It may seem that the Chinese Super League (CSL) rising star and the English Premier League (EPL) giants Manchester City are not in the same league, however, at the end of the 2024 season, the former Chinese Super League (CSL) supremo Wuhan Sanzhen unexpectedly ended up at the bottom of the CSL table, not even as good as the fast-improving Shenzhen Xinpengcheng.
A battle between Wuhan's three towns and Shenzhen's new Pengcheng is about to take place.
Match Properties: Chinese Super League Round 21
Race time: August 3, 20:00
In the latest Chinese Super League standings, Wuhan Three Town is in ninth place after 21 games with 23 points from six wins, five draws and 10 losses, while Shenzhen New Pengcheng is one place above Wuhan Three Town with 24 points from six wins, six draws and nine losses.
Like Shandong Taishan, Wuhan Sanzhen has long relied on foreign aid, but the performance of 28-year-old Portuguese striker Roca, who was introduced during the summer window, has been mediocre, contributing only four goals and two assists in 28 matches in the Portuguese Super League's Aviva. Despite expectations from both inside and outside the team, Wakka has failed to deliver in three matches in the Chinese Super League.
After the recent 0:2 home defeat against Shanghai Shenhua, Wuhan Sanzhen has not won in the last three matches with 2 draws and 1 loss. Captain Jiang Zhipeng will miss this round after he was sent off with a red card for speaking out against the side judge during the match.
In comparison, Shenzhen Xinpengcheng's recent performance has been remarkable, beating Beijing Guoan 1:0 at home in the last round, with 2 consecutive wins and 2 draws, and 2 wins and 2 draws in the last 4 rounds of matches.
The two teams have met five times in China B, China A and China Super League, with Wuhan Sanzhen having a slight advantage with two wins, two draws and one loss. In the first meeting this season, the two sides drew 1:1 on the road at Wuhan Sanzhen.
Wuhan Sanzhen is known as the "Home Insects", but in the last 6 home matches in the league, they only got 1 draw and 5 losses. Despite the limited strength of their opponents, it will not be easy for Wuhan Sanzhen to win this match, while Shenzhen Xinpengcheng can at least stay undefeated.
