Shanghai Port Suzhou-bound for start of CSL
Print Edition
Shanghai Port fans gathered at Pudong鈥檚 Century Park yesterday afternoon to see off the team which was heading to Suzhou, neighboring Jiangsu Province, for the 2021 Chinese Super League.
The 2021 edition of the Chinese top-tier league will continue with the format introduced last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the 16 teams divided into two groups for first-stage matches in Suzhou and Guangzhou, southern Guangdong Province, respectively.
Shanghai Port is in the same group with city rival Shenhua. Other teams in the Suzhou group are: Changchun, Dalian, Beijing, Hebei, Tianjin and Wuhan.
The eight teams playing in Guangzhou are: Chongqing, Cangzhou, Henan, Shandong, Shenzhen, Qingdao, and the two local teams Guangzhou FC and Guangzhou City.
The new season kicks off tomorrow. Shanghai Port鈥檚 first match will be against Tianjin Jinmen Tiger on Thursday, while Shenhua takes on Beijing Guoan on Friday.
The two Shanghai derbies have been scheduled for May 5 and July 14.
鈥淚 am satisfied with our players鈥 performance during the three months of preseason training. The team has adjusted to a good form,鈥 Shanghai Port鈥檚 new Croatian manager Ivan Leko told media at Century Park.
The club鈥檚 newly-signed Croatian defender Ante Majstorovic broke the cruciate ligament of his left knee during an intra-team match earlier this month. He went to France for surgery and is expected to return in six to eight months鈥 time.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 definitely bad news for the team. We either cry over it or deal with it,鈥 said Leko. 鈥淔or other younger players, Ante鈥檚 injury might be an opportunity. We will surely find a solution.鈥
Following the departure of Hulk, his Brazilian compatriot Oscar has been named Shanghai Port鈥檚 new captain. The former Chelsea playmaker underwent an appendicitis operation last month, but recovered quickly enough to join his teammates for training.
鈥淚 was given the captain鈥檚 armband several times on the pitch, too, last season. I will surely do my best to lead the team in achieving good results,鈥 he said.
Some CSL teams are still missing their foreign players due to coronavirus travel restrictions, including Guangzhou FC鈥檚 Paulinho and Anderson Talisca. The Brazilian duo have not been registered by the 2020 CSL runner-up for the season.
The 2021 season will kick off without the defending champion Jiangsu Suning, which has disappeared, having been refused a license for the competition after owner Suning announced in February its intention to stop backing the team.
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