Daejeon Hana Citizen look for stability after successful return to top tier

The 2024 K League 1 will be a chance for Daejeon Hana Citizen to prove that their impressive return to the top tier last season was not a fluke.

Daejeon Hana Citizen's Ju Se-jong passes the ball during a K League match against Gangwon FC at Daejeon World Cup Stadium in Daejeon on Feb. 26, 2023. [YONHAP]

The 2024 K League 1 will be a chance for Daejeon Hana Citizen to prove that their impressive return to the top tier last season was not a fluke.

Promoted to the first division in 2023 after playing seven seasons in the K League 2, Daejeon displayed an impressive performance in the early days of last season to briefly claim third-place on the 12-team table, although they slipped down in the second half of the campaign to finish in eighth.

Daejeon’s solid run was partly thanks to an impressive attack. The club scored 56 goals in 38 league fixtures last year, which was the second-most after the 63 goals scored by league champions Ulsan Hyundai, now called Ulsan HD, and FC Seoul.

Brazilian forward Tiago Orobo was a key part of that effort, as he was the league’s second top scorer with 17 goals in 36 matches.

With Orobo out of the squad now — he left the team to join fellow K League 1 side Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors — it is up to new Brazilian forward Farley Rosa to fill in that vacancy. Able to shoot with both feet, Rosa has the pace to outrun the defense and the finishing skills to deliver.

Veteran forward Kim Seung-dae, who joined Daejeon from K League 1 team Pohang Steelers, could also boost the team’s attack with his effective offside trap breaking skills.

Lee Soon-min is another addition that should help the Daejeon club, adding more energy to the team’s midfield as he was a core part of Gwangju FC' squad last year and earned a place in the K League 1’s best XI in December.

With dribbling, accurate crosses and counter pressing skills as his main forte, Lee could play a key role in Daejeon’s midfield like former Daejeon player Bae Jun-ho, who left the team in the middle of last season to join Championship side Stoke City in England.

Lee is not the only addition from Gwangju, with former Australian center-back Aaron Calver having also joined Daejeon.

The combination of Calver and Daejeon’s regular center-back pick Anton Kryvotsyuk may solidify the team’s defense that struggled last season, during which the team conceded the second-most goals in the league, at 58.

Whether Daejeon will make more signings until the K League transfer window closes on March 8 remains to be seen.

The 2024 season may see more of manager Lee Min-sung’ influence on the team, as it will be his fourth year in charge.

Daejeon will play their first league match on March 1 against Jeonbuk at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla.

The regular season will run through Oct. 6, before the teams for split in two groups for the final leg of the season during which top six teams vie for the league tile and bottom six teams compete to avoid relegation.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]