Recap: Daegu FC record first win of the season against previously unbeaten Seongnam FC

Daegu FC finally broke a chain of winless streaks and recorded their first victory of the season in Round 5 thanks to two strong headers from Edgar and Jeong Taewook. Daegu FC writer Muyeol Jung reviews this clash from Daegu's perspective.

Line-Ups

Line ups: Seongnam FC (L) vs Daegu FC (R) (Image courtesy of Soccerway)

Seongnam FC

In a 4-3-3 formation, Seongnam FC boss Kim Nam-il opted for defender Ma Sanghoon instead of usual centre back Lee Changyong to win the headers against Daegu's towering forward Edgar.

Daegu FC

Daegu FC caretaker Lee Byunggeun's selection went to K League debutant Jo Jinwoo instead of Kim Jaewoo who seamlessly replaced the void after captain Hong Jeongwoon's injury last time out. Central midfielder Kim Sunmin returned from a suspension and was paired with Tsubasa.

What Happened?

What Went Well?

Comeback of "DaeCegar Trio"

It's the best game the Sky Blues have played this season and all the lads appeared to nearly have got out of a long tunnel from the aftermath of Covid 19.

They were very quick in moving the ball forward and making decisions on the pitch. Particularly, DaegCegar, a compound word referring to Daegu FC trio Kim Daewon, Cesinha and Edgar has brought what has been missing back to Daegu; dynamics.

The lack of pressure from Seongnam enabled Daegu to ease past and get into the box
(Image courtesy of Official K League)

From the beginning of the first half, they didn't hesitate to move forward, and effectively broke down Seongnam's back four through speed. Seongnam's back four line was vulnerable and exposed, resulting in Daegu having many goal chances. Also, the Magpie's poor pressure in the middle enabled Daegu's boys to ease past Seongnam's unorganised middle to reach near the box before they made shots.

Tsubasa and Kim Sunmin

This was the first time Japanese midfielder Tsubasa and Kim Sunmin have been partnered together before either started along with Lee Jinhyun in turn. The pairs formed a strong barrier in front of the back three and annoyingly pushed the opposition out when Seongnam tried to receive the ball in Daegu's half. Specifically, with the Korean Kim Sunmin in a more defensive role, Tsubasa was tasked with transition from defence to attack with more free movement in space.

More options for U22 quota

The experiment of playing 1999 born defender Jo Jinwoo as a starter turned out to be successful and gives the manager more options in utilising the U22 rule. In fact, Kim Jaewoo was expected to start after he seamlessly filled the void after Hong Jungwoon's injury last week, but the boss boldly made a surprising selection to play the former Matsumoto Yamaga FC defender instead. The defender had a two year spell in Japan, but he wasn't given a single chance to play at all because of injury before he returned to Daegu ahead of this season.

What Didn't Go Well?

Defensive Errors

While Seongnam were hardly testing Daegu's defensive ability this evening, Daegu FC absolutely should reduce unnecessary fouls near the box. Daegu defender Kim Wooseok tripped over Lee Taehee on the edge of the penalty box and allowed Seongnam to take an easy lead in the second half. The game could have gone either way if Edgar didn't find the equaliser sooner. The defender was sent off two times last season in all competitions and needs to be wiser in defending.

To Be More Ruthless

Daegu FC created tonnes of chances in the first half, but failed to make it count due to poor finishing. It would be unfair to put the blame on the finishing as Seongnam's goalkeeper Kim Youngkwang made several incredible stops, but this needs to be improved to put the game in the control of our hands.

Ratings and Man of the Match

Man of the Match: Edgar Bruno da Silva / Daegu FC

Edgar has scored 28 goals in all competitions with Daegu FC since his arrival to Daegu in summer 2018

Towering centre forward Edgar has been superb this evening at Tancheon Stadium. The performance strongly proved himself the strongest header of a ball in the league as he won nearly 80% of his aerial duels (10 wins) upfront as well as he was good at holding up. When Daegu were trailing 1-0, the equaliser he scored came at the right time to give the Sky Blues a lifeline. He could have scored more goals if he was lucky with calls.

Thanks to this goal, which is the club's 800th goal, his name will remain for ever in club's history. Interestingly, the Brazilian has other notable records to his name in Daegu; he became the last player to score in the final game played in Daegu Stadium before Daegu moved to their current new home ahead of 2019 season where he became the first scorer in the DGB Daegu Bank Park.

Ratings: Daegu FC

Next Week

Daegu FC will return home in action with a fixture against sluggish FC Seoul on Sunday 14th June (19:00 KST), while Seongnam FC will make a long trip to the southeast to face title contenders Ulsan Hyundai on Saturday 13th June (16:30 KST).