In the 13th round of the Chinese Super League (CSL), a heavyweight matchup was staged in the capital city as Beijing Guoan hosted Shanghai Harbor. The matchup is a close one, but both teams are well known in the history of the Chinese Super League, and on June 29th, at 19:35 GMT, Guoan will face Shanghai Harbor at Workers' Stadium, a matchup that will be broadcast live on CCTV5+. Zhang Yuning is unable to play due to injury, and his absence along with Wu Lei's undoubtedly adds to the suspense of the match. And the eyes of the crowd are on Ricardo Suarez, making his debut in the Chinese Super League.
Ricardo Suarez made his debut in the FA Cup with just one goal. In his debut in the Chinese Super League, he faced top-ranked Shanghai Port, and the importance of this game cannot be overstated. Although the performance is good, but failed to bring victory, Ricardo may face the Guoan fans micro-aggression, especially at home, facing a group of Beijing Guoan fans who are accustomed to the change of marshal, the desire to win the most extreme, the new manager Ricardo still has a long way to go.
The new manager took office, he brought the team to Guoan, the training field is rigorous and serious, and the details are not spared. Wang Gang recovered from injury, Guoan in addition to Zhang Yuning, other players are not serious. Foreign aid Adeben Lo, Ademi, De Sousa, Jiang Xiangyou and Ngaardeu are fully prepared for the game, plans to show strength at home. The core of Guoan's tactics is the center forward position, whether Wang Ziming can take on this important task is still doubtful, and whether Yu Dabao, who has not played as a striker for a long time, can contribute to the goals after Ricardo's appointment has become a major suspense.
Shanghai Port leads the Chinese Super League with 29 points, and is on par with Guoan in terms of goals scored, both at 21. However, the defensive end of the problem highlighted, the port only conceded 9 goals, while Guoan has conceded 17 goals, foreign winger Ngaardeu's goal is the weakness of Guoan's defensive line. Ricardo Suarez has started to experiment with newcomers, and young players such as Nai Bijang are making their mark. Port's consistency this year has been remarkable, with Wu Lei scoring 7 goals and 2 assists, and Oscar contributing 4 goals and 5 assists, making them the core of the team's offense.
The next two matches will be a tough test for Guoan as they will face Seaport and Chengdu in consecutive matches. There is not expected to be much change in Guoan's lineup. Although the transfer window has opened after the new manager took office, there may not be any big moves in Guoan's reinforcement program. Guoan's annual operating costs are as high as 300-500 million yuan, which is a lot in the current Chinese Super League. Facing the harbor, general manager Li Ming and head coach Ricardo Suarez will be under great pressure to play at home and at least ensure an undefeated season.
Local players Yang Liyu, Gao Tianyi and Zhang Xizhe are also the core strength of the team, especially Gao Tianyi, who has been underrated. Guoan's five foreigners played in the last match with an all-Chinese squad, and Ricardo's investigation into new recruits is still ongoing. Depending on his tactical arrangements, Adebenelo and Kang Xiangyou could be the core of the team. Kang Xiangyu's versatility makes him comfortable in front of goal, while Adebenelo has yet to find his place after joining the team. Ricardo Suarez will need at least 3-5 games to initially form a Beijing Guoan with his own tactical philosophy.
