It's a bit embarrassing really to withdraw from a game and be sentenced to a loss and a fine. On the other hand, Chinese soccer is also seeing a tough level of positivity, with not only the Golden Gate Tigers, but also Shenzhen suffering massive staff illnesses, as are many clubs. Now, that's better than whoever can hold on to withdraw from the game, i.e. whoever can play at home.
On December 17, the first to withdraw from the 1/8 finals of the FA Cup due to the epidemic was Zibo Cuju of the Central League, then Golden Gate Tigers withdrew. Suzhou Dongwu and Henan Songshan Longmen then withdrew. There were eight matches in the FA Cup 1/8 finals, and four matches were ruled 0-3 losses outright as these four teams withdrew from the competition.
From the 17th to the 22nd, in just six days, six teams have withdrawn from the FA Cup and the Chinese Super League. This is undoubtedly a heavy blow to Chinese soccer. We can't ignore the influence of the epidemic factor, but the CFA didn't expect to let go of this situation today, which made Chinese soccer a joke in the final stage.
[Positive Pass, last three rounds are difficult]
There are still the last three rounds of the league. Currently, the Golden Gate Tigers, including Shenzhen, have abandoned the Super League, and other teams are widely infected and unable to field their starters. They have not withdrawn from the tournament for no other reason than that there is no need to work hard for a home game. If they can't recover in the next round, they will abandon the game in all probability.
Even if some teams recover, what can they do? It's hard for these players to be 100% fighting fit for the tournament, and more of them still have to field a mixed team of first team + echelon players, so what's the competitiveness of such a lineup? In the last 3 rounds of the tournament, the competition for each team is really about who has fewer active players.
This situation will also disrupt the excitement of the league championship, the race for fourth place and the relegation battle. In this round, Shandong Taishan played Shanghai SIPG and Wuhan Sanzhen played Chengdu Chengdu. Although Chengdu Chengdu were playing at home, two-thirds of them were infected. This situation means that Wuhan Three Town's three points are not in doubt. We will wait and see if Shandong Taishan can keep the dream of the championship alive.
