After three consecutive defeats to Shanghai Seaport, the lead in the Chinese Super League (CSL) table has plummeted to just nine points. With six rounds of Super League fixtures remaining, the suspense of winning the title has increased again.
Shanghai, who were in a good position, had their hopes of winning the title rekindled by Shandong Luneng's late surge. Head coach Javier took the main responsibility in this process. If he hadn't insisted on replacing the lineup at the last minute and dared not use the substitutes, perhaps Shanghai's starting lineup wouldn't have been tired from continuous play and wouldn't have suddenly collapsed in the second half and suffered back-to-back defeats.
In fact, in the Chinese Super League, Shanghai Harbour's bench is a luxury lineup. However, Javier was unable to do anything about such a strong bench, and insisted on sticking to his starting lineup, leaving the bench players to be the outcasts of the Chinese Super League, which is undoubtedly a great pity.
This season, Shanghai Port team has three extraordinary strength of the international players, fully qualified to be among the main lineup, but Javier has turned a blind eye, long-term put them in the cold plate, so that they have been reduced to marginal characters, and even the opportunity to play on the bench are very few. Javier's approach is undoubtedly a huge waste of resources.
The three international players overlooked by Javier include Yu Hai, Li Shenglong and Wei Zhen. Although Yu Hai is already 36 years old, he is still in good shape, with both offense and defense. Even if he can't physically support the whole game, he will have no problem to play 30 minutes in the second half. However, after 24 rounds of China, Javier only gave Yu Hai a chance to play as a substitute, once the hero of the national football team against South Korea in Shanghai was reduced to a pose, saddening.
Homegrown center forward Li Shenglong is in his prime and is having a very bright season. Despite making only 6 appearances in the Chinese Super League and only 2 starts, he has contributed 3 goals in Shanghai Harbour, making him the most efficient goal scorer in the Chinese Super League. However, Javier still does not trust Li Shenglong, which is puzzling.
The last international player left out in the cold was Wei Zhen, a young defender. Wei Zhen is a tall, well-balanced attacker and defender, and is one of the best of the young local defenders, having been selected for the Chinese men's soccer team several times. However, Wei Zhen, who was so good, struggled to gain traction in Javier's eyes. After 24 rounds of Chinese over, he only got 3 starts, as if forgotten.
It is no exaggeration to say that if Javier had been able to make full use of the three international replacements mentioned above, Shanghai Port's record this season would never have been so up and down.
