On June 26, Beijing time, an explosive news came - the plan to adjust the system of the Chinese Super League this season has basically taken shape. It is expected that on July 18, the Chinese Super League will usher in a new life, the first cycle of nine rounds of matches will soon be wrapped up, and then enter the off-season, to reserve time for the national football team to prepare for the 12th round of the tournament. The third stage of the league is expected to restart at the end of December, another eight rounds, a total of 22 rounds, the tournament system adjustment, may say goodbye to the two-two elimination system.
Super League expected to restart July 18
The national football team is assembling and quarantining in Gusu Xianggu Lane Hotel. During the quarantine period, the team is conducting normal training under the guidance of head coach Li Tie. Clubs have also begun to gather to prepare for the second stage of the league. Shanghai Shenhua chose to go to Dalian for two weeks of training, Shanghai Harbor, Hebei FC and many other clubs chose to stay in the base to prepare for the game. As of now, the clubs have not yet received the adjusted league schedule and specific start time. "Roughly in the middle to late July, but the official notice has not yet been received," a club official revealed, "the team is currently preparing around the July 18th time point."
All indications are that the possibility of the Chinese Super League restarting on July 18 is extremely high. 15 and 16 will see two bye matches between Guangzhou and Henan Songshan Longmen and Beijing Guoan and Hebei. The Chinese Super League plan, the first and second phase of the 14 matches will be completed in a month from July 18 to mid-August, the 12-team tournament will be officially opened on September 2, before which the league will need to leave the national football team about 15 days of preparation time. This means that the league will basically maintain the rhythm of every 3 days a, hot weather plus intensive schedule, for each Super League clubs, is a severe test.
As there are matches in the Top 12 in September, October and November, the third phase of the league is likely to be restarted only in early December, taking into account the home-and-away fixtures and the quarantine against epidemics that the national football team will have to undergo after completing the matches. The Chinese Super League has considered a variety of options for this season's league schedule, with one of the most extreme options even featuring only 15 rounds of league matches.
Farewell to the two-by-two elimination system for 22 rounds of league matches
But comprehensive news, this season, the possibility of playing 22 rounds of the Chinese Super League, the schedule and last season is comparable, but the tournament system may be a major adjustment. After the first 14 rounds, Suzhou, Guangzhou, the two regions will be based on the results of the ranking into the championship group and relegation group, where the four teams in the championship group and the top four teams in different regions will play eight rounds of home and away games, according to the points to determine the final rankings, and relegation group of eight teams, the same is also the case. However, teams from the same division will not meet again in the third stage of the competition.
For example, the top four teams in Suzhou, such as Shanghai Seaport, will play the top four teams in Guangzhou one by one in the third stage, but the other three top four teams in Suzhou will no longer play Shanghai Seaport in the third stage of the league. The points from the first 14 rounds of the league plus the points from these 8 matches will make up the final league total. The teams in the relegation zone will also determine their final rankings and which teams will participate in the play-offs.
This adjustment greatly reduces the risk of chance compared to the two-round elimination system, avoids the unreasonable situation of a team in last year's league not winning a single regular season game but managing to be relegated early, and is more reflective of a team's league performance throughout the year. The only regret is that each team is destined to rub shoulders with four teams from different divisions and different points zones this season, and will not have the opportunity to play each other throughout the year. But under the existing circumstances, it's a no-brainer.
If the third phase of the league kicks off in early December, then the eight rounds are expected to be completed by New Year's Day.
