Biggest Challenge Yet!
Can We Defeat Zhejiang?
Dominant Win
It won’t surprise you to hear that we wiped the floor with Jiangchuan-xian Wenhui.
This one was like playing against a team that wasn’t there. Wenhui didn’t get a single shot off, and had an xG of 0. Our 5-0 win was so dominant that it wasn’t fair.
Ariel Guzman made a first team start for the first time, but didn’t play particularly well. I wound up going with Ye Jie in the second half. Ye Jie played better, but his upset feelings about the Fan Xiang transfer make me extremely reluctant to rely on him.
Luciano Parra wound up with 4 goals in an absolutely incredible performance. The 4th of these put him in first place for the time being in league goals, with 29 total in only 17 games.
We’ve now scored 171 goals this season, and keep scoring no matter who starts for us. I still think we likely have the best team in the country.
Charlotte and the famous Lee Jin-Yong fan club were extremely happy when Lee Jin-Yong scored a goal of his own. He wound up wandering deep into the Wenhui penalty box and scored one from point blank range. He’s not much for long shots, but he’ll punish you if you leave him open for long enough.
We’re doing well, and I feel very good about this team.
Pressure
The good times might be ending soon.
Four days after that big league win, we host Zhejiang FC in the quarter finals of the Chinese FA Cup.
Chairman Guo stopped by a few days before the match. He walked up slowly to my small desk, gave me a big smile, holding a cigar in the left side of his mouth, and started talking loudly.
“I’m looking forward to holding the Chinese FA Cup in my hands,” he said, giving me a wink.
That got a rise out of everybody in the area.
“You’ll beat Zhejiang,” he said. “I know I can count on you.”
I feel nervous. Zhejiang are one of the better Chinese Super League sides.
We’re expecting snow for this match. I’m happy that we’re at home, though I’m not sure how much of an advantage it will give us.