Guangzhou's worst start to a season since returning to the Chinese Super League in 2011 has been a single point in the first two rounds of the season. Such a start is certainly a heavy blow to the team and its fans, who have long been accustomed to winning.
Compared to last season, the biggest change in Guangzhou's lineup this time around is the addition of Golat and Allan, replacing the Paulinho and Talisca "Pagoda Combination". On the surface, the changes do not seem to be significant, but in fact they have had a profound impact on the team's foundation.
Alan (in yellow) in a fierce fight with Shandong players in the game
Paulinho was the core tactical pillar of the team in the last two seasons, and Talisca was also the key scorer under coach Cannavaro. Golat and Allan are very different from the "Paulista combination" in terms of field position, technical characteristics, and style of play, and replacing them actually means a complete rebuilding of the Guangzhou team's tactical system.
Such reconstruction is a long-term process that needs to be tested and honed in actual combat. At present, it seems that the road of rebuilding is not smooth. Guangzhou has few substantial threats despite their superior ball possession.
If the player replacement affects the technical and tactical level, then the adjustment of Evergrande Group's soccer strategy has a non-negligible impact on the psychological level of the team, which may be a deeper impact.
When Evergrande Group first entered the field of soccer, it announced the goal of winning the championship in a high profile every year. Powerful reinforcement guarantee, overwhelming overall strength, high-level coaching team, professional and efficient logistic support, and team with strong executive power make Guangzhou team invincible, and the grand goals of "winning the Chinese Super League in three years" and "winning the Asian Champions League in five years" are all realized ahead of schedule.
The establishment of Evergrande's dynasty makes the rivals in the Chinese Super League feel the pressure multiplied when facing Guangzhou Evergrande, and the team has an absolute psychological advantage.
However, this psychological advantage with the Guangzhou team for two consecutive seasons reinforcements "only out not in" and gradually faded. From the strength point of view, Guangzhou is no longer a popular candidate for the Super League title.
Before the start of the league season, major rivals such as Shanghai Seaport, Shanghai Shenhua and Shenzhen held a grand march, with club executives attending to cheer on their teams for the new season.
The "Chinese Super League eight champions" Guangzhou team is particularly low-key, not only no longer mention the goal of winning the championship, head coach Cannavaro even admitted for the first time that the team is no longer the favorite to win the championship, winning the championship is no longer the goal of the season.
The impact of this psychological shift on the team cannot be ignored. The players certainly did not want to give up, but their heart, morale and determination were inevitably affected, and the resulting difficulties were greater than expected.
Today's shutout by Shandong Taishan will not be the last. But the Guangzhou team is, after all, the "eight champions of the Chinese Super League", as long as the low profile, accelerated integration, still have the ability to kill the opportunity to return to the opponent.
