"The seasons not over yet, we have to keep going" - Daejeon Hana Citizen captain Ju Se-jong | OneFootball

Daejeon Hana Citizen captain Ju Se-jong thinks the point earned against Daegu FC in Saturday's huge relegation clash will prove to be important later down the line, and believes that the Purples will definitely improve as they look to avoid the drop. Muyeol Jung spoke to Ju Se-jong in the mixed zone after the 2024 Hana Bank K League 1 Round 25 1-1 draw at DGB Daegu Bank Park,

Daejeon found themselves a goal down early on, Japanese midfielder Kyohei Yoshino finding the back of the net 16 minutes in.

But a debut goal for Brazilian winger Kelvin on the stroke of half time ultimately proved to be what earned Daejeon a point on the road.

Tensions flared with words exchanged between Ju Se-jong and the traveling Daejeon fans. Manager Hwang Sun-hong was seen gesturing that the result and performance was his responsibility, not the players.

First of all, what are your thoughts about the result?

"First of all, it was an important game and a six-pointer, so it's a disappointment that we didn't win. However, the season is not over yet and in this situation where we just have to keep improving, we just need to keep going. I think the point we got today will help us stay in the league and get good results, so I'm satisfied with that."

Daejeon have brought in lots of quality players during the summer transfer window to look to turn things around, but results haven't come as they wished.

"We haven't had much time to get used to the new players yet, and they haven't adapted to the team enough to show their abilities. But, I'll work hard to get used to the players during the break, get closer to them, and get more in sync with them in terms of play, so that we can have good results after the break."

Regarding the team's performances, Daejeon had possession of the ball at the back and completed a lot of horizontal passes, recording a high number of passes but clearly having difficulty moving the ball forward. Is this something Daejeon will sort out?

"As for this part, since the manager has a certain type of football that he wants to play and there is a process of creating that style of football, the players are somewhat aware of what's expected from them at the bac back and are aware of their positions, so if we train more in the attacking third during the break to be able to score aggressively, I think we will definitely improve."

With 13 games to go, Daejeon are sitting at the bottom of the table but are only three points adrift of 10th place. What do you think of the current situation?

"There are still 13 games left this season, and if we are in the bottom half of the split we will have matches against the teams that will compete with us in that split, so until then, before the split, we will try our best to narrow the gap in points or turn things around, and we will do our best to show a more perfect performance and make sure we beat our rivals in so we can stay up."

K League is heading into a two-week break, what area do you think Daejeon should work on and how will you prepare?

"The most important thing is to become close to the new players and to communicate and train with our existing players to understand the team culture and the things they need to do in this team so that we can bounce back after the break."