Poor Performance
Did we survive?
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Poor Performance
We just barely held on to beat Heilongjiang Ice City.
Jeong Sang-Bin had 2 goals in the first 13 minutes. Suphanat Mueanta followed up with our third in the 33rd minute, and I thought that we might run them ragged.
Unfortunately, our defense gave up two early second half goals. We barely held out for a victory in the end.
This was probably the single worst match we’ve had this season, even worse than that loss to Wuhan. I understand losing when the other team parks the bus. We should have dominated this match, and were ahead on shots, possession, xG, and every stat you can imagine.
There is no excuse for playing this poorly.
Disaster
Liu Shaoziyang celebrated giving up 2 goals to an inferior team by fracturing his ribs during weight training.
He’s going to be out for 5 weeks.
It’s a major blow. He’s almost certainly the best Chinese goalkeeper in the world.
Li Changyi will take his place for the time being. He’s also a great young goalkeeper, but he’s not quite as good as Liu Shaoziyang.
I’m worried that we might start dropping points — especially after how poorly our defense performed against Heilongjiang.
Off to Germany?
Meanwhile, there are rumors swirling around that Suphanat Mueanta will wind up going to Germany.
Apparently FC Schalke 04 is interested in buying him, and is willing to offer 12 million RMB or so.
Word has it that Augsburg are also after him.
I’ve got some experience with Augsburg (and Ingolstadt, but they don’t know that). I should be able to talk Mueanta out of that move. Schalke, however, might be a bit more challenging.
It’s not the end of the world if he departs. He’s not happy with me for some stupid reason, and he keeps asking for contracts with ridiculously low release clauses.
Still, 12 million RMB for a player of his caliber is an insult.
Hebei FC
We’re up against Hebei FC this time around.
Hebei are in 6th place. We should be able to trounce them, though we’ll see. Some in the squad are upset that Romeo Lavia hasn’t been starting every single match. I’m trying to placate them, but their frustration might cause us to slip a little.
New to the series? Missed a few articles? Come catch up here!