On October 25, Shandong Taishan swept Incheon United 20-0 on the road to take all three points. Coach Choi Kang-hee revitalized a Taishan team that was on the verge of collapse by magical means and ensured the team's solid qualification. The victory also adds confidence to Taishan's next round match against Seaport.
Resilience in the face of adversity
Choi Kang-hee's "magic" is not a coincidence. In the face of the AFC Champions League allows five foreign aid participation rules, Taishan team has only Fellaini, Kressan, Moises and Jadson four foreign aid available, of which Fellaini and Kressan also suffered injury.
Difficulties abound, but Choi Kang-hee always manages to turn them around. He did not start all four foreigners, hiding Cressan on the bench in the first half and heavily defending. Despite an injury to Kichijo in the opening 10 minutes, Taishan held on to the first half and created a number of chances on goal in the counterattack.
In the second half, Kressan came on as a substitute and formed a tacit understanding with Liu Binbin's impact on the side road. In the 56th minute, Kressan broke the deadlock with a world wave goal. Incheon United launched a fierce counter-attack, but Taishan quickly stabilized their position. In the 87th minute, Fellaini took a pass from Kressan and hit a low shot to seal the win.
Choi Kang-hee's tactical arrangement stems from a deep understanding of the Taesan team and Korean soccer. Facing a tough opponent, he chose to play hard, and ultimately won the game by controlling the timing of the foreigners and wingers on the pitch, as well as the phase of high competition in the second half.
Reinventing Dignity
The Chinese Super League teams all won this round. Zhejiang won their first AFC Champions League match with a 2-0 victory over Japan's Kofu Kazebayashi in another match. Wuhan Sanzhen also won 2-0 against Hanoi, and the three Chinese Super League teams won all their matches in this round.
Zhejiang returned to the AFC Champions League after 12 years, and although they scored three points, the group situation remains grim. Wuhan Sanzhen finished second in the group with four points. In contrast, Taishan's victory was more valuable. Facing the group's top team, Incheon United, Taishan turned the situation around with three points, equalizing with their rivals and Yokohama Mariners, and temporarily topping the group standings.
The first half of the group stage is over and Taishan is expected to dominate the second half. Aside from Yokohama Mariners, Taishan is also hosting two solid teams. With the experience of defeating Incheon United on the road, Taesan is expected to have another win at home.
All three teams have won, which is a great benefit to the Premier League. In recent years, the Chinese Super League has not performed well in the AFC Champions League. Now that the league as a whole is doing well, the participating teams need to work hard for every win in order to improve the league's position in the AFC Champions League.
Suspense to be resolved
Taishan will travel to Shanghai to challenge Shanghai Port on the 29th in their third cross-country match in ten consecutive days. Shanghai Port leads the league with 59 points, five points ahead of Taishan. Although Taishan cannot take the initiative to win the title, this victory can still extend the suspense of the Chinese Super League title to the final round.
Taishan didn't focus all their energy on the focus game, but showed the strength and fighting spirit of the Chinese Super League team in the AFC Champions League. After this game, Taishan can face Shanghai Port more calmly. This kind of calmness is not empty, but is spelled out by the players in the game.
Fellaini posted a photo of a protective mask being made but did not end up using it, suggesting that his recovery from injury has been better than expected. There is no need to worry about Cressan's form either, as he scored and assisted in the game and is expected to continue his excellent form.
Both injured players recovered better than expected, making them winners for Taishan. In addition, young player Xie Wen's steady performance in the AFC Champions League and Fernando's substitute appearance to create threats made the outside world confident in Taishan's form in the next round.
