Daegu's day but dark clouds rumble louder overhead | OneFootball

Daegu FC are back in K League 1 duty this Friday against Seoul. While the rest of the league was enjoying a mid summer break, exhausted Daegu chased shadows in unbearable humidity against Barcelona. Was it a good decision to play that friendly?

When it ended shortly before 10 pm local time, Daegu FC had been run ragged on the near-waterlogged surface of the city's World Cup Stadium. They gave it a go in the first half, much to the surprise of the 45,000 in attendance. But the entire second half was spent defending deep and in the numbers, chasingequip blaugrana across the drenched grass, and relying on a combination of wasteful finishing and good saves to keep the damage at five.

Geovani may have missed the biggest chance of the match, but he didn't miss the opportunity to grab this lucrative item.

This was no disgrace,unlike the four they shipped in Anyang last month. Afterall, Daegu's opponents on an obscenely humid night were defending La Liga champions FC Barcelona. When Barcelona raced into a 2-0 lead after only 14 minutes in Sangam last Thursday, the question was how many would Hansi Flick's team plant past FC Seoul. In the end, they settled for seven, against the concession of three.

We feared the worst on Monday. Daegu are on the cusp of being completely cut adrift at the bottom of K League 1, and they return to action on Friday away to Seoul. Seoul, themselves, have been mediocre at best in 2025, and yet sit 4th into August. If Barcelona scored seven in Seoul, would that mean they were looking at eight, nine or, God forbid, even 10 in Daegu? These were some of the main stats from the match:

Add to that, total corner domination and a frankly ridiculous 91% passing accuracy in terrible second half conditions meant Daegu could never get the ball. Only conceding five (and just two in the second 45') was quite a good result. One stat Daegu owned was offside; they had six to Barcelona's 0. All six came in the first half, and five were in quick succession. In that spell, Daegu troubled their visitors on the break. Everyone inside Blue Arc was in complete shock when new Brazilian winger Geovani ballooned over, unmarked, from 8 yards when it looked easier to score.

When the rain came, it stayed for the whole match.

That opportunity arrived on 20 minutes, and the score was 0-0. In every corner of the ground, fans were aghast, wondering what might have been. Imagine opening the scoring against Barcelona? It wasn't a half-chance or a great save that denied Daegu the dream opening. Geovani would probably bury this nine times from 10. Though the fixture versus Barcelona was a glorified exhibition match, even the very best can be affected by nerves.

Sixty seconds later, a sublime team move and exquisite chip from Gavi gave Barcelona the lead. Funny how it always goes that way. Woken up by a glaring miss, Barcelona moved through the gears quickly to distinguish any suggestion they had mentally checked-in for that 3 am flight from Incheon Airport. The starting XI featured Raphina, Gavi, Robert Lewandowski, and Lamine Yamal. Ferran Tores, Marcus Rashford, and Dani Olmo were included on the bench. Daegu had no chance. From Gavi's goal onward, it was about keeping the score down.

Disappointingly for Daegu, they didn't have those glorious moments Seoul had in front of their home fans. Seoul may have conceded seven, but they scored three. In first-half stoppage time, Yazan Al-Arab scored to make it 2-2 on the night, after Barça had led by two. What a moment for the home fans. In Daegu, however, once Geovani ballooned over from eight yards, the home team had to wait until the 91st minute for their next sighting on goal.

There were other issues. The main supporters' group are nearing mutiny. Daegu have been awful in 2025. Without the organized cheering we see across the country, the atmosphere was surprisingly flat. This wasn't helped by a running track and 20,000 empty seats. As the second half wore on, sporadic chants ofBarça, Barça, Barça rang around the ground. Some Daegu supporters tried to find their voice, but they were so far away.

Barcelona supporters enjoying the big win.

And all this leads us nicely onto the situation at hand. My colleague Jeong Mu-yeol spoke to Daegu striker Edgar after the match. The big Brazilian was in good spirits after a career highlight; sharing the turf with FC Barcelona. Once Mu-yeol put away the microphone, the angst was written across Edgar's face. "We need to beat Seoul," he spoke, with a clenched fist.

I hope the financial rewards are worth it because the decision to host Barça on Monday night really isn't high-performance. With K League 1 on a rest week (the exception a make-up Ulsan HD vs. Suwon FC tie), the other players had their feet up watching Daegu chase shadows. It must have been an energy-sapping experience after the break. Any time Daegu tried to play from the back, they were immediately dispossessed. Whenever they strung three passes together in midfield, the ball was turned over and a shot on goal was inevitable.

The fixture away to Seoul is this Friday, August 8th. They'll be using Friday as a travel day, so there was very little time to put the legs up after Barcelona's visit. Seoul will have more than a week to prepare for the match. The team directly above Daegu, FC Anyang, will also play on Friday night, away to leaders Jeonbuk Motors. They last took to the pitch on July 26th. And Daegu are fighting for their very survival in K League 1.

They are 12th, 13 points adrift of Anyang, and 15 from safety. Survival isn't in their own hands any more. To avoid the ignominy of automatic relegation, they require a different team to implode for the remainder of the year. Daegu have three wins all season, and two came inside the opening week. Their last victory was on May 3rd. Since then, they have played 13 matches, collecting just four points.

Daegu concede goals. A lot of goals. 45 in 24 matches. No other team is remotely close to that total. The away form is depressing. No wins and three draws for a total of three points from 12 games. Their next two matches are away from home. After Friday's visit to Seoul, Daegu head to runaway leaders Jeonbuk. Following that, they play Jeju SK and Suwon FC, two sides they will need to catch to avoid the drop.

The stakes are very high for Daegu right now. So it begs the question; was the decision a good one to play Barcelona during a rest week?