Lee Chang-geun (31, Daejeon), the gatekeeper who led the decision to stay in Daejeon Hana Citizen, looked back on one season.
The Daejeon Hana Citizen defeated the Incheon United in the 37th round of the 2024 Hana Bank K League 1 2-1 at the Incheon Football Stadium at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday. Daejeon will stay, while Incheon will be the first team to be demoted.
The match between Jeonbuk Hyundai and Daegu FC, which met at Jeonju World Cup Stadium at the same time, ended with Jeonbuk Hyundai’s 3-1 victory. With Jeonbuk recording 42 points, Daegu scoring 40 points, and Incheon remaining at 36 points, Incheon has been confirmed as a direct relegation team ahead of one K League 1 Final B match. Jeonbuk caught Daegu and jumped to 10th place.
The match was won 2-1 thanks to Martha’s first goal and Anton’s additional goal. “As you know, it was expected to be a difficult match,” Daejeon manager Hwang Sun-hong said after the match. “We were able to stay thanks to the players who handed over the difficult match well and the fans who came all the way. I think it is a start. We need to go further.”
After a press conference with head coach Hwang Sun-hong, I met with Lee Chang-geun. Lee Chang-geun said, “The remaining part has been confirmed, so I think I feel a little better now that I’ve had a hard time until now. The part we feel sorry for was that Incheon was demoted, but there was a part we couldn’t respect. In other words, we felt sorry for ourselves and we feel so bad as players. As a player who has been demoted (from the ranks), I didn’t feel as good as ever. I didn’t feel that good today.”
“I thought it would be great if the remaining part was confirmed, but I had mixed feelings because I knew how the other person felt. I feel so sorry for our fans as well as we should have finished the race soon. We will really try to open the era of Daejeon next year. I hope you look forward to it a lot. We have more matches between Daejeon and Jeju. We will finish the game well.” The following is a Q&A session with Lee Chang-geun.
There were provocative chants from Daejeon fans.
-It is something that can make the opponent sensitive. It was the first time we experienced it. Anton is young, too. I’m sorry that I didn’t respect him in that regard. I told him not to let this happen next time. I’m not sure about the details.
This game must have been under a lot of pressure from the goalpost.
-I told the players that I wanted to play this game as the last game of the season. The players in the back worked really hard. There must be a choice of the coach, but I have a personal opinion that I want to give him a chance because the players in the back have worked hard. I also felt sorry for the fans, so I asked them not to forget that mindset and show it in today’s game. All the players understood well. I think it led to a good result.
He should immediately go to Incheon International Airport to call up the national team.
-I was lucky because of the Incheon match. It’s good that I finished well without any injuries.
He made eight saves.
-I was so scared. I was so scared that I wondered if the Incheon players were in the lower ranks. Gersault and Mugosa were very scary.
There is no significant difference from Cho Hyun-woo in the record of good defense.
-A player always thinks that there is a stage. I don’t think it’s a stage like this. Now it’s at every first step. From the beginning, I will do my best to help the national team achieve better results. It’s not like, “I will play the game!” I will compete well in good faith so that the team can perform well.
Are you fighting for the number two.
-(Kim) Kyung-min and I have to play No. 2 or 3. Since it’s our first time, of course, we have to prepare well for the No. 2 position. It will be fun because there are so many talented players.
Public opinion was not good even in the early days of Hwang Sun-hong’s appointment.
-The most important thing was the belief of our players after the coach changed. I thought, “We are not a team that will go down hard.” The synergy between the coach and the players was harmonized. I think I was very unlucky when coach Lee Min-sung was around. I lost without scoring a goal, and when I was with the two coaches, the players were the same and I was always grateful.
I really trusted and followed Hwang Sun-hong for leading our team so well. You did a great job for bringing good results. I’m always grateful.
What kind of team will Daejeon be next year.
-I don’t want to think about it. It was so hard. This year was so hard. We have a game against Jeju Island, so we need to finish it well and have a mindset to think again during the break. Do well when you rest. I will make plans for next year again. 토토사이트
Do you have any advice on director Hong Myung-bo.
-There was nothing like that. When I was young, I met him in Paju. I heard that he is always calm, quiet, and cold, and any coach will be like that. My goal is to go and do everything I can. He has no relationship with me.
Lee Chang-geun seems to be the only player who comes out with Pepero.
-I wanted to eat it, so I took it from them (laughs). I wanted to eat it. Wouldn’t they eat it if they were hungry on the way to the airport.