In the 24th round of the Chinese Super League (CSL) on the evening of July 21st, Shenzhen Xinpengcheng won a hard-earned victory by shutting out Changchun Yatai 2-1 at home. After the match, Lucas, the acting coach of Shenzhen New Pengcheng, attended the press conference, commented on the match and answered questions from the media.
Lucas began by summarizing the game, "Good evening everyone, first of all I would like to say that this game was very difficult. We were behind in the first half, but in the second half the whole team showed a strong fighting spirit and managed to get the score back. Especially after a couple of goals were disallowed, the players didn't give up, and that spirit made me very happy with today's game."
Lucas recognized the overall performance of the new recruits: "The new recruits just arrived in the team not long ago and it does take some time to adapt to the new environment and tactical system. However, we are glad to see that each of them is very professional and has done their job well in their respective positions. Their arrival has injected new vitality into the team and provided more possibilities for the upcoming matches."
Talking about the change in the team's mental temperament, Lucas said, "It was really hard for us to win at home in the first half of the season, but since we got our first win at home, the whole team's mental outlook has changed a lot. Every day and every week that followed, we trained hard and all that effort translated into motivation in the game. The club has also given us a lot of support, and that support has made us even more confident to take on every challenge."
Finally, Lucas expressed his satisfaction with the team's reinforcement moves in the summer transfer window: "After the adjustments in the summer transfer window, our squad has been somewhat improved and strengthened. Both the bench and the starting lineup have become more fulfilling. The addition of these new players gives us more options and allows us to make more rotations and adjustments in the game. Everyone showed their strengths in the game, which was very gratifying."
