On March 1, Shenhua club successfully signed four strong players in the winter transfer window: Luis, Manafa, Xie Pengfei and Gao Tianyi, among which Xie Pengfei became the king of the winter transfer window with a transfer fee of 1.16 million euros. In response to Shenhua's new additions, Oriental Sports Daily pointed out that Xie Pengfei will help enhance Han Chao's tactical advantage.
-Louis: Strength and Attitude in One Package
Since his debut in the Super Bowl, Luis has conquered many Chinese fans with his performances. Not only is his ability outstanding, but his attitude is also exemplary! The center forward is only 1.84 meters tall, but he is the key to scoring goals with his excellent heading ability. In Portugal this season, he has contributed 6 goals and 2 assists.
As you can see from the match highlights, Luis' header goals are often done unmarked, which is a testament to his keen sense of smell in front of the goal. In the Super Bowl, his role as a pivot was obvious, with good ball control and a low turnover rate. Currently, Luis' biggest shortcoming is passing. It's also worth noting that his professional demeanor in the Super Bowl was impressive. at 29 years old, he still has a long way to go up the ladder.
--Manafa: A model for modern European wingbacks
Manafa is a typical modern European wing-back who fits perfectly into whatever tactical system coach Slutsky employs and whose importance is irreplaceable. In the match against Port, Shenhua focused mainly on defense, which showcased Manafa's physical qualities. Due to his great defensive responsibility on the right side of the field, his performance earned the trust of the coach and his teammates, so Shenhua could put more troops on the left side of the field.
In the second half of the season, Shenhua increased their attacking inputs, and Manafa became more and more active in front of goal. According to the technical statistics of the European league, Manafa's left and right foot skills are very balanced, his potential still has a lot of room to be tapped, and Shenhua's value is far from being fully realized. In addition, the tacit understanding between him and his teammates is still improving, and his energy still needs to be further released, so we expect more from him.
--Xie Pengfei: Complementary to Han Chao
Currently, Xie Pengfei has yet to earn a starting position in the Shenhua team, mainly substituting for Han Chao in the second half. In Slutsky's current tactical system, he is temporarily behind his teammates' competition. However, in just over 20 minutes of play, Xie Pengfei still showed a satisfactory performance, impressing the coach with his execution of the tactical deployment.
In terms of technical and tactical styles, Xie Pengfei's and Han Chao's characteristics do not conflict with each other, depending on the coach's tactical arrangements. Shenhua signed Xie Pengfei with the expectation that he would contribute to the team, and at 31 years old, he is in the prime of his career and has a bright future ahead of him. From the first official game of the new season, Xie Pengfei's performance has satisfied Slutsky. When the team needs to control the rhythm, he can always come in handy. For the upcoming Chinese Super League, Shenhua will not always face strong opponents like Harbor, so there will be many matches for Xie Pengfei to play his strengths.
--Gao Tianyi: Waiting for the right time to build up strength
In terms of position, Gao Tianyi overlaps slightly with Xie Pengfei, who can play the 9 1/2 position. Therefore, when Luiz needs to rest, Slutsky will choose Gao Tianyi. Teixeira and Luiz stand ahead of Gao Tianyi in the two positions they specialize in, but there are many matches in a season and Gao Tianyi needs to wait for his chance. Compared to Teixeira, he still has a chance to compete. Slutsky needs tactical reserves to deal with the many opponents in a season, which inevitably includes Gao Tianyi's options.
