Is Haigang team really a Chinese Super League Arsenal?, The advantage of points has been reduced to 9 points, observation: fans shout "Javier's dismissal" Javier | fans | points
On August 25th, at the Zhengzhou Navigation Stadium in Henan, the night was as cool as water. In the 24th round of the Chinese Super League, the top scorer Shanghai Haigang team lost 1-3 to Henan team, who celebrated their 29th birthday. Faced with the embarrassment of four unbeaten matches, the away fans of Haigang shouted "Javier's dismissal" after the game, expressing their strong dissatisfaction.
From leading by a maximum of 16 points at the time, to the recent 3 rounds of unbeaten league matches where the advantage has been reduced to 9 points, the pace of Haigang team's championship victory has significantly slowed down. Will Wu Lei, Oscar, and his teammates really be like Arsenal in the Premier League last season, leading by half a way but losing the championship in the final moments?
Physical exhaustion leads to collapse
As the league leader, the progress of Shanghai Port team has repeatedly slowed down. On the away challenge against Henan team, although Haigang team rarely sends four foreign players to start in the front field, there is basically no rotation in the defensive line. 34 year old center backs Zhang Linpeng, Wang Shenchao, and midfielder Cai Huikang still started this game after playing high-intensity qualifying matches in the AFC Champions League.
Illustrated: The defensive player's physical exhaustion, especially the insufficient coverage in position 6, resulted in two goals conceded by the Port team.
In the first half, the foreign player Vargas from the Port team missed the opportunity to score from the back, and the Henan team then used a sharp counterattack, with foreign player Kovic scoring from a distance from the top of the penalty area arc. In the second half, Vargas wrapped around and hit the goal frame, while the foreign aid from Henan team made a world-class shot at the front of the penalty area, expanding the score to 2-0. Although the harbor team center Joao Ang made use of the lucky rebound to recover a goal, Covic dominated the corner attack before the end and locked the victory 3-1.
Physical reserve, becoming the winner of the competition between both sides. This is the second game of the Henan team in 7 days, and the whole team is clearly full of energy and fighting spirit. Especially on the day when the club celebrated its 29th birthday, it made the three armies of the Henan team work hard, competing for every goal and playing a powerful and bloody football.
Picture: The goal of the Port team has a lucky element.
Image: The third goal conceded was also a disadvantage for the harbor team's defense and physical strength.
In contrast, the physical disadvantage of the players in the Port team is obvious, with heavy feet and insufficient fighting spirit for the entire team. This is the third game for the Port team in 8 days. Three days ago, the team lost to Baton United in the AFC Champions League qualifiers. The pace of the AFC Champions League matches is faster and the physical exertion is greater.
Unfortunately, head coach Javier did not rotate personnel in the defensive line during this game, and the stamina of several 34 year old veterans was clearly depleted. Cai Huikang's stamina was exhausted and his pace was slow in the second half, completely unable to keep up with the opponent's speed. The second goal conceded by the Haigang team happened to arrive; Defender Zhang Linpeng's close defense at the last moment also suffered from physical exhaustion and was hit by foreign aid Kovic's Taishan header.
In the author's opinion, the reason why the Port team suffered a four round defeat is that the coaching staff did not actively rotate enough, some veteran players were physically exhausted, and the team's running and defense were full of loopholes. Faced with the top ranked Shanghai Port team, Zhejiang team, Meizhou Hakka team, Baton United team, and Henan team have successively displayed the spirit of "barefoot not afraid of wearing shoes". They rely on more abundant physical strength, more fierce competition, and stronger hunger to kick the exhausted Port team back to its original form.
External factors form internal friction
The 1-3 defeat to Henan team was unacceptable to the away fans of Haigang. After the game, they surrounded the general manager of the club, Zhang Min, and shouted, "Javier is dismissed, Cai Huikang is dismissed.". Previously, due to midfielder Cai Huikang's suspected questioning of fans on his social media moments, although it was only private traffic, screenshots of the incident were widely circulated on social media, causing emotional opposition among some Hong Kong fans and players. Fans and players should have been a family, but unfortunately, this kind of internal friction is the first time in the history of the team, and it is quietly undermining the team's already declining combat effectiveness.
The Shanghai derby swept Shanghai Shenhua 5-0, putting the relationship between Haigang head coach Xavier and fans into a honeymoon period, despite some fans previously believing that Espanyol's coaching ability was insufficient. Entering the summer campaign, the Port team suddenly lost power due to insufficient physical fitness and rotation. Javier led the team to a series of 3-4 losses to Zhejiang, a 1-1 forced draw with Meizhou Hakka, a humiliating 2-3 defeat to Baton United, and a 1-3 loss to Henan team. The Spaniard once again lost the trust of fans. In this game, he even staged a scene of grabbing the ball from the caddy and even pushing, indicating that his mentality has also become imbalanced.
In the author's opinion, off field factors, especially the mutual distrust among some fans and players, have caused trouble for the Port team. Taking Cai Huikang as an example, although he expressed his intention to apologize to fans at a press conference before the game, some supporters of the harbor are still dissatisfied, and "electrician certificate" and "light bulb repair" have become self deprecating "internet memes" for some hardcore fans.
On the one hand, due to the unprofessional and untimely internal management and response of the Port Club, the conflicts between players and fans have been amplified. On the other hand, home and talent thrive - once the opposition between fans and players cannot be eliminated, and the club's response lacks professionalism, such internal friction will definitely hinder the team's championship winning pace. The harbor team may really be troubled by off field factors and become a Chinese Super League Arsenal - this is not a exaggeration.
Test professional management skills
In the author's opinion, Javier's coaching ability is insufficient, and it is obvious that he is a louse on Bald's head. It is worth observing whether the decision-makers of Shanghai Port Club have enough ability, courage, and responsibility to make the choice of maximizing the interests of the team and the club when there are only 6 rounds left in the league.
After losing to Henan team, Haigang team's lead in the Chinese Super League standings narrowed to 9 points. With six games left in the league, this gap undoubtedly sounded an alarm for Haigang team's championship prospects. It must be admitted that Javier's leadership ability is insufficient, making it difficult to control the locker room, especially the lack of trust from foreign players, which has been exposed in these four tough matches.
After losing to Baton United at home in the previous game, the cry of "Xavier's dismissal" has already echoed over the Pudong Football Stadium; This time, they suffered another defeat in the league, causing many fans of Haigang who were on an expedition to Zhengzhou to shout "Javier's dismissal" again after the game. Many media outlets in Shanghai have also bluntly stated that Javier's abilities cannot match the Shanghai Port team, especially being eliminated from the AFC Champions League has become a tough injury.
After the end of this round of the league, the Chinese Super League will enter a 20-day hiatus. Of course, Javier hopes to help the team get back on track through his valuable rest time, but there is great uncertainty about whether he can still get such an opportunity. The 20 day interval is not only an important opportunity for the team to rest, but also gives the club sufficient time to decide whether to adjust the coaching staff. Last season, due to poor performance in leading the team, Lecco was dismissed in the later stages of the season, and the transition from firefighting was completed by veteran coach Xi Zhikang and team leader Sun Xiang.
Changing the coach actually tests the responsibility of club decision-makers even more. If it's just a muddle, letting Javier lead the rest of the game is the simplest, easiest, and least likely to take responsibility. Once a decision is made to change the coach, it means that the club needs to take responsibility for the change. If the team cannot win the championship, the responsibility needs to be borne by the club. Does the Harbor Club, which has always played the role of an invisible person, really have the courage, courage, and responsibility to step forward and turn the tide when the team encounters a crisis?
