At 20:00 on July 27th, the 9th round of Guangzhou Super League will usher in a heavyweight match, Guangzhou will face Shandong Taishan at home in the Tianti Stadium. Before the match, head coach Cannavaro said confidently, "We are going to fight for three points with all our might, and the strategy is to score one more goal than Shandong!"
Currently, Shandong is leading the table with 18 points, Guangzhou is in second place with a 3-point difference, and both teams have a goal difference of 11. Looking back at the first round of the match in April, Guangzhou lost 0-1 to Shandong, with Fellaini completing the shutout in stoppage time. If Guangzhou can win tomorrow night, they are expected to overtake Shandong and jump to the top of the Guangzhou Division.
Cannavaro also acknowledged the might of Shandong in his pre-match conference, describing it as a challenging match. "Tomorrow's match with Shandong is the first big game, which is a good test for us. This year, Shandong has the most significant improvement in strength among the Chinese Super League teams, not only has it brought in prospective internationals, but also several new foreigners to join the team, which is quite balanced." He said.
Kasai pointed out that compared to the first phase in April, Guangzhou has made significant changes in terms of data. "This is not something I say unilaterally, many data can be analyzed and compared. From the first stage to now, our data has changed drastically in terms of the number of attacks, the number of shots on goal, the rate of possession, especially the effective possession rate in the opponent's half of the field. We're in great form at the moment, the only thing we're lacking is the number of goals we've conceded. After Paulinho and Talisca left, many people, including myself, mentally considered whether the attacking stats would go down, but I'm very pleased with the numbers now. As long as the players have the desire to win and the mentality to enjoy soccer, goals won't be far away!"
Last week's Guangzhou Derby saw the Guangzhou team pay a big exertion. Kasper will rotate his squad appropriately for this match, as he believes that the non-national team players are a bit better physically, while the international players will be more tired. But no matter what, their goal is to beat the opponent and get three points.
The last time the two sides met, Fellaini's header helped Shandong complete the shutout. How to contain Fellaini this time? Kasai believes that Fellaini also often scores headers in the English Premier League, not to mention in the Chinese Super League. "His position in Shandong is not fixed, but now he can also score four goals, the strength is very strong. Only if we score a few more goals can we create the best containment for him." Kasai said.
Hao Wei said, Shandong team has been well prepared, the goal is to keep the game attention, and strive to get three points. For Artemisia Junmin, who has been transferred to Wuhan, Hao Wei expressed his blessing, believing that this is Artemisia Junmin's own decision, and Wuhan has also provided a lot of help.
Jin Jingdao provided a key assist for Fellaini in the last match against Guangzhou. But this time, he will be out for two weeks with ligament damage in his left ankle. Ji Xiang was also injured in yesterday's training session and it remains to be seen if he will be able to play tomorrow night.
Tonight at 18:00, Guangzhou City will face Chongqing Liangjiang Athletic in Huadu. Although Guangzhou City drew the last round of the "Guangzhou Derby" against Guangzhou, they have drawn the last four rounds and have not won for five consecutive rounds. Chongqing, on the other hand, has lost four consecutive games and is currently at the bottom of the Guangzhou division.
Guangzhou City manager Van Gast said that his team made a large-scale rotation in the last round and the tactical effect satisfied him. He reviewed the Derby game and studied Chongqing's game in the last round, and he is confident that he will find the weakness of the opponent tomorrow. As for whether the team will continue to attract reinforcements this summer after Wen Yasen's return to the team, Van said frankly that they have no plan to introduce foreign reinforcements for the time being, both from the point of view of the operational difficulty of foreign reinforcement entry and the club's budget.
Chongqing manager Zhang Wailong believes that the team is in a difficult situation, but the good news is that some of their foreigners are back, and the team is really complete from this moment on. Among them, Brazilian foreign aid "Big Moto" Fernandio said: "From now on, we can finally prepare for the game with a complete lineup, I didn't play in the previous two rounds, but I'm in good health now. We need a win now!"
