Qingdao West Coast's soccer journey soon met its Waterloo, with only 2 wins in the following 17 rounds of matches, and 1 draw and 1 loss in the last two rounds, making the situation precarious and almost touching the red line of relegation. During the summer transfer window, Qingdao West Coast welcomed three new players - Mateusz Pynes, Jin Yangyang and Chen Yuhao. However, Hisashi Kurosaki stepped down in disgrace after a 1:2 defeat away to Tianjin Jinmen Tigers in the last round. He was replaced by former international player, 44-year-old Shao Jiayi. Despite his outstanding performance as a player, Shao's previous experience as a coaching debutant has been limited to assistant coaching for the national soccer team and not having been in charge of a first-tier club. There has been speculation that Zheng Zhi could be the next head of Qingdao West Coast, and Shao's sudden departure seemed too hasty, with many in the media expressing dismay.
Against the backdrop of this power change, the dialog between the general manager and the head coach is even more intriguing. Another team from Fujian, Cangzhou Lions (formerly Xiamen Junhao), has had an equally bumpy road to survival. From its birth in Xiamen to its move to Shijiazhuang, it has experienced various twists and turns such as overtaking, relegation, the Golden Dollar Era, the Post-Golden Dollar Era, a neutral name and a share reform, and is now still struggling on this difficult road to survival. In the aftermath of the Golden Dollar Era, many former internationals joined the Cangzhou Lions, once regarded as a dark horse and the focus of the media chase. However, without the support of high-level foreign aid and local players, I am afraid that the color of the dark horse is difficult to sustain. Every season can be relegated has been fortunate, and the problem of salary arrears is to make the team's survival of the road cast a shadow. Currently, there are two major unanswered questions in the Chinese Super League: when will Shanghai Seaport's winning streak end, and when will Cangzhou Lions' winning streak end. Shanghai Seaport has won 14 consecutive Super League matches and 16 consecutive matches in all competitions, while Cangzhou Lions have won 15 consecutive matches. In the upcoming 19th round, Cangzhou Lions drew 1:1 with Wuhan Sanzhen at home, the haze of 13 consecutive losses seems to have been dispelled, Zhao Junzhe was dismissed and Li Xiaopeng was appointed, but the team's performance remains to be seen. Li Xiaopeng, a Qingdao native, has only played for Shandong Taishan in his career. The two teams have met twice before, with Qingdao West Coast winning 2:1 in the third round of the 2023 F.A.C.A. Cup, and Cangzhou Lions winning 3:2 at home in the sixth round of this year's Chinese Super League. This time, although the result may not be satisfactory to both sides, but the two sides may be able to "peace for the precious", and write a new chapter together.
