The "two-word magic weapon" helped Guoan to be undefeated in 12 games! But that's just a good start

Special correspondent Song Ci reports On the evening of May 17, when Qingdao Manatee scored a goal-equalizing goal at the last moment, Beijing Guoan's almost six-game winning streak could only become a flash in the pan. Such an outcome is obviously a bit difficult for Guoan to accept, but this game also seems to reflect Guoan's performance since the start of the 2025 season - in the 12 games that have been played, Guoan has performed well for the most part, but there have always been some unexpected problems.

As the only unbeaten team this season, Guoan's performance can be described as both improved and regretful. The improvement lies in the initial results of the change of manager, the squad is becoming more and more stable, and the internal atmosphere is more united than ever. However, the team also lacked the demeanor of a king when playing against a weak team, which led to an unexpected loss of points. Therefore, for Guoan, this season is just a good start, but whether it can have the last laugh depends on whether it can do better in the future.

If Guoan does not change the coach, or change a coach with similar qualifications to the predecessor Suarez, will Guoan still have a 12-game unbeaten performance, I believe many people choose to say no.

Last year, before the end of the league, Guoan had already decided to terminate the contract with the Portuguese, after all, Suarez's tactical style of play during the team was not only unsatisfactory to the fans and media, but also difficult for the team to accept, including the club's senior management. It's just that choosing a new coach is also a problem for a big club like Guoan, which aims to compete for the championship.

Since the establishment of Guoan, there has been no shortage of big-name foreign coaches in the team history for more than 30 years, and Setien's coaching resume can definitely be ranked in the top three. Even so, at the beginning of his tenure, in addition to the first away win against promoted Ma Yukun, the subsequent three consecutive draws, especially the 4-4 with the three towns, also made Setien fall into a crisis of confidence for a while. Fortunately, the successive victories over Taishan and away against Harbour made most fans finally accept the Spanish coach. It should be said that Guoan's good results this year have a lot to do with Setien's arrival, which also shows that the change of coach has achieved the initial expected results.

What is little known is that when choosing a foreign teacher at the end of last year, there were different opinions within Guoan, and in the end, the boss Zhou Jinhui personally made the decision and settled on Setien. At the time, there was no objection to replacing Suarez, but there were many candidates, and at one time it was Australian Kramowski, who was in charge of J1 Tokyo FC last season. On the one hand, he worked for Tottenham boss Postecoglou for 15 years; On the other hand, he has a good record in Japan; Another point is that Harbour coach Muscat is also Australian and has also coached in Japan. Choosing Kramowski may also be able to attack the Chinese Super League champion.

However, Zhou Jinhui personally finalized Setien, and he valued not only Setien's experience in coaching Barcelona, but also his pass-and-control football philosophy, and Zhou Jinhui hoped that Guoan could re-enter the championship team under Setien's leadership. Of course, any new coach to Guoan, there is a certain run-in problem, and Setien is no exception, including his training intensity and time, which have been questioned by the outside world. But rather than many stubborn European coaches, Setien prefers to talk to his players, including the club's management.

After the start of the Chinese Super League, captain Wang Gang once communicated with Setien on behalf of the players, and Li Ming, the general manager, once communicated with Setien on behalf of the club. Setien was also able to take these suggestions that were good for the team and for himself.

It is worth mentioning that during training, the 66-year-old Setien can not only grab the circle with the team, but even lift the goal with the team, which proves that he is actively integrating into the new team of Guoan, and it is also an important reason why he can gain a firm foothold in Guoan and lead the team to achieve good results.

In order to further improve the competitiveness of the team, the club not only changed a more famous coach, but also "replenished blood" for the team, whether it was domestic or foreign aid, it played its due role.

In recent years, all clubs in the Chinese Super League have tightened their cashiers, and the introduction of foreign aid is basically free or the transfer fee is not high, but Guoan's recruitment at the beginning of this season can be regarded as a big deal at the moment. Among them, the Brazilian foreign aid brought in from J1 Gamba Dawan spent 1.25 million euros. In addition, the fees related to the naturalization of Serginho are also not low, and can also be regarded as "transfer fees". These two expenses alone exceed the recruitment expenses of the vast majority of Chinese Super League clubs.

In addition to Dawan and Serginho, Guoan also introduced Red Star captain Spajic this year, and recently renewed the contract of another foreign player in the defense, Ngadeu, all of which have ensured that the team's main framework is more stable.

The few foreign players left, Fabio and Gonzalo, have played better than last year, and have even fully integrated into the team. Gonzalo, in particular, was once questioned by fans. Now, with his tireless running and attacking attacks near the penalty area, he has completely conquered the fans in Beijing; Not to mention Fabio, who scored 8 goals alone, a proper forward thigh. If a team wants to win the title, it must have strikers who are in the top three in the league's scorer charts, and Fabio has already had that form this year.

It is understood that the club put all the transfer fees from the sale of Ruan Qilong, Liang Shaowen, and Xiaoqiang into Wu Shaocong's transfer transaction, and Wu Shaocong's arrival also made the national security defense line more abundant.

A month ago, Guoan was very affected by injuries and could even put out a lineup, but when the shortage of personnel was at its worst, the team's performance was not affected, because the team was thick enough, and this is a must for the championship team.

Guoan's financial situation may not be competitive among the top five teams in the table, but the club is spending its money wisely, both in terms of reinforcements and guarantees, and they are doing their best. Not long ago, Setien complained about the poor training base, but the club is not worried about this affecting the manager's mood and team training, because the club has found a new base and has been upgrading for a few months, although it is still a loan, but the conditions have been greatly improved, and the situation that Setien said before no longer exists.

If there is any secret and magic weapon for Guoan to remain undefeated at present, it is two words: unity. No matter how difficult the team is, the team is more united than ever, and the more underdogs, the better they can fight.

On the bench in the last two games of Guoan, Zhang Yuning, Zhang Xizhe, Li Lei, Wu Shaocong, Zhang Yuan, Chi Zhongguo, Yang Liyu, Fang Hao and others sat on the bench. Sometimes, there are too many people and they don't know how to choose, which is also a happy worry for the manager.

Of course, if these capable players are not allowed to adjust their mentality and accept the arrangement of playing as substitutes, it may have a bad impact on the team. However, this point is not to be worried about this year's national security at all. Whoever started the game, the players on the bench did not complain or complain, but instead cherished the opportunity to play and contribute to the team while proving their ability.

The season is long, if you want to compete for the championship, it is impossible to rely on only one lineup or a dozen people to rotate, and now Guoan, at least 20 players have the ability to start, it depends on how to rotate according to different opponents. For example, in the match against InBev, Setien chose personnel adjustments and won with minimal cost.

Some of the players in Guoan's squad this season may leave or retire after this year's competition, so they cherish it more than ever, and they have a common goal in their hearts, which is to win the championship. For this, the players on the field are playing hard, and off the field are cheering for their teammates.

Of course, there are advantages, but there are also disadvantages to national security.

In the game against the Manatees, Setien angrily threw the water bottle in his hand, which shows his dissatisfaction with the team. The biggest problem lies in the face of weakness or weakness, or in the face of opponents who are not as strong as themselves, and not having enough ability to turn advantages into victories.

Guoan remains undefeated, including facing Shenhua, Rongcheng, Haigang, Taishan and other champion-winning rivals, saying that they can achieve good results without mobilization at all, including when personnel are difficult. But in the face of some weak teams, he did not show the strength to crush the opponent.

Not to mention being forced to draw by Three Towns and Manatee in the lead, even in the face of InBev, Henan, and Xinpeng City, the opponents played a very threatening attack, and even if the game was won, the fans did not feel particularly happy. This all shows that Guoan still lacks enough kingly demeanor and does not have absolute dominance.

When the league entered the intermission, Guoan was 6 points behind Shenhua at the top of the table with one less game, although this point difference is not impossible to catch up, but it is not small, at least, the initiative is not yet in their own hands. In this regard, Setien also admitted that the 6-point difference stems from the fact that Shenhua has done better than Guoan in many aspects, "We are not as good as them now." ”

For Guoan, there are still 18 games left in the Chinese Super League, and there is still a great chance to compete for the title, but the gap with the opponent must be made up as soon as possible, which requires the joint efforts of players, coaches and clubs.