Sunday 11th March 2012
3.00PM
Daejeon World Cup Stadium
Daejeon Citizen will be looking to put last weekend's horror show behind them as they welcome K-League Champions Jeonbuk to the Purple Arena this Sunday.
Whilst round one provided contrasting fortunes for the two sides, Daejeon will be hoping that a large home crowd will act as the extra man to push them to an unlikely victory against a Jeonbuk team who started this season as they finished the last. The statistics are very much against Citizen, who haven't beaten Jeonbuk in the last eight attempts. Indeed, you have to go back to 2008 for the last Daejeon victory against the boys from Jeolla-do.
Daejeon will be buoyed by the heavy 1-5 defeat Jeonbuk suffered at home at the hands of Chinese side Guangzhou this past Wednesday in the Champions League. With a new coach and an ageing squad, the jury is still out on whether Jeonbuk remain the same force that dominated Korean football in 2011. That said, on paper their squad oozes quality. With the likes of Eninho, Luis and Lee Dong-Guk, Jeonbuk have a strike force that rivals any in the league.
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| Lee is in the midst of one of the best spells of his career. |
After scoring three goals in his last two internationals, as well as two for Jeonbuk last weekend, the former Middlesboro flop Lee is experiencing somewhat of an 'Indian Summer' period. Daejeon's young and inexperienced defence will certainly have their work cut out.
Off the pitch, it has been another interesting week for Citizen, with CEO Kim tendering his resignation over the handling of the Choi Eun-Sung affair. The silent protest at Gyeongnam and constant calls for Kim to quit have finally paid dividend for Daejeon supporters as Kim announced his intent to step down this past Thursday. Still, there could be an uneasy tension at the game, with fans still angry that legend Choi has felt alienated enough to state that even with Kim gone, he has no desire to come back.
Daejeon will be looking to improve their midfield drastically after they were overrun at will by Gyeongnam, a team with far less talent than Jeonbuk will bring on Sunday. Coach Yoo Sang-Chul must find a way to contain Jeonbuk's two Brazilian playmakers, otherwise we could witness a rugby-esque scoreline. It will be interesting to see whether he continues with the 4-5-1 formation deployed last weekend, which in hindsight proved to be a huge mistake, leaving striker Kevin Oris isolated and clearly frustrated by the lack of any support.
How to get there
Daejeon has 2 train stations, both with regular KTX services. If coming from Seoul, the KTX will set you back around 23,000 won or the slower Mugunghwa around 10,000.
Any Jeonbuk fans travelling to the game would be recommended to take a bus, as it is generally much quicker than taking the train. Bus tickets should cost less than 10,000 won.
Upon arrival in Daejeon, take the subway to World Cup Stadium station, and exit gate 7.
Extra Information
A large crowd is expected so arrive early to avoid long queues at the ticket booths. The 'Ultra' fans congregate in the South stand, with away supporters housed in the North.
Liam Birch
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