Unfortunate news comes one after another, and as the old saying goes, "A leaky house rains on a rainy night". The captain and core foreign aid Oscar is recuperating from an injury until November, and Brazilian striker Lopez has recently been seriously injured in training, and has been confirmed to be out for the season. Shanghai seaport official statement released yesterday: "Lopez was diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee after an MRI examination, and will not be able to play the rest of the season. The team has developed a treatment program for it, and with the consensus of the players, Lopes will return to Brazil to undergo surgery, the team will continue to pay attention to its recovery."
Injuries to Oscar and Lopez have left Mooy to continue representing Australia in the Asian 12 of the World Cup qualifiers. Currently, only Croatian center back Mystorovic, who is recovering from a serious knee injury, and attacker Paulinho, who was brought in during the summer transfer, are available to participate in regular training and matches for the Harbour team.
According to the latest developments, the schedule for the upcoming AFC Cup in October has basically been finalized. The first round will be played on October 13-15, while the second round is scheduled for October 18-20; the first round of the third round (quarter-finals) will be played on October 23-25, while the second round is scheduled for October 28-30; and the first round of the semi-finals (fourth round) will be held on November 4, with the second round scheduled for November 8th. The draw will be held on September 29, but the venue has not yet been finalized.
This means that the Seaports will have to rely on two foreigners until at least the semi-finals of the AFC Cup. Even if the team is able to advance to the semi-finals, Oscar's return to action will depend on the situation at that time. With the absence of international goalkeeper Yan Junling and defenders Stanley Wong and Li Ang, the outlook of the Harbour Team in the F.A.C.A. Cup is not optimistic.
