Ah, here we are, looking at the face-off between Shenzhen City and Shandong Taishan in the game of the century! Just kidding, it's only a regular season match in the Chinese Super League, but don't let that dampen your spirits.
Between the posts, we've got Dalei Wang and Yu Jinyong guarding the nets for Shandong with ratings of 7.10 and 6.50 respectively, and a total of four saves between them. For Shenzhen City, it's Wei Minzhe who will be the goalkeeper, boasting a rating of 6.30 and seven saves to his credit. Seems like goalkeeping won't be a novel concept for these fellas.
Now, let’s talk foot soldiers. For Shandong Taishan, Pedro Delgado tops our list with a brilliant 7.75 rating, Zhang Chi follows closely with 7.35 and Yang Liu wraps it up with 7.30. None of them have any goals this season, but with pass accuracies hanging high in the 70s and 80s, they sure know how to put the ball in the right place. They also appreciate the concept of sharing and work well as a team.
Shifting our gaze onto Shenzhen City, Edu Garcia is the star to watch, with an 8.40 rating and a goal to his name this season. Thiago Andrade and Rade Dugalić fill up the ranks with ratings of 7.40 and 7.30 respectively. They too haven't added any goals to their name recently, but they know how to make fans gasp with their shots on goal.
These squads have had no problems finding each other on the pitch before. If we rewind to Thu May 16 2024, Shandong Taishan outscored Shenzhen City 3-2. But old scores do not matter, my friend. Let's see who brings their A - game today.
As far as the regular season records are concerned, Shandong has a better record with 10 wins compared to Shenzhen’s six. But again, it's not about the journey, it's about this particular destination game!
Lately, Shandong Taishan seems to have been on a roller coaster skiing downhill with a heart-pounding mixture of wins, losses, and draws. On the flip side, Shenzhen City seems to have forgotten the taste of victory in their recent matches, with more losses added to their tally. Do remember though, it's not about where you've come from, it's about doing a spontaneous joyous jig at the finish line.
With all this in mind, I'd give my two cents putting it behind Shenzhen City to turn the tide and emerge victorious. But what do I know, I’m just a sportscaster with a dry sense of humor.
Albert’s Prediction: Shenzhen City by 1