On May 28, nightfall, the 10th round of the Chinese Super League (CSL) was staged in Shanghai Shenhua's home stadium, and the challenger was Henan, who claimed to have won the title in an ambitious manner not long ago.
In the pre-tournament standings, Shanghai Shenhua is in third place with a record of 18 points from nine matches, five wins, three draws and one loss, a five-point difference from Shanghai Port, a two-point difference from Chengdu Rongcheng, and only one point ahead of fourth-ranked Changchun Yatai, while the fifth Tian Jinmen Tiger is three points away.
Shanghai Shenhua is in a delicate position and could drop out of the top three if they are not careful. A win in this round will put them back into second place with 21 points and continue to pose a threat to leaders Shanghai Port, while a draw or loss could see them drop out of the top three.
The situation of Henan is not optimistic, the lineup has not been strengthened, the former coach left to join Shanghai Port, the budget has been greatly reduced, and this season is afraid of facing a relegation crisis. At present, only 1 win, 4 draws and 4 losses in 9 matches, accumulating 7 points, ranking 14th in the Chinese Super League table, only 1 point ahead of the relegation zone Dalian People and Nantong Zhiyun.
Let's focus on the starting lineups of both sides.
Shanghai Shenhua lined up in a 4231 formation with Malele as the center forward, Han Chao, Teixeira and Xu Hao Yang making up the forward line, Wang Haijian and Amadou partnering in the midfield, and Wen Jiabao, Zhu Chenjie, Jiang Shenglong and Aidi holding down the back line, while Bao Yaxiong was the goalkeeper. The total value of the starting 11 is worth a whopping 6.55 million euros.
Henan, on the other hand, used a 442 formation, with Huang Zichang and Feng Boyuan partnering the front line, a midfield of Zhong Yihao, Diliyimiti, Kovic, and Li Songyi, a back line of Ke Zhao, Liu Jiahui, Gu Cao, and Luo Xin, and Wang Guoming in goal. The total value of the starting 11 is 2.375 million euros.
The match started with a fierce battle between offense and defense. In the second minute, Xu Hao Yang attempted a long-distance shot, but it was parried by Wang Guoming. In the fourth minute, Kovic's precise pass was followed by Zhong Yihao's shot, which was unfortunately parried by Bao Yaxiong, and Li Songyi's supplementary shot went over the crossbar.
In the 20th minute, Henan's Huang Zichang was injured and Gao Tianyi came on as a substitute.
In the 26th minute, Henan's left corner kick was opened, Zhong Yihao's header broke the goal, Henan away 1:0 lead Shanghai Shenhua.
In the 39th minute, Zhong Yihao crossed from the left and Bao Yaxiong managed to make a save.
In first half stoppage time, Yu Hanchao shot from long range, but the referee ruled that Malelei was offside for interference and the goal was disallowed.
In the 81st minute, Cao Yunding sent a precise diagonal pass, Wang Guoming misjudged the ball, Jiang Shenglong sent the ball into the empty goal, Shanghai Shenhua 1:1 equalized, avoiding the embarrassment of losing to the relegation team at home.
Nevertheless, Shenhua up and down should have realized: the road to the championship, strength and timing are not yet ripe.
After the match, Shanghai Shenhua continues to rank third with 19 points from 10 matches, 5 wins, 4 draws and 1 loss, with a 4-point gap with Shanghai Port and a 2-point lead over Changchun Yatai. If Changchun Yatai beat Shanghai Port at home this round, Shenhua will face the possibility of falling out of the top three, although such a situation is unlikely to occur.
Looking back to the sixth round, Shanghai Shenhua beat Shenzhen 3:1 on the road, and started with 5 wins and 1 draw, only drawing against Shanghai Harbor, and Wu Jingui's performance at that time was quite wandering. After the past four rounds, Shenhua has found its form.
