shall boost Gwangju’s bid to extend a four-match winning run in all competitions and consolidate their playoff hopes. Level on points with Jeonbuk, the visitors come into proceedings on the back of three straight league victories, all of which saw them score multiple goals at an average of 2.66 per game. A 2-0 triumph at Suwon on their last top-flight travel halted an underwhelming three-game winless league run on the road (D2, L1), marking their first clean sheet away from home since a 1-0 win at Suwon Bluewings on matchday one. Defensive resilience in the early stages could be of the essence after Lee Jung-hyo’s team lost all three away league matches when conceding the opening goal this term.