In a key battle in the 14th round of the Chinese Super League, Shandong Taishan lost 0-6 to Shanghai Shenhua, which sparked a heated discussion on whether the team's goalkeeper Wang Dalei can still serve as the main force of the national football team. Li Xuan, a well-known football media person, said that in the special period when the state of the whole team of Taishan is in a downturn, it is not objective to question Wang Dalei's national team status based on this game alone.
This game is another microcosm of Taishan's recent poor performance. As the runner-up last season, Taishan's performance this season can be said to be a big disappointment. So far, the team has only achieved 5 wins, 3 draws and 6 losses in 14 rounds, temporarily ranking 8th in the league, and the top of the table Shanghai Port has been as much as 12 points away. And this game against Shenhua has exposed Taishan's recent decline.
After the start of the game, Taishan looked listless, and the defense line made frequent mistakes. In the 13th minute, Shenhua seized the opportunity to open the scoring. After that, Taishan seemed to have completely lost his fighting spirit, and was continuously attacked by Shenhua. By the end of the half, the score had become 0-4. In the second half, although Taishan tried to make adjustments, it had little effect. In the end, Shenhua added two more goals to set the score at 6-0.
In this game, Wang Dalei undoubtedly became the target of public criticism. As the main goalkeeper of the national football team, his performance in this game was indeed unsatisfactory. Shenhua's statistic of scoring 6 goals with 7 shots on target makes one have to question his form. After the game, Wang's social media comment section was flooded by angry fans, with many calling for him to quit the national team.
As Li Xuan pointed out, it is unfair to deny a player's ability based on just one game. Tarzan is currently in a special period, and the whole team is in a slump. In this case, it is indeed a lack of objectivity to take out Wang Dalei alone to judge whether he is still suitable to serve as the main force of the national football team.
Wang Dalei's performance in the national team has been quite stable in recent years. He made great saves in a number of important games to keep the team on the line. Although there were mistakes in club competitions this time, this does not negate his overall quality and experience.
On the other hand, we can't ignore the problem of Taishan's overall defensive system. In this game, Taishan's back line frequently had holes, giving Shenhua too many opportunities to attack. Even a world-class goalkeeper is difficult to defuse in the face of such a dense number of shots. Therefore, it is obviously unfair to place all the blame for the defeat on Wang Dalei.
Football is a team sport, and the outcome of a game is often determined by the performance of the entire team, not by any individual. For Wang Dalei and Taishan, the top priority is to adjust their state as soon as possible and regain their self-confidence. As for the fans and the media, we should also be rational and give the players and the team the appropriate support and encouragement, rather than falling into the trap when they need help the most.
Will Tarzan be able to regain his form in future games? How will Wang Dalei respond to the question? In any case, the development of Chinese football needs the support and understanding of each and every one of us. Let us continue to pay attention, continue to look forward to it, and believe that one day, we will see the moment when Chinese football truly rises.