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Zheng sees no rivalry with Albirex
Tam Cheong Yan
info@sleague.com
Most people who do not know any better might be tempted to cast Thursday evening’s clash between Beijing Guoan Talent and Albirex Niigata (Singapore) as just another Sino-Japanese football derby.
The mere suggestion of that label often evokes colourful imagery, with every challenge for the ball seeming harder and angrier than usual, and fans unafraid of booing their opponents and swearing at one another.
Those connotations are a legacy of the complex history between the two countries, of course, but the flip side is that the tendency to go with the stereotype often creates unnecessary baggage.
And if comments from Zheng Xiaotian and Koichi Sugiyama in the lead-up to the game at Yishun are anything to go by, the notion of an East Asian derby is the last thing on either team’s minds.
It bears reminding that both coaches have brought their young squads to Singapore with the common objective of grooming their charges to become good professionals, and to different extents both teams have faced some tough challenges.
Zheng for one was aware of the work his counterpart at Jurong East was doing, after watching Albirex fall to the Young Lions 1-2 on Monday despite taking an early lead.
The Beijing coach however seemed more inclined to see the White Swans as a young team, not a Japanese team, when he spoke to sleague.com.
He then went on to do his bit to shake off the “China vs Japan” stereotype, predicting that there will be no change in the way his opponents will play their game on Thursday.
“I don’t think facing a Japanese team is going to be an issue for us,” said Zheng.
“From what I see of their game against the Young Lions, they show a lot of speed and they have some technique, but that is the same way they play whoever they face. So I don’t think it will be any different against us.
“They are a young team, and like any other young team they will be hungry. They’ll also have weaknesses in terms of their temper, but I don’t expect that to be too big a problem for them in this match.
“The same applies to us, we are a young team too. But I don’t see this match becoming a big fight just because it’s a Chinese team facing a Japanese team.”
Even if the rivalry element is not factored in, Albirex coach Sugiyama already has enough pressure on his shoulders after the fans were left disappointed by their latest defeat.
That result kept them at the bottom of the table with five points after eight games, probably the worst start the White Swans have ever experienced since they were introduced to the S.League in 2004.
Once blessed with such gifted talents as Issey Farran Nakajima, Eiichiro Ozaki, Taisuke Akiyoshi and Akira Takase, the current batch of Albirex players have yet to capture the imagination the way their illustrious seniors did.
Even the arrival of Satoshi Hida, Nobuhiro Uetani and Mitsuki Ichihara, who bring with them experience from the J-League, and the retention of Ken Matsumoto and Atsushi Shimono from last year’s squad have not done much to improve their fortunes.
Sugiyama, however, denied that there was a disparity in standards among his players, many of whom have yet to compete in a professional environment and so do not possess the experience Hida, Matsumoto and others have.
“There is no big difference between all my players,” said the 38-year-old.
“Each player has his strong points and weaknesses. So what we have to do is to make all the players work together from the bottom up, brush up their skills and get to the top.
“I believe we are becoming better step by step. It is slow, and although it is difficult, we know we have to do this slowly.”
Albirex will be handicapped by the loss of several players for the Beijing tie, most notably skipper Ichihara, who collected his fourth booking of the season against the Young Lions and will serve a one-match suspension.
Hida and Matsumoto are also doubtful for the team after that bruising contest, the former suffering wounds on his head and looking distinctly uncomfortable late on with a suspected muscle pull.
Sugiyama acknowledged that there was a possibility neither would be involved against the Talents, but refused to show any signs of panic.
“I don’t see any difficulties losing some of our players,” he remarked.
“We still have good players, and this game is another chance for us to use new players. We have been using new players gradually every game, so this is another chance for the new players to prepare.
“We play a team game, not only the players, but the coaching staff and everybody else at the club. So for me, the emphasis is to work as a team no matter who is playing or not.
“Of course we will take a look at how players like Hida are doing. But we have enough players to still play a game, so I do not see that as a problem.”
Beijing will meanwhile have centreback Zhang Xiaolong available for selection again, after the 21-year-old had completed his ban for a sending-off against Balestier Khalsa.
They would also have been pleased to enjoy a two-week break from league football, having last played on 30 March, when they defeated Gombak United 1-0 at home.
The Chinese boys have not been idling their time away, however, as their coach Zheng revealed that he had taken the chance to conduct some extra training with specific targets in mind.
“We’ve been trying to improve on our fitness and technical ability,” he said.
“We have managed some progress with the second, but the first has been harder to work on because the weather has been rainy. We also entered a tournament last weekend, but once I saw the rain there, I decided to keep most of my first-team players away.
“That said, the players who featured in that competition did well, including (Li) Tixiang. He did well, but that won’t affect whether I will use him or not in our game against Albirex.
“We’ve got lots of good competition between our seven or eight midfield players, so even though Liu Teng is still suspended, choosing the starters won’t be easy. But whoever we pick, their standards will be quite similar, so that’s good for us.” |
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