As the 2022 Chinese Super League champions, Wuhan Three Town have naturally been the center of attention for media and fans this season. However, regrettably, they have not shown the strength that the defending champions should have. From the beginning of the season, they lost to Seaport on the road, and after that, Sanzhen has been hovering in the middle of the table in the following matches. In the just-concluded Round 20 match, away to Zhejiang, even though the opponent only had 11 players left, Tri-Town still failed to win or even get any points. Instead, they watched their opponents win four in a row and overtake them by one point, dropping to 7th place with just 30 points from 7 wins, 9 draws and 4 defeats.
As a matter of fact, from the point of view of staffing, San Zhen is absolutely the top of the Super League, the front line gathered two young talents Wei Shihao and Tao Qianglong, the midfield has Yan Dinghao, He Chao, Xie Pengfei, Zhang Xiaobin and other internationals, and the defense is Ren Hang, Gao Yi, Deng Hanwen, Liu Yiming, Stanchu, Aziz, and Davies are also the champions, even so, San Zhen is still lethargic in the first half, and the result is lukewarm. Had it been the coaching, then Tri-Town would have completed a change of manager long ago, with Gao Mian replacing Pedro, but the results still haven't improved.
If Malcolm's departure leads to a decline in attacking power up front, the 1.96-meter striker's dominance will be recalled again in the summer window. Not only that, but Three Town have nabbed Duan Liuyu from Taishan. Shenzhen were joined by Jiang Zhipeng. The foreigners were supplemented by Park Ji-soo. The team, based on 11 international players and featured foreigners, still lost the match against Zhejiang.
Not to mention competing for the title, even the qualification for the Asian Championship is drifting away. This also does not allow outsiders to question what Three Town has gone through in just half a year. On the one hand, the players are still the same, but with a different mentality, without the aggressive spirit of last season, more good players, but lacking cohesion. On the other hand, Gao's arrival was not accompanied by a stable tactic, and San Zhen's style of play was unclear, not even as good as during Pedro's tenure. Now that Malcolm is back, it actually suits Pedro better to lead the team.
In fact, it's quite simple, Taka Junmyeon is perfectly capable of taking a page out of Pedro's playbook, after all, having been through the championships. Although Taka Hatake is a newly appointed coach, his position is not a secure one. Prior to joining the team, he was the coach of the Central B team, so his ability has been questioned a bit. If his results are not up to par, he could be fired.
