"We need to prepare better defensively as a team" - Suwon FC's Lars Veldwijk - K League United | South Korean football news, opinions, match previews and score predictions

Suwon FC striker Lars Veldwijk says that it's defensive work as a team that needs to improve. The Castle Park side sit in the relegation zone heading into the June international break but says that, despite the defeats, he has been encouraged by the recent performances. K League United's Muyeol Jung spoke to the towering striker following the 3-1 loss to Daegu FC in Round 18 of the 2023 Hana 1Q K League 1 season.

After falling behind to a Lucas Barcellos stroke five minutes after the restart, Suwon FC pegged hosts Daegu FC back on 77 minutes through Lee Seung-woo. Lars Veldwijk supplied the assist for Lee in what looked as though would see the spoils shared. It was his fifth assist of the season and along with six goals, the Dutchman sits on 11 goal contributions for the campaign.

But two goals deep into time added on meant it was the Sky Blues that ran out as winners and a fourth loss in five for Suwon FC.

Q: It was a disappointing afternoon for Suwon FC. How are you feeling after today's game?

A: "Yeah, disappointed is the right word. I think we did very well. We prepared for this game. Daegu is defensively very strong. We were one or down and we were able to make it 1-1. But yeah, in the end, we are going back home without a point. So yeah, very frustrating."

Q: You provided an assist for Lee Seung-woo. What does this mean for the duo upfront?

A: "I think especially for Seung-woo, it's a good feeling. He's struggling compared to last season with his goals, but he's working very hard and yeah, everybody knows his talent and what kind of player he is. So yeah, it was my fifth assist and I have my goals already, so I'm very happy I could deliver him the assist for his goal and I hope he will leave the stadium with a bit better confidence for after the break. I think we play very well the last few games, but we wait with no points. So we need to work the next coming two weeks to prepare defensively better as a team. It's not only the defenders, as a team, we need to prepare better and yeah, we need to score more goals as well."

Q: Suwon head into the international break sitting in the bottom half of the table. It must be a very difficult situation for the team compared to the last season. So what's the atmosphere like at the moment in the dressing room, and how do you assess Suwon's season so far?

A: "Yeah, as an individual I can look back with good stats on the first part of the season, but yeah, what I say as a team, we need to do better. That's obvious. We are not in a position where we want to be. So yeah, it's good maybe that we have a break. We have a few days off first, then we go on training camp, and then we need to work as a team to turn this around. It's a difficult situation. The atmosphere is down now, but yeah, if you see, compared to last year, I think how we play, much better football technically, but we don't score as many goals as last year. So yeah, we need to work on scoring more goals, but also defensively we need to do much better because I think we concede the most goals so far."