Can Taishan's journey in the AFC Champions League overtake the Japanese and South Korean powerhouses? ICphoto reveals the suspense.
Shanghai Port ended their AFC Champions League campaign in a near disgraceful fashion, losing 2-3 to Thai Premier League side Batang United in the play-offs, which has left the rest of the Chinese Super League in a cold sweat.
The AFC Champions League is back in full swing, so how will the Chinese Super League teams cope with this "long overdue" challenge?
Losses in the knockout rounds
Shanghai Port's exit is not an isolated case
Before the start of the play-offs, Shanghai Port had to win. This is not only because they are playing at home, but also because they are at the top of the Super League, while Pathum United are only eighth in the Thai Premier League.
What seemed like a no-holds-barred contest ended in a hat-trick of defeats for Seaport. Guoan veteran Sergeyev tore through Seaport's defense with ease, putting an end to his team's hopes of advancing to the AFC Champions League.
After the match, fans expressed their dissatisfaction with the performance of the seaport, and national soccer head coach Jankovic watched the match in person, apparently investigating the performance of the international players.
Harbor team has many excellent international players, including Wu Lei, Zhang Linpeng, Jiang Guangtai, Yan Junling is the absolute mainstay of the national team, Xu Xin, Wei Zhen's frequency of appearance is not low.
Pathum United also boasts a number of Thai internationals, with a total of five players statistically named in the Thai national team roster for June.
The matchup between the two teams mimics, to some extent, the matchup between the national soccer team and Thailand.
However, the Harbor's back line was easily penetrated by Baton Rouge in this matchup, and their loss was a wake-up call for the National Football League.
Facing the AFC Champions League
Super League teams need to adjust their mentality
In fact, Seaport's loss to Baton Rouge United had more psychological issues than just the athletic aspect of the game.
Harbour are top of the Chinese Super League and are almost certain to win the second league title in the team's history. At the same time, they are looking to compete for the FA Cup title this season.
In this case, the preservation of the league and the FA Cup has become the harbour's "top priority" this season, and the front line of the AFC Champions League seems to have become dispensable.
The fact that Harbour coach Javier sent only two foreigners, Oscar and Lucas, to start against Baton Rouge United is proof that Harbour is not paying extra attention to the AFC Champions League.
Now that the AFC Champions League has returned to full normalcy, Super League teams need to adjust their mentality and prioritize the AFC Champions League as soon as possible.
Challenge escalation
Who will emerge from the group stage
From the 2021 season, the AFC Champions League expands to 40 teams. For Chinese Super League teams, this season is a real trial run for the expanded AFC Champions League, and the group line has become extremely brutal.
According to the tournament system, the 20 teams from the East and West Asian halves will be divided into five groups. The first place in each group, as well as the best second place in the East and West Asian halves, can advance to the round of 16. The group stage is more difficult to break through than it was before the expansion.
Despite the difficulties, striving for the best results was the only option for all the teams.
In recent years, due to the poor performance of Chinese Super League (CSL) teams in the AFC Champions League, the number of places for CSL teams in the expanded AFC Champions League has dropped from "3+1" to "2+2". If the Chinese Super League's technical points in the AFC continue to fall, the number of places in the AFC Champions League for the Chinese Super League will be further reduced.
For domestic players, the AFC Champions League is one of the few ways to play with intercontinental and even world-class players besides the national team. Only by participating in the AFC Champions League, can we avoid the "closed door" as much as possible, so that the players can more intuitively feel the changes in Asian soccer and even world soccer.
On the afternoon of the 24th, the grouping of the AFC Champions League group stage was announced. From the grouping, Zhejiang team has a great chance to break through by avoiding the traditional Japanese and Korean powerhouses. Taishan will compete with Japanese powerhouse Yokohama Mariners. Wuhan Sanzhen is divided into a group with Pohang Tie and Urawa Red Diamonds, two teams that won the AFC Championship, and the qualifying situation is precarious. Regardless of whether the signings are good or bad, neither team can afford to take the situation lightly and learn from the lessons of the harbor.
Since the end of last year, the Saudi league has brought in a large number of top players, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema and Neymar. West Asia has become much more competitive, with Saudi Arabia almost locking up a spot in the AFC Champions League final. If a Chinese Super League team makes it to the final, then players have more opportunities to talk directly to these top players. The more teams that receive experience in the AFC Champions League, and the more players that improve at a high level, the more hopeful Chinese soccer will be.
