Summary: Seaport's lead has narrowed to 9 points.
The state is still at a low ebb. In a match in the 24th round of the Chinese Super League on the evening of August 25, Shanghai Port suffered a 3-1 defeat to Henan FC after three beatings from the opposing team, breaking this season's unbeaten away game. So far, Harbour has suffered 1 draw and 3 defeats in the last 3 rounds of the Chinese Super League and 1 AFC Champions League qualifying match, and the lead has narrowed from 16 points at the maximum to 9 points now.
August 28 is the 29th anniversary of the establishment of Henan Football Club, and the previous cooperation with Javier was not very pleasant, the Henan team, which has won two consecutive games, can be described as three in this game, and took a fighting posture to compete with the harbor team.
The harbour team that was out of the AFC Champions League qualifiers had almost no time to rest and adjust, and Javier did not carry out too many personnel rotations, and the entire back line was still dominated by veterans, plus the 34-year-old Cai Huikang in the back position, the harbor team that was basically absent in the "fuel tank" was obviously a little weak, and the so-called Chongming Six Tigers became "Six Meows". The first two goals conceded are related to Cai Huikang's failure to arrive in time.
Wu Lei in the game. Xinhua News Agency photo
In the second half, Javier sent Wu Lei and Pingke to fight with a two-way striker tactic, but in the crazy running and pressing of the Henan team, including Oscar, the harbor could not send a very threatening pass.
Because the score was behind, the anxious Javier also pushed the little caddie of the Henan team in the second half, and the anxiety level in his heart can be seen. He said after the game that the opponent started well but did not score on several occasions, and the game became more difficult with the opponent's first shot on target, "The team has not been in very good form recently, and we have to do some mental and physical rest during the break. ”
Foreign centre-forward Joao was caught in the grip of his opponent. Xinhua News Agency photo
In a game played simultaneously that night, Shandong Taishan defeated Shenzhen 2-1 after falling behind, closing the gap with the harbour to nine points. With six rounds left in the league, Harbour, who are nine points ahead, are still the most likely side to win the title. In this case, the three-week break becomes very critical, and the harbour players can still be quite capable if they can be "fully charged" in time.
But with four consecutive winless matches and out of the AFC Champions League qualifying round, calls for Javier to leave class became loud again, and Harbour fans on the expedition gathered outside the stadium after the game, shouting that Javier was out of class. With the current situation of the team that has almost fallen apart, I don't know if Javier can still help the team twist the rope during the break, and I don't know if the club will have the idea of leaving class. In the unlikely event that the harbour is still in a mess after the break, the club may really have to be prepared for a change of manager, lest Arsenal, who were last season, lead for more than half a season and surrender the trophy at the last minute.
Wu Lei in the game. Xinhua News Agency photo.
From the current point of view, aside from the lack of on-field command, Javier's attitude of not rotating to death is more stubborn than that of his predecessor Lecco, which is the key to the physical exhaustion of the main players of Harbour, and the sharp decline in game control. You know, in the last four games, Harbour have conceded a total of 11 goals, an average of nearly 3 goals per game, and the team has only conceded 15 goals in the previous 21 matches. People are still those people, but defensive attention and presence are significantly reduced.
In addition, in the previous six consecutive wins, Harbour was almost always Vargas's start, and he and Wu Lei, Oscar and Caron gradually played the feeling of "four small deaths", and the fast whirlwind in the front court in Harbour gave the opponent a very headache. In Joao's five games so far, Harbour only won away to Qingdao. After Joao's start, he often pulled out to catch the ball, and the speed and pressure up front of Harbour was noticeably less than before.
The head picture shows Wu Lei fighting in the game. Xinhua News Agency photo