In the afterglow of their recent encounter with Shanghai Shenhua, the Dalian Ren are about to face three consecutive grueling matches against Henan, Cangzhou Lions and Shenzhen. With each win, the team will gain an additional six valuable points. Although Cangzhou Lions and Henan are currently leading the standings, they have been a wall in Dalian's path to relegation in the past. In the standings, Dalian Ren and Shenzhen team can be considered the same. With the return of Shenzhen's foreign aid Wakaso, Dalian Ren seems to be at the bottom of the competition. Coach Xie Hui's tactical setup is slightly disorganized, and the foreigners' collective appearances are relatively few. Foreigners such as Mamba, Manzocchi, Bosanjic and Tesonev deserved to be given more chances to play in the Shenhua campaign.
In the last game of the recent past, Manzocchi proved to be in form with a brilliant worldie goal and Mamba was quite impressive. However, due to a key passing mistake, Shang Yin became a target and his every word and action was under the spotlight. In the Shenhua game, according to Xie Hui's tactical arrangement, Shang Yin may face the fate of being hidden. Dalian's morale seems to be low compared to their early season passion. Usually, they can still stay active in the first half, but once they concede a goal in the second half, the players' mood will be affected. In 18 rounds of matches, Dalian people haven't tasted defeat, and their mental strength can be seen.
Head coach Xie Hui is under even more pressure, as the next round will be against his old team. From six consecutive draws to an FA Cup victory to two consecutive defeats recently, the Darenians have been on a roller coaster ride. The Shenhua battle could be Xie Hui's last, and once he loses, the likelihood of his dismissal will increase dramatically. Xie Hui has made a lot of adjustments in the lineup, tactics and personnel arrangements. Kudizeti's starting position in the last game was questioned and he even shirked his responsibility after the game. If Wu Nano is unable to return against Shenhua, veteran Zhang Chong will be expected to take his place. Since the second round of the Chinese Super League, Dalian has been hungry for victory in every game. Will we witness a miracle in the upcoming 19th round?
