BEIJING, January 13, 2022 - After being relegated to the Central League after an unexpected defeat to Zhejiang in the play-offs, the Peninsula Metropolis Daily summarizes Qingdao's season in three "most" terms, while revealing deep concerns about the team's future direction. The team's future is a matter of deep concern.
"The Strongest Lineup" - Unable to Return to the Relegation Book
In the second round, facing the only way to win, Qingdao dispatched their strongest lineup at the moment. Unfortunately, this "strongest lineup" was a little late in the game, and the team was unable to salvage their loss and were relegated to the Central League. Vukovic and Alessandrini, who had been out with injuries for a long time, started the match. Despite the strength of Qingdao's squad, they were unable to turn the score around and drew 0:0 with their opponents in the second leg. As a result, Qingdao failed to qualify for the Chinese Super League with a 0-1 defeat in the play-offs.
"The most regrettable" - the dream of home in the Chinese Super League is shattered
For Qingdao fans, there is nothing more regrettable than the fact that two seasons after the team's success in the Super League, the team was never able to appear in their hometown stadium due to the epidemic. This means that Qingdao fans have not yet witnessed the team named "Qingdao" at home in the top league, and then fell to the Central League again. This is a sad history for the fans.
"Most Unknown" - Where does the team go from here?
The fate of the team seems to be more confusing than relegation. This season, Qingdao has gone through a lot of trials and tribulations such as unpaid salaries, resignation of the manager, and frequent injuries. It was not until the last round of matches that the team's two foreign aiders, Vukovic and Alessandrini, made their debut at the same time. As "second-year students" in the Chinese Super League, they have not been able to adjust to the best state throughout the season. According to acting manager Yang Weijian after the game, the team's goal for the coming season is still to return to the Chinese Super League. However, whether they can break through the current predicament is still an unknown. At the Central League level, Qingdao is facing two rivals in the same city, Qingdao Hainiu and Qingdao Youth Island, and even in the Central League, the team's advantage is not obvious.
