With the draw for the AFC Champions League finalized, Ulsan Hyundai gave Shandong Taishan a pleasant surprise, as they met a seemingly weaker opponent. Shandong Taishan's performance in the Chinese Super League has not been impressive, with only 7 wins in 16 matches, and an unfortunate loss would have been met with cynicism from Shanghai Harbor.
In the 2023-2024 season of the Asian Champions League, the top four Chinese soccer teams traveled to Shanghai Seaport, Shandong Taishan, Zhejiang and Wuhan Sanzhen. Shanghai Seaport bowed out in the play-offs with a 2-3 defeat against Baton Rouge United. Zhejiang and Wuhan Sanzhen failed to break through in the group stage and their AFC Champions League campaigns ended prematurely. Shandong Taishan narrowly missed out on the knockout stage despite losing their final match, making them the only Chinese Super League team to advance to the knockout stage.
Due to the divisional system, Shandong Taishan will only have to face East Asian teams in the knockout rounds. The draw showed that Kawasaki Striker and Ulsan Hyundai were in the same group, and due to the principle of avoiding suspicion, Kawasaki Striker's opponent was changed to Shandong Taishan. Kawasaki have played 16 times against Chinese Super League teams, with a win rate of only 43%, and the presence of Ulsan Hyundai is undoubtedly a generous gift to Shandong Taishan.
Since the AFC Champions League was reformed in 2009, Kawasaki Frontale has played 16 matches against Chinese Super League teams, with a record of 7 wins, 4 draws and 5 losses. Among them, 4 times with Beijing Guoan, 2 wins and 2 losses; 4 times with Guangzhou Evergrande, 2 wins and 2 draws; 2 times with Guizhou Renhe, all wins; 1 time with Tianjin Jinmen Tigers, 1 win and 1 loss; 4 times with Shanghai Harbor, 2 draws and 2 losses.
Looking back at the historical matchups with Chinese Super League (CSL) teams, Shandong Taishan has had a lot of luck against Kawasaki Frontale. Nonetheless, Shandong Taishan will need to go all out to show the strength of the Chinese Super League in their first meeting with Kawasaki Frontale, and make their opponents realize that the Chinese Super League is not only about money and foreign aid, but also has the competitive strength to be underestimated in the AFC Champions League. If Shandong Taishan were to be eliminated by Kawasaki, they would be ridiculed by Shanghai Harbor.
Despite Shanghai Harbour winning the Chinese Super League in the 2023 season, they were targeted for failing to qualify for the main round of the AFC Champions League after going down 2-3 to Baton Rouge United in the AFC Champions League play-offs. Many fans took this opportunity to taunt: "The true level of the Chinese Super League champions, now we all see it clearly, right?"
Nevertheless, Shanghai Seaport managed to win the Chinese Super League title. In the AFC Champions League match against Kawasaki Frontale, Shanghai Seaport is undefeated in 4 meetings, with 2 wins and 2 draws, showing a good strength. In soccer, it's hard to predict who will win and who will lose. Shanghai Seaport has the possibility of winning unexpectedly and the risk of suffering an unexpected loss.
