Gwangju vs Daejeon Hana Citizen

Gwangju Football Stadium is the venue as Gwangju and Daejeon Hana Citizen go head-to-head in a high-stakes K League 1 showdown.

Gwangju eked out a 1-0 win at Suwon last time out to curtail an underwhelming four-game winless league run (D3, L1) and only barely stay within the playoff picture. One point clear of 7th-placed Daegu, the hosts come into proceedings keen to end a two-game winless home league streak (D1, L1). Gwangju’s impressive defensive displays in the early stages have seen only 30% of their home league goals conceded this season arrive before halftime (3/10). In that same timeframe, Lee Jung-hyo’s men have netted seven goals. Therefore, it’s somewhat unfathomable that they’ve conceded an opener in 50% of their top-flight home fixtures this season (6/12).

Meanwhile, despite lamenting a disappointing -2 goal difference, visiting Daejeon Hana Citizen clung to the final playoff spot with a hard-earned 1-0 home win over Daegu last time out. That result halted Daejeon’s woeful run of six winless league outings (D5, L1) and marked only their second clean sheet in 14 matches across all competitions. But Lee Min-sung’s men have faltered away from home, claiming just one win on their last seven competitive road trips (D4, L2), not to mention back-to-back scoring blanks in the build-up to this travel. That’s an ominous sign for the visitors, considering they’ve failed to get on the scoresheet on their last five visits to Gwangju (D3, L2).