A poor second half performance coupled with lacklustre defending condemned Daejeon to a third straight defeat in the 2012 K-League.
Daejeon Citizen travelled to the capital as firm underdogs. The hosts had not lost at home in the league for over a year. Even more depressing was the fact that Daejeon had not beaten Seoul in the last seventeen encounters, a run stretching way back to 2004.
This was then a daunting task for Citizen, but as the first half progressed, it seemed that Daejeon were holding their own. Indeed, neither side created anything of note in a dreadful spectacle of a first half which was played almost entirely in the midfield, with both sides unable to string more than two passes together. Of the two sides, Seoul certainly looked the most threatening, but goalkeeper Choi Hyeon was rarely troubled. If the Daejeon keeper was having an easy time, his Seoul counterpart could have been absent, such was the lack of a goal threat provided by a Daejeon side who seemed happy to frustrate Seoul and try to grind out a goalless draw.
Both Daejeon and Seoul were lucky to still have 11 players on the pitch at half time following an incident between Citizen captain Lee Ho and Seoul forward Dejan. From an FC Seoul corner, Seoul's Montenegrin international was clearly tugging at Lee's shirt. Lee reacted by swinging a fist at the Seoul player, who in turn kicked out at the Citizen captain. The referee showed both players yellow cards, much to the frustration of the clearly upset Lee.
One feature of Daejeon this season has been a poorer second half showing, and this trait reared it's ugly head once again here.
On 52 minutes, Seoul won a free kick at least 40 yards out by the right-hand touchline. Colombian international Molina floated a dangerous looking cross into the area which the Daejeon defenders conspired to completely miss, taking goalkeeper Choi by surprise, and ending up in Choi's top right hand corner. It was a shambolic goal to concede after some good defensive work in the first period. Both defenders and goalkeeper should take a share of the blame for completely switching off and for the obvious lack of communication within the defence.
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| Molina scores his, and Seoul's first goal. |
With Seoul ahead, the task now seemed even more impossible for a Citizen team which has failed to score a single goal this year. With the need to get back on level terms, Daejeon desperately needed to push forward and put Seoul under some pressure, but unfortunately it never happened. Daejeon struggled with their passing the entire afternoon and could not supply Kevin Oris, again playing as a lone striker, with any sort of ammunition whatsoever. The Belgian forward had rare sights of goal, but was so isolated with no support arriving from the wings or midfield, that invariably potential chances came to nothing.
FC Seoul thought they had made it 2-0 midway through the second half, only for the linesman to rule the effort out for offside, although the person in charge of the fireworks obviously wasn't aware of the decision, and comically set them off just as Daejeon were restarting play.
The comic relief for Daejeon fans was short lived however, when on 79 minutes, Molina put the result beyond doubt, grabbing his, and Seoul's second of the game.
Molina ran on to a through ball from the midfield, and whilst Daejeon defenders stood still and claimed offside, Molina cooly rounded Choi Hyeon and side-footed the ball into the empty net. Why the Daejeon defenders just stopped is anyone's guess, but they were severely punished by a player who has been in a thorn in the side of Citizen since his arrival to Korea with Seongnam.
FC Seoul did not look like a side that is expected to win the K-League this season, but in truth, they didn't have to. The boys from the capital will not have an easier game all season. For Daejeon, it is so bitterly disappointing that in coming up against an out-of-sorts Seoul side, they did not have a real go for it in the second half. If this trend continues, Yoo Sang-Chul's negative tactics of trying not to lose rather than attempting to win, are going to backfire spectacularly.
With the threat of relegation looming, it is not too early to suggest that next week's game against Incheon Utd is a must win match for Citizen. A loss, and Daejeon would be rooted to the foot of the K-League table.
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