Shanghai Harbour regrettably failed to make a start in the first match of 2022, but since fourth-placed Changchun Yatai lost to Guangzhou in this round, the Harbor team has locked up the top three places in the season in advance and will definitely get a regular place in the 2022 AFC Champions League.
This afternoon, the Chinese Super League championship group played the penultimate round of matches, with Shanghai Haigang and Shandong Taishan, who have won the Chinese Super League championship this season, draw 2:2.
With Guangzhou winning this round, Harbour is currently in third place in the league table, two points less than Guangzhou, but four points more than fourth place Changchun Yatai, thus ensuring the top three in the league this season. If they can beat Guangzhou in the final round next Tuesday, Harbor will end the season's Chinese Super League journey as runners-up.
Today's game, since Shandong Taishan has already won the championship, they and The Harbor team will also meet in the FA Cup final on January 9, so both teams are arranging the starting lineup according to the idea of letting the main players rest and train young players.
Compared with the previous round, the Harbor team only retained the three players of Mai Tijiang, Yu Hai and Wang Shenchao, and foreign aid Oscar and Mui were on the bench. Young goalkeeper Chen Wei rotated international goalkeeper Yan Junling to appear, and Zhang Wei, Zhang Yi and Fu Huan all made their debuts in the Chinese Super League for the first time this season.
Although the starting players of the Harbor team were full of hard work and the cooperation between the midfield and the front court was relatively tacit, they still could not solve the offensive problem, but instead they were used by Shandong Taishan to make a counterattack that only 8 minutes after the opening, and Duan Liu Yu went to the next city first.
In the second half, Harbor coach Lecco made a personnel adjustment in the 66th minute, sending Oscar, Mui and Lu Wenjun, as well as substitute striker Hu Jinghang, to the field.
Such a substitution received an immediate effect. First in the 69th minute, Oscar instigated the attack, the pass found Li Shenglong in the penalty area, Li Shenglong's heel magic pass assisted Hu Jinghang to burst the goal and equalize.
In the 76th minute, the Harbor team played a quick counterattack, Moi advanced to the front of the penalty area with the ball and passed the ball to Hu Jinghang on the right side, and then rushed into the box to receive Hu Jinghang's cross to score, helping the Harbor team to overtake the score.
Shandong Taishan, who was obviously unwilling to accept the second defeat in the Chinese Super League this season, also reacted quickly, with high school striker Guo Tianyu and international Jin Jingdao coming off the bench to strengthen the attack.
In the last moments of injury time, Moises received Guo Tianyu's header and carried the ball into the penalty area after being dragged down by the Harbor team's back center-back Wang Shenchao, and the referee Ma Li not only awarded a penalty, but also sent Wang Shenchao a red card. Shandong Taishan used this penalty to complete the final draw.
Although neither losing nor drawing means much to Shandong Taishan in the end, the direct increase in the difficulty of Harbor's competition for runner-up from 3 points and 1 point has made it necessary for them to win in the last round of direct dialogue with Guangzhou.
If the Harbor team is worried about the runner-up in the Chinese Super League and goes all out to fight in the next game, it will affect the preparation for the FA Cup final.
Team coach Lecco also said after the game, "I was definitely disappointed that the penalty in the 94th minute equalized the opponent. But on the other hand, the preparation for this game is very difficult, and in the case of consecutive games, it is not easy for everyone. Such a goal conceded in the end led to an equalizer, and it is indeed a pity to face such a good team as Shandong Taishan. We definitely want to win every game and prepare for the win. ”
However, from the perspective of qualification for the AFC Champions League, it does not matter whether the Harbor team finally won the second place or the third place.
In the 2022 AFC Champions League, the Chinese Super League is still a 3+1 participation quota, and three teams can directly participate in the main competition. If the Harbor team wins the FA Cup, it can go straight to the main tournament; if the FA Cup final loses and Shandong Taishan becomes the "double champion", then it can also qualify for the AFC Champions League as the top three in the Chinese Super League.