Despite the temporary suspension of the Chinese Super League, the fever of preparation has not subsided. The transfer market has become more and more intense, and the competition for key players has become especially heated. Despite the shrinking market value of players, national team players are still highly favored. In addition, some clubs even spared no expense to "warm up" for the season. Zhejiang Football Club is one of them. Although they were eliminated from the Asian Champions League, the tournament has not yet come to an end. Last December, Wang Dongsheng received a red card for elbowing an opponent in Melbourne. Looking back, the intervention of the AFC seems inevitable.
It was not until early January 2024 that the world anxiously awaited information on the punishment. At one point it was thought that the matter would be left unsettled, however, in true AFC style, this was clearly not the case, and on January 17th, the results of the punishment were finally awaited. After investigation, the 26-year-old star player Wang Dongsheng's elbow was characterized as violent behavior, and the AFC imposed a three-match suspension, including an automatic red card suspension, and a fine of $10,000, or about 70,000 yuan. This fully reflects the AFC's strict attitude towards violent behavior and serves as a warning to other clubs.
Of course, it's not just the players who are penalized, the Zhejiang club is also implicated in this. Last November, for failing to enter the venue on time, the Zhejiang team was found guilty of violating the rules and fined RMB 7,000, which was required to be paid within 30 days. The two fines totaled about RMB 80,000, which is not a huge amount, but the impact on the team's reputation cannot be ignored and has repercussions across Asia. Zhejiang need to learn from this as this is the first fine since the start of the 2024 Chinese Super League.
In professional tournaments, it's the details that often make the difference between winning and losing. Avoiding entry violations due to timing issues is entirely doable. At the same time, we should also focus on player management. Wang Dongsheng's red card departure had an impact on the team's tactical layout. More importantly, the Zhejiang team, as the third place in the league, will continue to participate in the Asian Champions League in 2024, but it is not an elite tournament, and the Asian tournament also represents the image of the Chinese Super League, so the impact of personnel loss is self-evident.
Zhejiang's main focus will undoubtedly be on the league, after all, they won the third place in the league for two consecutive years. The team expects to make a breakthrough in the new season, and the goal of winning the championship is imperative.
