Special correspondent Zhao Botong reported that "before the game, I was more worried, we have not played for two weeks, what will be the state of the players? Fortunately, the players did a good job overall. On the evening of the 8th, after a 1-1 draw with Dalian, Xu Zhengyuan, head coach of Chengdu Rongcheng, sighed.
If you look at the statistics from the whole field alone, regardless of the possession rate or the number of threat attacks and the number of shots, Chengdu Rongcheng is ahead of the Dalian team, but it should be noted that the second half of the game only played 10 minutes, Dalian people were sent off, plus the time of stoppage time, Rongcheng team played 11 to 10 for 40 minutes, and the number of times it really threatened the opponent's goal was very small. The intervention of VAR allowed Rongcheng to get the penalty to equalize. Although it did not win, the game allowed Rongcheng to at least find confidence, and the team at least had the ability to wrench wrists with Chinese Super League teams.
How big is the gap between the Chinese Super League and the Chinese First Division? In the starting lineup of Rongcheng team, only a few players such as Feng Zhuoyi and Liu Ruovan have experienced it, and most of the players can be said to be bottomless about the Chinese Super League team, including Xu Zhengyuan. As a "first-year student" who came to the Chinese league, Xu Zhengyuan only began to pay attention to the Chinese Super League team after the team confirmed the qualification for the play-offs.
As He Yang, a former Rongcheng player who served as a commentator on the TV station, said: "Our players are still not very accustomed to the rhythm of the opponent, this kind of ball in the middle league game, the opponent may give you time to stop the ball and observe, but the Chinese Super League team will not give you these opportunities." This is also the pre-match club vice president Yao Xia worried, he believes that the intensity and rhythm of the Chinese Super League is faster than that of the Chinese First Division teams, and how the team adapts may become an important factor in determining the direction of the game.
Arrived in the division two days before the game, which is actually a prepared battle. Before the club has examined the station, venue and even the temperature of Jiangyin in advance, the local temperature in Jiangyin is not much different from Chengdu, the only thing that makes the team more uncomfortable is that the game is played in the afternoon, in the previous league, the performance of the afternoon game Rongcheng team is not as good as the late game, once known as the "noon magic curse". Fortunately, this game was played in the winter, there was no drowsy sun, and the team adjusted the training time and plan accordingly, so that after the start of the game, the Rongcheng team entered the state relatively quickly, and was not dragged down by the opponent's fast pace as soon as it started.
I don't know whether it is considering the attacking power shown by the Rongcheng team in the Middle League A or the tactical arrangement, the steady thinking of the Dalian people after the start of the game objectively gave the Rongcheng team time to adapt to the game.
Despite the 42nd minute, Sun Guowen's volley from inside the penalty area helped Dalian take a 1-0 lead. But just 10 minutes into the second half, Sun Guowen was sent off for a second yellow card for a foul in the midfield. One more person Rongcheng began to attack vigorously, Xu Zhengyuan kept changing formations, in the 81st minute, Zhao Xuri kicked down Feng Zhuoyi in the penalty area, after the video assistant referee reminded, the referee awarded a penalty. "The result is a pity. We made positive adjustments when we were behind. Xu Zhengyuan also knows that if he does not seize the best chance to win the game with one more person, the next game will be more difficult.
The penalty for this penalty caused serious dissatisfaction on the bench of dalian renren, and in the following matches, many people on the bench of Dalian renren, including head coach Jose, were warned with yellow cards. After the game, when the referee team withdrew, the Dalian people's team and the bench personnel emotionally surrounded the referee to ask for explanations, and it was not ruled out that the Football Association would impose additional penalties on this.
For dalian, it is a pity to be equalized in the lead. For the Rongcheng team, it can be said that they have found self-confidence. After all, after this game, the Rongcheng team can at least fight against the opponent in the scene, and also has the ability to negotiate with the opponent.