Shanghai SIPG wins its first CFA Super Cup
0 Comment(s)
Print
E-mail Xinhua, February 24, 2019
Shanghai SIPG won their first Chinese Football Association (CFA) Super Cup title in the club's history with a dominating 2-0 victory over Beijing Guoan at the Suzhou Olympic Sports Center on Saturday.
As the opening show of the new season, this Super Cup game had much to look out for. With Shanghai SIPG sending its top scorer Wu Lei to Espanyol in Spanish La Liga last month without introducing any new player, fans were eager to see who could assume the role once played by the all-time top goalscorer in the Chinese Super League. Meanwhile, Guo'an have made some big moves including bringing in two naturalized players, the first ones in Chinese football history.
A goalless first half saw Guo'an struggling to turn their possession advantage into scoring. After the restart, Shanghai-native Wang Shengchao took advantage of the broad space left by Guo'an's defense and broke the deadlock for Shanghai SIPG in the 62th minute. Just four minutes later, Wang set up the ball for his teammate Lyu Wenjun who nailed the final score 2-0.
"It was an amazing game," said Vitor Pereira, coach of Shanghai SIPG. "We have added another championship to our names and most importantly, we set off the new season with a victory. It means a lot to us."
"Our team showed strong fighting wills today. They deserved the win. This Super Cup title is a reward for everyone who dedicates to our team," Pereira added.
One of Beijing Guoan's naturalized players, Hou Yongyong, was substituted in the second half when Beijing was two goals behind, but he didn't get much to show in the last 20 minutes of the game. Hou said after match that he felt pretty good on the field but unfortunately got no goals in his first match.
"During the game, we had advantages in the most of the time. We showed the achievement of our winter training, but we failed to make the last kick," said Roger Schmidt, coach of Guo'an.
As for the naturalized players, Schmidt added that they need more time to adjust themselves to the new environment. He believed Hou Yongyong will perform better in the future.
Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)