The lead is down to just one point! The adjustments for the derby match were unsuccessful, and Slutsky apologized after the game.

Special correspondent / Gan Hui “First, I want to apologize to our home fans,” was the opening statement from Shenhua's head coach Slutsky at the post-match press conference after losing 1-2 to Haigang at home on the night of the 9th.

Last night, 60,031 fans filled the Shanghai Stadium, setting a new attendance record since the stadium's renovation. Unfortunately, Shenhua could not take advantage of playing at home to win this crucial match.

What was feared has indeed happened. Before the match, everyone was most concerned about Teixeira receiving a yellow card in the previous game, which would lead to a suspension for accumulating four yellow cards in this derby. In the end, Teixeira did not receive a yellow card, but he was unable to start due to injury.

Near the end of the match against Yunnan Yukun, Teixeira, in an effort to prevent the ball from going out of play, gave possession to the opponent by sprinting to save the ball, resulting in discomfort in his thigh muscle due to the effort.

Teixeira's importance to Shenhua is undeniable; whenever he is sidelined, Shenhua's attack often struggles, impacting the team's winning chances. In last season's away loss to Beijing Guoan and this season's away defeat to Shenzhen Xinpengcheng, Teixeira did not play. Before this match, Slutsky had faced Muscat seven times, and in the only match Slutsky lost, Teixeira was also absent.

The entire Shenhua team is aware of the potential impact of Teixeira's absence, but they could only try to compensate through personnel and tactical adjustments. From Teixeira's performance after coming on in the 70th minute, it was evident that the injury affected him, as Shenhua did not score in the closing stages of the match as they usually would.

With Teixeira injured and unable to start, Slutsky's adjustment was to have Amadou play in the number 6 position, while Gao Tianyi and Li Ke played as the two number 8s on the left and right, respectively, with Wu Xi moving to the number 10 position.

Regarding this arrangement, Slutsky explained, "Actually, I believe there was only one player in a new position today, and that was Wu Xi, who played at the number 10 position. Gao Tianyi and Li Ke have both played in the number 8 positions on the sides before. After Teixeira's injury, we previously tried Yang Haoyu in his position, but he is a young player and can be inconsistent, so we opted for Wu Xi."

Similar to the previous round where Amadou was moved to center-back, Slutsky's adjustments did not succeed. Wu Xi is an excellent player, but no player can excel in every position on the field. As for Amadou, his current physical and competitive condition is not at the level it was before his injury, so his performance in the number 6 position is not as effective as Li Ke's. Additionally, to accommodate Amadou in the number 6 position, Gao Tianyi was shifted from the right number 8 to the left. However, left-back Chen Jinyi, like Gao Tianyi, is also an offensively strong but defensively weak player, making Shenhua's left-side defense very vulnerable against Liu Ruofan's attacks.

Throughout the first half, Shenhua's performance was disappointing, struggling to organize any meaningful attacks, with zero shots on target. Throughout his coaching career, Slutsky has consistently implemented a 4-4-2 diamond formation, which has indeed produced good results. However, when key players in crucial positions are absent, should Slutsky consider making some adjustments? For instance, in this match, if the formation were changed to 4-4-1-1, with Li Ke and Amadou playing as double defensive midfielders, Gao Tianyi and Wu Xi positioned on either side, and Andre dropping back slightly, it might have yielded better results. This would provide a more balanced attack and defense, and given Haigang's tendency to attack down the flanks, having Gao Tianyi and Wu Xi on the wings could alleviate pressure on Manafa and Chen Jinyi, enhancing protection for the two flanks.

In the past two years of encounters between Shenhua and Haigang, Shenhua has often come back from behind, but this time, when Chen Jinyi equalized the score to 1-2 from a corner kick opportunity, Shenhua indeed saw a glimmer of hope. However, this time Muscat learned from past experiences and substituted Wei Zhen to switch to a three-center-back formation. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Yan Junling played a crucial role, making six saves throughout the match, three of which were world-class saves of certain goals.

In the end, Shenhua could not change the scoreline and suffered their first home defeat of the season. After the match, Slutsky apologized to the fans, stating, "First, I want to say sorry to our home fans. Our fans created a very lively home atmosphere, just like before, but especially vibrant today. We disappointed them, and we are also very frustrated. We only showed our true form after falling behind 0-2. In the first half, the players faced significant pressure from all sides and did not perform normally; after being down 0-2, we played quite well and created many chances. However, against such opponents, it is very difficult to recover from a two-goal deficit."

Following this defeat, Shenhua's once six-point lead over Haigang has been reduced to just one point. Next, Shenhua will face a challenging schedule with away matches against Zhejiang, Qingdao Hainiu, and Wuhan Three Towns. Jiang Shenglong said, "In football, there are wins and losses; we need to look forward. There are still ten matches left. We are still in first place and hope to regain our momentum in the next match. In this match, we did not play like champions; we need to readjust our mindset, look ahead, and perform well in the next game."

In the first away match against the recently strong Zhejiang team, since Teixeira received a yellow card after coming on as a substitute in the second half, he will be suspended for accumulating four yellow cards in the match against Zhejiang. How Slutsky responds to this will be crucial. With the lead reduced to just one point, Shenhua has no room for error.