Chinese Super League Arsenal: Gilles Leads Left-Footed Scorers, Fierce Competition for Right-Footed King

By Han Bing On September 19, Henan team won 5-2 away against Wuhan Three Towns, where Achimpeng scored two goals, marking his sixth headed goal of the CSL season. Unlike Fabio of Beijing Guoan, who is 1.82 meters tall, Achimpeng stands only 1.7 meters. Yet this season, he has more headed goals than taller players like Gilles and Cardoso (both over 1.85 meters), and even outperforms high strikers above 1.9 meters such as Felipe, Zeca, and Tudore in headed goals.

If Achimpeng maintains this momentum, it would be no surprise for him to claim the CSL “Heading King” title this season at just 1.7 meters tall.

Although Kazayishvili leads the CSL scoring chart by a wide margin, he is not strong in heading; only 2 of his 22 league goals are headers, scored at home against Changchun Yatai and away versus Shenzhen Pengcheng. In the headed goals ranking, Fabio (Beijing Guoan), second on the CSL scoring list, has six headed goals but has played more minutes than Achimpeng, placing him second in headed goals. Moreover, Achimpeng also scored a header in the FA Cup semifinal against Shanghai Shenhua, bringing his total headed goals this season to seven, topping the chart alone.

Fabio, who has scored six headed goals this season, had only four last season, while Achimpeng scored just three goals total last season, including one header. Both players have increased their total and headed goals compared to last season, with Achimpeng’s rise being particularly impressive. It is worth noting that last season’s CSL Golden Boot winner Wu Lei scored 12 headed goals across all competitions. Achimpeng still faces a tough challenge to match Wu Lei’s headed goal tally from last year.

Originally, Shanghai Shenhua’s Mineiro was a strong contender for the title. From late March away at Henan to early May home against Qingdao West Coast, the Brazilian forward scored four headed goals within just over a month. Including the AFC Champions League Elite match in February against Vissel Kobe, his total headed goals reached five this season. Unfortunately, Mineiro suffered a right quadriceps tendon injury in June, requiring a four-month recovery. This injury not only ended his hopes for the “Heading King” contest but also led to his deregistration.

Four players share third place in CSL headed goals with three each: Wei Shihao (Chengdu Rongcheng), Tudore (Wuhan Three Towns), Frank (Zhejiang), and Tan Long (Changchun Yatai). Tan Long, a traditional tall striker, has a typical number of headed goals. Counting a header in the FA Cup 2-1 win over Qingdao Hainiu, Wei Shihao leads domestic players with four headed goals this season. Other scorers like Kazayishvili, Zeca, and Oscar (2 goals) follow closely, while Gilles, Leonardo, Felipe, Wang Yudong, and Kresan have only one headed goal each.

Currently topping the CSL scoring chart, Kazayishvili has only two headed goals, but 14 of his 22 goals come from his right foot, making him both the league’s top scorer and the “right-footed” Golden Boot leader. Fabio, second in scoring, has 17 goals with only eight right-footed strikes. Leonardo, who joined Shanghai Port this year, has 14 right-footed goals out of 17, and with two right-footed goals in the away win against Beijing Guoan, he has matched Kazayishvili’s right-footed tally. Gabriel of Shanghai Port ranks third with all nine of his CSL goals scored with his right foot. Including four goals in the Super Cup and FA Cup, Gabriel totals 13 right-footed goals this season, ranking third behind Kazayishvili and teammate Leonardo.

Wei Shihao has scored seven right-footed goals this CSL season, including a direct free kick against Changchun Yatai. Newly signed Tudore for Wuhan Three Towns and Cardoso for Henan share fourth place with Wei Shihao, but Cardoso added three right-footed goals in three FA Cup matches, bringing his season total to 10 right-footed goals. The most notable domestic newcomer, Wang Yudong, has six right-footed goals, second only to Wei Shihao among local scorers.

Additionally, third-ranked Gilles has 15 goals, 14 of which are with his dominant left foot, making him the clear favorite for this season’s CSL “left-footed” Golden Boot. Felipe of Chengdu Rongcheng ranks second with 12 goals, nine scored with his left foot. Counting a left-footed goal in the AFC Champions League qualifiers, Felipe’s total left-footed goals across all competitions this season have reached 11.