“I hope (Oh) Seung-hoon will play well today and win another MVP award.”
Daegu FC head coach Choi Won-kwon expressed his excitement for veteran goalkeeper Oh Seung-hoon ahead of the team’s home match against Gangwon in the 22nd round of the Hana One Q K League 1 at DGB Daegu Bank Park on 11 November at 7pm.
Announced by the Korea Professional Football Association prior to the match, Oh was named the Best 11 and MVP of the 21st round, the first goalkeeper to receive the honour this season. He saved a crucial penalty against Jeju on the 7th of July and recorded a staggering 83.3% save percentage in Daegu’s 2-1 victory.
In truth, Oh has had a rough start to the season. In the opening game against Gangwon, he made a series of mistakes and was forced to put on the goalkeeping gloves in place of Choi Young-eun due to injury. But Oh came back stronger. “Seung-hoon had a lot on his mind,” says Choi. There were plays that weren’t like him, and there were injuries,” Choi recalls. “I’ve seen him since last year, he’s a player with a very strong sense of responsibility, and he’s trained and lived up to it, and as the team’s performance improved, he played a role when he needed to play a role. She also blocked PKs, so it was a good combination,” he said with a smile.메이저사이트
Immediately after the win against Jeju, the team reached its highest ranking of the season at No. 4. “We have more positive tension than stress about the ranking,” Choi laughed. “We had the chance to move up twice this season on a winning streak, but it doesn’t always work out when you say it out loud, so we’re always thinking about it,” he confessed. “It’s not easy fighting for the middle of the pack. I don’t think we’ll know the size until the end of August. It doesn’t matter where we are in the standings right now, we’re just a little bit above because of luck,” he humbled himself. “Kangwon is not a weak team by any means. I don’t think they are below us. We talked to the players about not letting our guard down, being humble, playing our football and preparing well.”
When asked about Ko Jae-hyun, whose form dropped after Hwang Sun-hong’s trial against China, Choi said, “Neither Jae-hyun nor (Hwang) Jae-won wanted to go to China. But the country called them, so of course they had to go. I think that’s an excuse, and then Son Heung-min…” he continued. “Jae-Hyun is a sincere player. It’s unfortunate that he missed a couple of chances, but fortunately Edgar and Vassellus are coming to the rescue.” “He’s a player who can drop down into midfield. He has a hard time playing up top, and because he’s a midfielder, he has the ability to underlap and overlap from the back, so we’re hoping to use that to our advantage.” “When Gangwon plays a 5-4-1 defence, I expect Vasellus and (Hong) Chul-i to play on the left and Jae-hyun to play in the middle.”
Zuma was more sympathetic to Baselus, whose form has been picking up recently. “He’s been playing very well in the last three or four games. He has goals and assists. But he needs to do more. I think he can do more. I think he needs time, but fortunately he seems to be settling in well, and Sejingya and Edgar are helping him a lot. So I need to add a little bit more,” he concluded. “He’s a player who can score points every game and we need him to add to the team. Against a defence with narrow gaps like Gangwon’s, we need someone like Vassellus. We need him to do it again today.”
Choi was also asked if he was worried about not starting Jang Jang-won, who scored his first goal in six years, a theatre goal, in the win over Jeju. “Of course I thought about it,” Choi said. “(Jang) Sung-won came out as a serve. I can trust her, so she’s ready to serve and she can also play on the left side. (Hong) Chul and Sejingya have been working hard since the Gwangju match, so if things go well today, I’ll move them around.”