With just one kick of the World Wave, Shen Hua regained the feeling of winning. "Little Qi Hong" suddenly appeared and did not disappoint Wu Jingui's trust. Shen Hua | Cangzhou | Ling Guang
On June 4th, in the 11th round of the Chinese Super League, Shanghai Shenhua narrowly defeated the Cangzhou Lions 1-0 away. With a free kick from 22-year-old Wang Haijian, the team finally regained the feeling of winning after four rounds of unbeaten matches. Currently, in the league standings, Shenhua continues to rank third, trailing the leader Haigang by 4 points.
Shenhua midfielders are full of talents, including captains Wu Xi and Peng Xinli. This year, they also introduced foreign player Teixeira. Wang Haijian, who once enjoyed the U23 bonus, once had a rare opportunity to play this season. Wu Xi was injured and Teixeira was suspended with a red card. Wang Haijian didn't have a chance to start until the fifth round. On the field, Wang Haijian worked diligently and finally repaid the trust of head coach Wu Jingui with a goal.
From the team's starting lineup, Wu Jingui placed all the attacking heavy troops in the back for this game. In the first half, Yan Xinli and Ma Lailai headed the crossbar twice, almost helping Shenhua break the deadlock. In the 56th minute of the second half, as Bassogo and Yu Hanchao were substituted, Shenhua sounded the horn for a comprehensive attack. Shenhua made multiple threatening attacks in the half of Cangzhou. In the 73rd minute, Cangzhou foreign aid Oscar received a single chance, and Jin Yangyang pulled Oscar down outside the penalty area. Fortunately, the opponent was ruled offside first. Shen Hua, who escaped a disaster, received a free kick opportunity in the 76th minute. Wang Haijian took the ball and it went straight into the corner, scoring the young player's first goal of the season.
Wang Haijian scored from a free kick
Long drought brings sweet dew. After experiencing a wave of high performance in the early stages of the league, the Shenhua team has also entered a "fatigue period", with continuous battles leading to non combat attrition due to injuries. The insufficient depth of the bench also often puts Wu Jingui at a disadvantage when arranging troops. Faced with the battle in Cangzhou, Shenhua team made full preparations, and a golden goal greatly relieved the team's continuous unbeaten pressure.
After the game, Wu Jingui commented that Cangzhou defeated the three towns of Wuhan in the previous round, indicating that this is a very threatening team on the offensive end. Today, every player on the field worked very hard in the face of immense pressure, demonstrating the technical and tactical tactics and tactics set by the team before the game. The team's mentality throughout the game was very good, based on defense, seizing opportunities. Being able to score all three points away from home is also very helpful for improving the team's confidence.
After the game, when it came to this free kick, Wang Haijian candidly said, "To be honest, I haven't practiced it before. Originally, the free kick was taken by Teixeira, and he was a bit tight on the back of his thigh today. Before the game, Coach Li told me that I could choose to shoot or pass a set kick on the left side of the front court. I am very happy that I didn't disappoint the expectations of the coaching staff. This is the first time in my career that I have scored a free kick directly, and I am very happy."
A reporter asked Wang Haijian if he had any feelings for Beckham. Wang Haijian smiled and said, "That's not true, it's too exaggerated. Our main focus is on following the coach's request. The head coach asked us to increase the number of crosses from the sidelines because the opponent's defense was slightly weaker. We created many opportunities in the first half, but unfortunately we didn't seize them."
Wang Haijian was selected as the best player of the match, and Wu Jingui also praised his disciple. "After the game, I told Wang Haijian that this goal was like a sudden inspiration, very beautiful and important. I am very happy to see young players like Wang Haijian further improving in all aspects."
After graduating from junior high school at the age of 15, Wang Haijian chose to pursue a career in football. He joined Shenhua with Xu Yibin from Shanghai Putuo Football School. As a top player in the Shanghai Shenhua "post-2000" youth training, Wang Haijian plays as a midfielder. Like Qi Hong, he plays football with great agility and is also known as "Little Qi Hong" by fans.
In the 2019 season, Wang Haijian joined the first team of Shenhua and won the FA Cup championship with the team. It's just that Shenhua has more midfield players, and he didn't have any playing opportunities throughout the season. "At first, I was a bit disappointed and discouraged, but my teammates and coach encouraged me." Wang Haijian understood that opportunities were not just pie in the sky, but rather something he fought for on his own. He often took the initiative to go to the gym to practice and strengthen his physical resistance.
Before the 2020 season, a Shenhua Blue and White Championship showcased Wang Haijian's potential to fans. His physical fitness is excellent, with a certain ability to dribble and compete. He has contributed several beautiful long-range shots in the game, forcing goalkeeper Zeng Cheng to make multiple heroic saves.
For a period of time, although there were frequent opportunities to appear, Wang Haijian rarely had outstanding performances. Until the second stage of the 2021 season, Wang Haijian, who was once forgotten and looked down upon by fans, did not give up on himself. The then head coach Mao Yijun also trained new players without the risk of relegation. Wang Haijian continued to get starting opportunities and welcomed his personal outburst, not only completing his own goals in the Chinese Super League, but also scoring three goals in three games.
Last season, under the leadership of head coach Wu Jingui, Shenhua faced many difficulties and experienced a transition from old to new. Wang Haijian actively implemented the tactical intentions guided by Wu during the competition. For him, if he can still start with a large number of midfielders, the only way is to make good use of it.
In the match against Guangzhou team last season, Wang Haijian became the best player of the game with his impressive performance of passing and shooting, and was also praised by Wu Jingui. "As a midfielder, he has strong up and down round-trip ability, and his personal footwork skills are also good, and he is good at capturing opportunities."
For Wang Haijian, there is still a long way to go to turn the sudden emergence of spiritual light into a stable performance. Shenhua reserve team coach Wang Yun is very optimistic about Wang Haijian's development, and has predicted, "Wang Haijian can become a great player in time. Wang Haijian can completely become the successor of Shenhua captain Wu Xi, and will also have a place in the midfield of the Chinese national football team in the future."
