The anti-gambling and anti-triad storm in the Chinese Super League has intensified, with a number of players being taken away by the authorities for investigation, a series of events that has plunged the Chinese soccer world into unprecedented turmoil. Among them, the arrest of Jin Jingdao, the core of Taishan's midfield, undoubtedly brought great shock to the fans.
Compared to players who have long been notorious such as Qin Sheng and Sun Shilin, Jin Jingdao has always been a down-to-earth, all-out player in the hearts of fans. As soon as he takes the field, he goes all out to play every minute of the game.
However, the news that this time Kim Kyung Do's arrest was for allegedly organizing a Chinese Super League D-ball has left many fans in disbelief. In fact, as early as four years ago, Jin Jingdao had shown signs of playing fake soccer, but did not arouse much suspicion at that time.
In the 2019 season, Shandong Taishan led Shanghai Shenhua 1-0 in the final of the AFC Cup, only to be scored three goals in the second half and eventually lost the game 1-3. In this game, Jin Jingdao's unusual performance drew attention. Taishan dominated the entire match but only led by one goal, which set the stage for Shenhua to turn back Taishan 3-1 in the second round.
It is worth mentioning that Li Xiaopeng, the head coach of Taishan at the time, was also questioned on his use of personnel. Brazilian shot-stopper Guedes was put on the bench by Li Xiaopeng despite his efficient performance in the game, a move that sparked speculation among fans.
After missing out on the AFC Cup title, Li Xiaopeng wasn't too affected, and even lost 0-3 to Shenhua at the Super League awards ceremony, a result that was jokingly referred to as "we were hit with three bogeys in last night's game," causing dissatisfaction among Shandong fans. This also indirectly led to Li Xiaopeng's dismissal from the Taishan team in the 2020 season.
Although Li Xiaopeng failed to lead his team to win any matches during his tenure at Taishan, he left to join Wuhan Zall soon after. Despite the team's poor results, he became the interim head coach of the national soccer team chosen by the Football Association, which led to the Chinese men's soccer team losing their last four matches in a row in the top 12 of the World Qualifiers, even against Vietnam.
At the moment, Li Xiaopeng's experience of coaching Chinese Super League teams is really suspect. Although there is no negative news about him yet, who can guarantee that he won't have problems at some point in the future? After all, Li Tie and Chen Xuyuan, the "big names" of the national soccer team and the Football Association, have been arrested, and Jin Jingdao has been jailed for D-ball. Now, we can only wait for the results of the investigation of the relevant departments to draw conclusions...