In this passionate match, Shenhua's foreign aid Moreno (right) and Fu Huan engage in a fierce scramble. The image captures the moment, IC photo.
In the late afternoon of November 7th, the second round of the semi-finals of the FA Cup was once again lit. Shanghai Seaport and Shanghai Shenhua shook hands 1-1 in a thrilling battle, and finally Seaport advanced to the final of the F.A.C.A. Cup with a total score of 6-2, which is the second time in the history of the team to enter the final stage, and they will challenge Shandong Taishan for the F.A.C.A. Cup title this season.
In the first round of the "Shanghai Derby", Shanghai Harbor won 5-1, laying a solid foundation for the next two rounds. Despite trailing on aggregate, Shanghai Shenhua stepped up their offense in the second leg in an attempt to close the gap, but luck didn't seem to be on their side.
Wei Zhen (#13) will miss the final after he inadvertently tripped Yang Xu during a defensive play.IC photo captures the moment.
In the 21st minute, Yu Hanchao's header hit the crossbar and Shenhua missed a great chance to break through. Shanghai Seaport, without Oscar, adopted a steady counter-attack strategy, and Liu Zhurun broke the deadlock in the 55th minute. Wei Zhen left the game in the 85th minute due to a red card, and the numerical disadvantage allowed Shenhua to rely on Zhao Mingjian's goal in the 90th minute to equalize the score to 1-1, but the total score of 2-6 could not change the fate of elimination.
Shanghai Shenhua head coach Mao Yijun regretted the result of his team's exit, "The big loss in the first round doomed the road to promotion. Thanks to the players who fought until the last minute today, we didn't give up despite our late goal."
Oscar took to social media to celebrate Harbour's progress to the FA Cup final. The Harbour's 00-year-old youngster Liu Zhurun proved his mettle by scoring back-to-back goals in the two legs of the semi-final, "For me, these two goals are very crucial because my career has just started and scoring goals can boost my self-confidence." Oscar posted a message after the game, congratulating his teammates on winning the second round of the derby, "The FA Cup final, let's hit the next top together."
According to the previous schedule, the final of the AFC Cup will be held at the end of this season's Chinese Super League, with the exact time and venue of the match yet to be determined.
