On the night of December 13th, the title group of the Chinese Super League (CSL) ushered in a much-anticipated matchup, with Guangzhou battling Beijing Guoan at the Guangzhou University City Sports Center, eventually losing by a score of 0-1. In the marquee match, Beijing Guoan striker Zhang Yuning sealed the win with a header in the 81st minute, assisted by a corner kick from Gao Tianyi. Guangzhou's head coach Zheng Zhi thus failed to celebrate the opening of his coaching career.
Guangzhou head coach Zheng Zhi
With the return of big-name foreigners and a number of naturalized players, Guangzhou's strength has declined significantly, a fact that can no longer be ignored. For this newcomer team led by a young manager, competing for the championship has become a distant dream, and it is more realistic to keep the current position. Although the Guangzhou team showed their determination before the game, the performance of the game showed that the team is not as strong as it used to be.
The rival Beijing Guoan is also facing the same dilemma, despite the return of powerful foreign aiders such as Augusto and Bieira, the team still had to finesse the game. In this game, Beijing Guoan sent only one foreign aid, Anderson Silva, who had a mediocre performance and was eventually replaced in the 85th minute.
Even against such an opponent, Guangzhou was unable to avoid a bitter loss. Wei Shihao, Yan Dinghao and Zhang Xiuwei had all created good chances, but compared to Paulinho, Gaolat and Aixon, there is still a significant gap in their ability to capitalize on chances.
The game was uneventful throughout, with both teams making a number of errors and the pace of the game being intermittent. Had it not been for Zhang Yuning's inspired play at the end of the game, the two teams would have probably ended in a draw.
Despite the players' tireless efforts, Wei Shihao had twice created chances for his teammates and had a half-solo opportunity himself, but failed to build on his three shots on goal. For Beijing Guoan, Anderson Silva, who is clearly not yet fully integrated into the game, saw his shot against an open goal pounced on by Guangzhou defender Wu Shaochong.
Wei Shihao (right) has been one of the few bright spots for the Guangzhou team
Once upon a time, the "Battle of Beijing and Guangdong" was undoubtedly the iconic match of the Chinese Super League. Shao Jiayi killed Guangzhou in a free kick on their home turf, and Guangzhou beat their rivals in Beijing's Gongti Stadium to win the title. Even just a year ago, the two teams played two exciting matches in the semi-finals of the Chinese Super League title race: one was a 0-0 draw with both teams hitting the goal frame several times, and the other was a 3-1 win for Guangzhou.
In last season's lineup, Guangzhou has Paulinho and Talisca, such as the "killer app", while Beijing Guoan has Augusto, Bieira, Bakambu and other golden combinations, the two teams of the attacking battle to the fans to call a great deal of fun. However, just one year later, the once fiery scene no longer exists, replaced by a bland game, the lack of bright spots in both offense and defense.
For Guangzhou nowadays, the result of the game is no longer important, the fans only hope to accompany this team with a brilliant history to finish the journey of this season. From this game, we can see that the Guangzhou team, which is dominated by domestic players, still has a fighting chance, but that seems to be all.
The dullness of the Beijing-Guangdong battle also reflects the decline of the Chinese Super League, with the departure of high-priced foreign aid one after another, teams tend to rationalize their investment, I am afraid that those once "Mars on Earth" type of famous game is difficult to reappear. The influence of the Chinese super league once cultivated, now in the background of the empty field competition, seems to be cleaned up. (For more news, please pay attention to yangcheng pai pai.ycwb.com)
