Dalian Yingbo’s Win Over Qingdao Hainiu Not Enough to Celebrate as Goalkeeping Errors Raise Concerns

Dalian Yingbo faced Qingdao Hainiu in this round of the Chinese Super League and defeated their opponents 2-1 after a 90-minute battle. The victory moved Dalian Yingbo closer to securing an Asian competition qualification spot. The team currently has two ways to qualify for next season’s Asian competitions: finishing second in the Chinese Super League and entering the AFC Champions League Two, or winning the Chinese FA Cup to qualify for the AFC Champions League Elite. It is worth noting that Dalian Yingbo have performed well in the FA Cup and have advanced directly to the semifinals.

If Dalian Yingbo can perform exceptionally well, they do have a chance to continue their strong FA Cup run and win the title, which would earn them qualification for next season’s AFC Champions League Elite. The biggest concern for Dalian fans is that the team does not have a goalkeeper option they fully trust. Dalian Yingbo currently have two regular goalkeeper choices, Huang Zihao and Liu Weiguo. Huang Zihao was the team’s first-choice goalkeeper last season and produced impressive performances.

This season, Dalian Yingbo head coach Li Guoxu changed tactics, which exposed Huang Zihao’s weaknesses in judging the timing of his outings and dealing with high balls. As a result, Dalian Yingbo gave veteran goalkeeper Liu Weiguo opportunities to start. Liu Weiguo has good skills on the goal line, solid judgment when coming off his line, and strong ability to handle aerial balls, but his only weakness is inconsistency in his performances.

Liu Weiguo performed well when representing Dalian Yingbo in the FA Cup quarterfinal against Shanghai Shenhua and helped the team reach the semifinals. Just as fans considered him the most reliable starting goalkeeper option, he made a costly mistake in this round of the Chinese Super League, with a handling error giving Hainiu a scoring opportunity and leaving fans disappointed. If Liu Weiguo’s inconsistency appears in a knockout FA Cup match decided by a single result, it could have a serious negative impact on Dalian Yingbo. Meanwhile, Huang Zihao, who had not started for Dalian Yingbo for a long time, was sent off with a red card in the previous FA Cup round.

At that time, Dalian Yingbo head coach Li Guoxu was unwilling to completely give up on Huang Zihao and gave him a starting opportunity in FA Cup rotation. However, Huang Zihao played only a few minutes before a reckless challenge following an ill-timed rush resulted in a straight red card, after which Liu Weiguo came on as an early substitute. Overall, both Huang Zihao and Liu Weiguo have shown instability in Dalian Yingbo’s goalkeeper position, which has also caused difficulties for head coach Li Guoxu. Perhaps next season Dalian Yingbo will still need to find suitable reinforcements at goalkeeper and look for a reliable new signing who can truly give fans confidence.