Wuhan Sanzhen, the 2022 Chinese Super League champions, have rightly been the center of attention for the media and fans this season. However, it is sad to see that they have not shown the strength of the defending champions. At the beginning of the season, Sanzhen lost to Seaport on the road, and since then, the team has been struggling in the middle of the table. In the 20th round of the away match against Zhejiang, even though the opponent only had 11 players left, Sanzhen still failed to win and had no income. They watched their rivals win four consecutive matches and overtake them in points, and are now down to seventh place in the rankings with a record of seven wins, nine draws and four losses, and only 30 points.
However, in terms of squad configuration, Sanzhen is undoubtedly the best in the Super League. There are many young talents in the squad such as Wei Shihao and Tao Qianglong, international stars in the midfield such as Yan Dinghao, He Chao, Xie Pengfei and Zhang Xiaobin, and in the defense Ren Hang, Gao Yi, Deng Hanwen, Liu Yiming, Stanchu, Aziz and Davies have also played for championship teams. Even so, Tri-Town continued to play lifelessly in the first half and ended up with a mediocre result. If it was down to coaching issues, then a change of manager has long been on the agenda, with Gao Mian replacing Pedro, but the results still haven't improved.
Malcolm's departure may have led to a drop in attacking power, but Sanzhen have recalled the 1.96-meter striker to dominate in the summer window. Not only that, the team has also brought in Duan Liuyu from Taishan, joined by Jiang Zhipeng from Shenzhen. In terms of foreigners, the addition of Park Ji-soo has also strengthened the team. However, even with 11 international players and featured foreigners, Sanzhen still lost against Zhejiang.
Not to mention competing for the title, even the qualification for the Asian Championship is drifting away. Outsiders can't help but question what Three Town has gone through in just half a year. The players are still the same, but with a different mentality, lacking the aggressiveness of last season, and lacking cohesion despite having more talented players. Gao Mian's arrival did not bring a stable tactic, and San Zhen's playing style is vague, even worse than Pedro's period. Now that Malcolm is back, it might be more suitable for Pedro's tactics.
Gao Mian is perfectly capable of learning Pedro's style of play, after all, he's been through the championships. Although Gao Mian is the new coach, his position is not secure. Prior to this, he coached at the China B team and his ability has been questioned. If results are unsatisfactory, dismissal may be just around the corner.
