Lee Chang-geun, who defended the goal of Daejeon Hana Citizen, expressed his feelings about joining the Korean national soccer team.
Daejeon Hana Citizen defeated Incheon United 2-1 in the 37th round (fourth round of Final B) of “Hana Bank K League 1 2024” held at the Incheon Football Stadium at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday. With this result, Daejeon secured the ninth place with 11 wins, 12 draws and 14 losses (45 points).
Lee Chang-geun, who defended the Daejeon goal on the day, said after the match, “I’m sorry but Incheon has been demoted. It’s too bad for me as a player. I didn’t like it as I’ve been demoted before. I thought it would be good if I was confirmed to stay, but it was a bit complicated because I know how the opponent feels.”
He also felt sorry for the Daejeon fans. “I should have finished it quickly, but I feel so sorry for my fans as well. We will make great efforts to open the era of Daejeon next year, so please look forward to it. We have the last home game against Jeju Island. We will finish it well.”
For Daejeon, the match against Incheon was a must-win match. If the result was not good, there was a possibility that the team would go to the promotion and playoffs. In the worst case scenario, the team could have been demoted. “I told the players (before the game) that I hope today’s game will be the last one (of this season),” Lee said.
It was my hope that the players who had not played in the game would play in the final match after confirming their stay. Lee Chang-geun said, “As the coach will choose, I wanted to give a chance to the players behind me in the match against Jeju. It was just a personal thought. I told the fans not to forget how sorry I am and let’s go out today. I think the players understood it well, so I had a good result.” 스포츠토토
Daejeon took the lead by scoring two goals in the early hours, but Incheon’s offense was fierce afterward. It was Lee Chang-geun who defended Daejeon. He defended Incheon’s shots nine times. “Today’s game was really hectic. I was so scared that I wondered if Incheon was the lowest team. I was also scared of Gerso and Mugosa,” he said.
Lee Chang-geun will join the national team for the upcoming A-match in November. When talking about the competition to become a goalkeeper, he said, “I think there are always steps in a person. I’m not at the stage where I can say, ‘I’m going to surpass (Joe) Hyun-woo.’ Now it’s every first step. I’ll do my best to help the national team perform well.”
“(Kim) Kyung-min and I are number two and three. It’s our first time, so of course we have to prepare well to win the second place. There are so many talented players, so it will be fun,” he added.