It was not until just over the 60th minute that the center back received his first card (for a back foul on Gustavo), a situation that reflected the effectiveness of their tactical deployment.
Opportunities can only be captured with your own efforts.
Obviously, we can't put all the blame on the opponent. When the Pohang Ironmen implemented their "abandon attack" strategy in the first half, if Shanghai Port had capitalized on a few good chances, the opponent's strategy would have collapsed and been ineffective. Unfortunately, at least three good chances were squandered, which made the opponents feel more comfortable. Their preference for this kind of physical battle has made Oscar look particularly agitated.
Oscar, Shanghai Port's key player in this campaign, has been showing signs of fatigue since the beginning of the game. Oscar's physical recovery would have been guaranteed if the win had been sealed in the first half. However, they unfortunately fell into a well-designed trap by their opponents.
With Oscar's physical limitations, Shanghai Port's offense relied heavily on midfielder Gustavo, and the creation of chances depended on his sideways breaks and second-down play. Unfortunately, the efficiency was quite low.
Apart from the physical factor, there is also a difference in the two sides' understanding of the competition. Pohang have adapted to the high intensity of the K-League, while Shanghai Port look out of place. In the Chinese Super League, their overall strength is quite good. Even if they are not precise enough in the early stages, they can adjust quickly without much problem. But against their Korean rivals, mistakes are intolerable, and the space for autonomous conversions is greatly reduced.
This has also increased Oscar's burden. It is clear that his ability to control the intensity and success rate of the game has dropped from "world class" to "Chinese Super League class".
Pohang suddenly got the power, three points to go
In the second half, Pohang gradually adapted to their rhythm and captured Shanghai Port's fatigue. They made a sudden move to open up the offense, catching Muscat off guard. Almost pinned down, Pohang scored quickly, especially Wanderson who created several chances that Shanghai Port could hardly resist.
Pohang Ironmen's tactics are quite interesting, as they mainly rely on long passes to find the center forward, and then their teammates will insert them to create chances, which is a common tactic used by physical teams. At the same time, their footwork is also very good, both long passes and occasional fast counterattacks. In this regard, Shanghai Harbor was passive in terms of basic tactics.
In addition, after Shanghai Port's physical decline, the pressure was reduced, and Pohang naturally played more comfortably.
After Ruiza's red card, the game was completely tilted in favor of Pohang, and Shanghai Port had no more chances to turn the situation around.
