The new season has finally fully resumed home and away games, and under the tide of anti-corruption by the Football Association, our Chinese Super League is "ready to go". Bid farewell to Jinyuan football completely, the 900,000 euro Super League champion, 5 times smaller than 1 year ago.
Profiting in the transfer market for the first time in 13 years, can the "poorest" Chinese Super League support the best market in 3 years? Can our team still play a decent game in the AFC Champions League?
01. The poorest Chinese Super League in 13 years? Biaowang is 5 times smaller than 1 year ago
A. Making money for the first time in 13 years: the Chinese Super League is really poor
According to the current data, a total of 25 foreign players were purchased by 16 teams in the Chinese Super League in the new season, which is 6 fewer than last season.
This time, the transfer market, from foreign to domestic, cost only 3.22 million euros, which was only 13 years ago in the 2009-10 season.
Because Malcom alone sold Jeddah Nationals to the Saudi League for 4.5 million euros, this is destined to be a "money-making" transfer window.
In the past 13 years, only the 2009-10 season has done that. But it's clear that this time it's "earning" a little more than it was 13 years ago.
b. Wuhan Three Towns "Defending" Champions: Is This the Age of Vision?
Obviously, because the preparation period is the climax of the Chinese Football Association's anti-corruption campaign, the recruitment of each team has shrunk significantly.
Wuhan Three Towns "defended" the Chinese Super League champion in the new season, but compared with last season's 4.5 million euros to buy Romanian international Stanciu, the new season champion is only 900,000 euros Yakub Aziz, which is somewhat "shabby".
It must be known that although Wuhan Three Towns won the championship and also bought 6 domestic aides, the premise of all this is that they sold Malcon, the golden boot of the Chinese Super League last season, to the Saudi League for a "sky-high price" of 4.5 million euros.
Because of this 1-for-7 operation, Wuhan Three Towns not only "made money", but also unknowingly strengthened the lineup.
In the opening drama before the official start of the season, Wuhan Three Towns defeated Shandong Taishan to win the championship, and it was precisely the two new signings who brought the first goal to the team.
Wei Shihao assisted Aziz to score, will this new foreign signing become the new striker of Wuhan Three Towns and become the golden boot of the Chinese Super League this season? After all, this season, the team will not only play well in the Chinese Super League, but also play in the AFC Champions League and strive for good results on both fronts.
02. Return to the AFC Champions League after 3 years: can the Chinese Super League be strong this time?
a. Shandong Taishan: The opening stage is a bit difficult
Losing to Wuhan Three Towns in the Super Cup is not a terrible thing. However, Cressan will miss a period of competition due to suspension and loss of weight control in the offseason.
Judging from the Super Cup loss, Shandong Taishan will be plagued by the problem of forward scoring at the beginning of the league. Can Guo Tianyu shoulder the burden of the first scoring point? On his side, can Delgado, Fernando, Chen Pu and Liu Binbin score?
I believe that when the AFC Champions League opens, Shandong Taishan's lineup will be more complete and its state will be adjusted to the best.
They and Wuhan Three Towns are still the strongest teams in the Chinese Super League, and they also shoulder the burden of impacting the knockout round in the AFC Champions League.
b. The low-key and progressive Shanghai Port: The team lineup is more reasonable
Although it is said that due to the influence of some objective factors, it has had an impact on the preparation of Shanghai Port. However, after the offensive triangle of Wu Lei, Vargas and Oscar gradually takes shape, the team's combat effectiveness will still have a good foundation.
New coach Javier knows the Chinese Super League well and has good experience, which is believed to be a reason for the team's steady improvement.
Coupled with the introduction of foreign center Pinker in the transfer market, the team's squad framework is more complete. The high school striker leads the top scorers in the Austrian league and has a certain personal ability and scoring efficiency.
His arrival will give Wu Lei, Vargas and Oscar behind him more opportunities to completely solve the scoring problems that have plagued the team in the past few years.
Even in the AFC Champions League, Shanghai Port may be expected to go the farthest. After all, the players in the team have rich experience in the AFC Champions League, and if the foreign aid can play its due combat effectiveness, the team can have the confidence to win in the competition with the strong players of Japan and South Korea.
c. The squad is slightly thin: how the Zhejiang team continues to be a dark horse
Last season, Zhejiang team sprang up and brought a big surprise to the fans. Whether it's finishing in the top four in the league or reaching the final of the FA Cup, it will be the pride of the team.
They will play in the AFC Champions League this season and face the pressure of playing on the third front. However, in terms of lineup, it is still a little thin.
The team's foreign aid has a high-level presence such as Mushekwe, Frank and Lucas, and the arrival of the old Chinese Super League player Patrice Evra has also further improved the team's fighting effectiveness.
However, among the local players, only Zhang Jiaqi was selected as a substitute for the latest national football team, which also shows that the overall strength of the Zhejiang team is not very strong, and it relies more on the three military lives of the players to play a beautiful last season.
The Chinese Super League schedule ahead of the AFC Champions League play-offs in the new season is difficult, and it will be important to get off to a good start. If you are not careful, you may really hit the "second-grade wall".
03. The Chinese Super League has its own way of living: Beijing Guoan and Shanghai Shenhua have ushered in a new life
a. Beijing Guoan and Shanghai Shenhua: I want to do something big in the new season
Beijing Guoan is the team that has improved the most this offseason. Not only did he bring in 3 foreign helpers, but he also signed 5 domestic players in one go, and the new season obviously has great ambitions.
North Macedonia international Ademi was also one of the heroes of the team's victory over Germany in the World Qualifiers. The arrival of Yang Liyu and Fang Hao also gave Zhang Yuning more helpers.
The opening of the project with a new professional stadium image further demonstrates the determination of Beijing Guoan to do great things in the new season.
With the departure of the green space, Shanghai Shenhua after taking over for a long time ushered in a new era. Former Liverpool star Teixeira and other 4 foreign aides into the team, coupled with the introduction of Zhang Wei, Cui Lin, Bao Yaxiong from Hebei team, make the team more worthy of being optimistic.
Chengdu Rongcheng and Henan Songshan Longmen, which performed well last season, have different development directions. The former brings returning international player Axon, and his strength has risen steadily.
The latter is due to the influence of the lack of sponsors, which is somewhat restrained. Without manager Javier, expectations for the new season should perhaps be lowered appropriately.
b. Unpaid wages lead to "downsizing": there are only 2 relegation places in the Chinese Super League in the new season
Because of the impact of wage arrears, the Chinese Super League, which originally planned to expand its army, eventually had to accept the "downsizing". Of the 16 teams in the new season, there will be 2 relegation places.
Two promoted teams, Qingdao Manatee and Nantong Zhiyun, have worked hard to build a squad, and it is their goal to gain a foothold in the Chinese Super League.
Tong Lei, Dong Yanfeng, Sun Guowen and many other main players left the team, and the strength of the Dalian team was once again hit. However, fortunately, they have a foreign aid team in the new season, and coach Xie Hui is still there, which may be the confidence for this team to complete the relegation task.
The Shenzhen team, which barely "survived", is perhaps the most dangerous existence. The Tianjin Jinmen Tigers, which are also not rich, and the Cangzhou Lions also have certain relegation pressure.
Conclusion:
With the resumption of home and away games, and the enthusiasm of fans to watch the game after waiting for three years, the "poorest" Chinese Super League may also be the beginning of a rebound.
Although the 900,000 king sounds a bit shabby, you can buy good players with vision. Our Chinese Super League needs not only investors who spend a lot of money, but also football people who can concentrate on their work.