Chinese Super League Round 28 Spotlight Battle: Guoan vs. Seaport, Championship Race Heats Up
On October 20, 19:35, Beijing Guoan will step on the home field of Shanghai Harbor to challenge the top rival of the Chinese Super League, and this matchup will undoubtedly be the focus of this round of the league.
For Shanghai Seaport, this game is the key battle for the Chinese Super League title this season, while for Beijing Guoan, it's a battle of life and death for whether they can make it to the quarterfinals. As of the first 27 rounds, Guoan has accumulated 45 points with 12 wins, 9 draws, and 6 losses, temporarily ranking fifth in the Chinese Super League, and only 3 points away from the fourth-place Zhejiang team. With the last three rounds of the league remaining, Guoan must secure a win in every game to hopefully advance to the quarterfinals. Therefore, in this match with Harbor, Guoan will go all out and try to get the victory.
Data shows that Beijing Guoan's last 6 meetings with the seaport only achieved 1 win, 2 draws and 3 losses, and is at a significant psychological disadvantage. In addition, Zhang Xizhe's suspension will have an impact on Guoan's fighting strength. Therefore, Guoan is facing a tough battle. Here are the predictions for Guoan's possible starting lineup for this match.
At goalie, expected starter Housen will hold down the Guoan goal. On the defensive line, foreigner Ngaardew and local veteran Zhang Chengdong will partner the center backs, flanked by Guoan's wing backs Wang Gang and Li Lei. Although Li Lei has just returned from the national team, he is in good physical condition and is expected to play.
The burden of intercepting and stealing in the midfield will fall on Guoan back Ji Zhongguo, whose partner is expected to be naturalized player Li Ke. At the heart of the attack, veteran Yu Dabao is expected to be the midfield commander in the absence of Zhang Xizhe. Up front, newcomer Fabio Abreu is in hot form and will continue to be heavily utilized, as he will form an attacking trident with Jiang Xiangyou and Yang Liyu to create goal-scoring opportunities for Guoan.
Comprehensive analysis of the above, it is expected that Guoan's starting lineup for this game will be: Housen; Wang Gang, Zhang Chendong, Ngaardew, Li Lei; Li Ke, Ji Zhongguo, Yu Dabao; Fabio Abreu, Jiang Xiangyou, Yang Liyu.
