Latvian international Vladislavs Gutkovskis made a triumphant return to the starting lineup for Daejeon Hana Citizen in the South Korean top division, scoring a brace to secure a hard-fought 2–2 draw away against Gwangju FC.
The 30-year-old forward, who hadn’t started a league game since May 6 against Jeonbuk Motors, made the most of his opportunity by netting twice in the second half. Prior to this match, Gutkovskis had either made brief substitute appearances or remained on the bench in the club’s last seven league outings.
Daejeon had enjoyed a strong start to the season, even briefly topping the table ahead of perennial title contenders Jeonbuk. However, a slump in form saw them win just once in their previous seven league matches, allowing Jeonbuk to pull eight points clear at the summit.
After a goalless first half in Gwangju, the hosts broke the deadlock early in the second period through current Albanian international Jasir Asani — who was on the bench 12 days earlier in Rīga during Albania’s FIFA World Cup qualifier against Latvia.
But Gutkovskis soon made his presence felt. In the 69th minute, he latched onto a through ball from Brazilian playmaker Hernandes and coolly slotted a left-footed strike into the far corner to level the score at 1–1.
The home side quickly regained the lead just three minutes later, when Park In-Hyeok converted from an Asani assist to make it 2–1. But once again, Gutkovskis was there to respond. Capitalizing on a costly error from the Gwangju goalkeeper, Hernandes pounced and teed up Gutkovskis, who made no mistake to score his fourth goal of the season and secure a vital point for Daejeon.
The match also marked Gutkovskis’ first full 90-minute appearance of the season. He has now made 15 league appearances, mostly as a substitute, and is showing signs of rediscovering his best form at a crucial stage of the campaign.
With 34 points from 20 matches, Daejeon currently sit second in the K League standings, eight points behind leaders Jeonbuk Motors.
