On the night of the 8th, the Huanglong Sports Center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, witnessed the grand opening of the new season of Chinese professional soccer - the Chinese Football Association Super Cup. This historic moment not only marked the official opening of the new season, but the Huanglong Sports Center will also welcome the glory of the Hangzhou Asian Games soccer finals in the future. In this championship match between Wuhan Sanzhen and Shandong Taishan, Wuhan Sanzhen laughed all the way to the end with a score of 2-0, which was also the first time in their team history to win the championship glory.
The importance of this tournament is far more than the local league's "King of Kings" competition, it is in the context of China's soccer anti-corruption storm, symbolizing a new starting point for China's professional soccer.
Both teams, as the favorites to win the Super League in the new season, have already shown their performance in the Super Cup. Wuhan Sanzhen lost last season's top scorer Malcolm, whether the newly joined Aziz can take on this responsibility is directly related to their performance in the new season.
Meanwhile, although Shandong Taishan's foreigner lineup is stable, the aging problem of their core players cannot be ignored. Their strategy in the second half, though conservative, was more passive compared to Fellaini's tactics.
At the beginning of the game, Wuhan Sanzhen broke the deadlock with the tacit cooperation between newcomers Wei Shihao and Aziz. And Shandong's strategy of attacking first in the first half failed.
In the second half, Coach Hao Wei was ready to replace Fellaini to launch a counterattack, but at this moment, Xie Pengfei received a pass from Stanchou and quickly scored to extend the score to 2-0. This unexpected goal put Shandong in a desperate situation.
Toward the end of the match, Liu Dengzai's kickoff error nearly gave Shandong Taishan a penalty kick, but VAR ruled Liu Binbin's shot offside, and Shandong missed the chance for a draw. In the 88th minute, Taishan's foreign aid Sun Junhao was sent off with a red card for a malicious foul, and the game entered garbage time.
Through this matchup, Wuhan Sanzhen showed strong bench depth and competitiveness, while Shandong Taishan needs to find a better balance between new and old players.
With the success of the Super Cup, the new season of China's professional soccer league is about to start in full swing. The Chinese Football Association (CFA) announced the schedule of the new season on the morning of April 8, and the opening match will be held on April 15 at the upgraded Workers' Stadium in Beijing, where the host team Beijing Guoan will face Guangdong Meizhou Hakka.
