We continue to fly through the Chinese Super League campaign as teams across the top tier attempt to push towards their ultimate goal - whether it be the title, survival or somewhere in between. Today, we’ll be taking a look at an important clash between Shijiazhuang YJ and Shenzhen Ruby.
Shijiazhuang Form GuideThey’re hardly setting the world on fire, but in many ways, that’s what was expected of Shijiazhuang YJ. They just haven’t quite been able to get up and running in a dangerous manner, but the strange part is that they do tend to look competitive even when they lose. If they continue to have high spirits, as cliche as it sounds, it could be the catalyst to a turning point for them.
Following a nice win over Hangzhou at the start of the month, Shijiazhuang went three more games without losing as they drew with Qingdao and Tianjin before beating Chengdu. They did fall short in a 3-0 defeat to Shanghai, before bouncing back with a nice win over Nantong.
Shenzhen Form GuideShenzhen have gone from a team looking like they could do something remarkable, to one that is almost bottom of the table without much of a hope - at least, not for the foreseeable future. They just have no confidence in their team whatsoever and when you blend that together with the overall quality of their side, you get a club that is impossible to predict from one week to the next.
Outside of a dramatic 3-3 draw with Tianjin on July 21st, last month was an absolute disaster for Shenzhen. They lost 3-1 to Wuhan, 5-0 to Beijing, 5-0 to Qingdao, 4-1 to Shanghai and 3-1 to Henan in a horrible turn.
Match PredictionThe inconsistency of the hosts is what could turn this into a really fun affair, but you also have to consider the overall strength of both teams. Shenzhen just don’t look like they’ve got much of a plan moving forward, and for that very obvious reason, we’re going to back a Shijiazhuang win.
