FA Cup Preview: Daejeon Citizen Vs Yonsei University

Daejeon Citizen Vs Yonsei University

Wednesday 27^th April 2016 FA Cup 3^rd Round Kick off 7:30PM KST 

Daejeon celebrate the win over Busan last Sunday. Credit: DCFC.co.kr

Much to the delight and, frankly, sheer relief of the Daejeon faithful, Citizen picked up their first win of the season on Sunday; seeing off the challenge of Busan IPark in a 2-1 win.

Both Kim Dong-Chan and Yoo Seung-Hwan netted their first goals for the club, with the latter notching his first as a professional.

In the week leading up to Sunday’s game, it had been mooted in the media that under-fire boss Choi Moon-Sik was on the brink of losing his job, with Daejeon having started the new campaign with four consecutive defeats.

But, Sunday’s win has lifted the mood amongst the supporters and gone some way to clearing the dark clouds that have been hanging over Purple Arena.

Sunday’s victory and performance not only showed a reaction from the players, but from the manager too.

Those donning Purple looked dangerous on the attack and worked extremely hard for the victory, showing that the players were still very much behind the manager.

More importantly, there was a reaction from the manager who seemed to take on board the criticism that has been thrown at him since he took over.

The former Korea U23 head coach has, until Sunday, pig-headedly stuck to his must maligned “tika-taka” philosophy, but his adjusted approach allowed Daejeon more freedom in the final third.

The result was a more direct approach, and with the clever movement of Kim Dong-Chan, more chances created were than in any other game this season.

Up next is the visit of Yonsei University in the 3^rd round of the FA Cup on Wednesday, a fixture that may well have come at an ideal time for Daejeon.

With their season now up and running, a home tie against a non-league side, as it were, could be seen as an ideal opportunity to boost morale with a convincing win.

FA Cup Record Since 2001

Daejeon famously won the FA Cup in 2001, and for the next few years afterwards the Purples’ record in the competition was respectable; reaching the quarter-finals once and the semi-finals twice.

Kim Eun-Jung was instrumental in Daejeon's 2001 FA Cup triumph

Photo credit: Korea Times

However, since reaching the semi-finals in 2008, Citizen have seldom been able to get past the round of 16, suffering humiliating defeats to the likes of Pocheon, Wednesday’s opponents Yonsei University, and Goyang.

Since 2001:

2002 semi-finals, lost to Suwon Bluewings
2003 quarter-finals, lost to Bucheon SK
2004 semi-finals, lost to Bucheon SK
2005 round of 16, lost to Ulsan Hyundai
2006 round of 16, lost to Suwon Bluewings
2007 round of 16, lost to Busan IPark
2008 round of 32, lost to Yonsei University
2009 semi-finals, lost to Seongnam Illwha Chunma
2010 round of 16, lost to Seongnam Illwha Chunma
2011 round of 16, lost to Gangwon
2012 quarter-finals, lost to Jeju United
2013 round of 32, lost to Goyang Hi
2014 round of 32, lost to Pocheon
2015 round of 16, lost to Ulsan Hyundai

Previous Meetings

Daejeon have previous with Yonsei, having suffered the humiliation of being knocked out of the competition by an amateur team.

On May 21^st 2008 at Gimcheon Stadium in the round of 32 a 2-2 draw preceded a penalty shootout.

Choi Jung-Han, now of FC Seoul, put the students ahead on 18 minutes only for Kim Min-Soo to equalise for Daejeon just shy of the interval.

Former Rubin Kazan outcast Kang Sun-Kyu put Daejeon in front on 66 minutes before Cho Chan-Ho, also now of FC Seoul, levelled with a goal that was enough to ensure the drama of penalties.

Daejeon lost 3-1 on penalties.

Team News

Should Choi Moon-Sik  look to rest his first choice strikers ahead of the trip to Goyang on Sunday, players such as young striker Nam Yoon-Jae could be given the chance to impress.

The teenager made his Daejeon debut in the competition last season, coming on as a substitute in the 1-0 win over Gwangju in the round of 32 but is yet to feature this term.

Fellow hit man Seo Dong-Hyun is still expected to be out for a further while more with a facial injury.