Shanghai derby ends the "suspense of the Chinese Super League"? Foreign aid from the seaport is more advantageous

Reporter Cheng Shan reported After defeating Meizhou Hakka 7-2 on the evening of the 9th, the "Chinese Super League suspense" of "who can stop the harbor" continues to hang high, and everyone is waiting for the next Shanghai derby to give an answer.

Looking at the performance of the Harbour team this season, in addition to the efforts of the Chinese players, the head coach Muscat's thorough activation of the foreign aid team is also a key factor, so in the context of "the Chinese Super League relies on foreign aid", the Harbour team, which has the advantage of foreign aid legion, is also optimistic before this derby.

In the match against Meizhou Hakka, Oscar assisted Gustavo, Wu Lei and Vargas in succession, helping the team win 7-2. Muscat praised Oscar's passing acumen after the game, one of many times he has complimented him this season.

Since joining the harbor in 2016, Oscar's role is undoubted, and the "little golden man" has become an indispensable course leader for the harbor with his diligence and low profile. "Flowing foreign aid, iron Oscar", Oscar, who has been in Shanghai for many years, has long been accustomed to the comfort, convenience and glory brought by this city, and in front of other foreign aid, he is like a "landlord".

Oscar loves to have dinner, and that's something everyone in the team knows. At the beginning of the season, he brought his Brazil compatriots to dinner with Jiang Guangtai, Gustavo, Yusa and Chitadini are all new signings who joined Harbour in the winter window this season. Brazil foreign aid Pope, who just joined in late July, got the opportunity to eat meat with the "big guy", and Oscar took him and other brothers to eat Brazil barbecue, allowing Pope to integrate faster.

Of course, Oscar's biggest role is still on the pitch. Coach Muscat is well aware of the importance of Oscar, and he constantly inspires the captain's sense of responsibility, always putting the best praise on Oscar, calling him the "bond" of the team. Prior to the local derby with Shenhua, the soon-to-be-33-year-old played 1,877 minutes in 23 league games this season, scoring 11 goals and providing 18 assists. This has to do with the motivation and recognition of the head coach.

Oscar's personality is introverted and does not belong to the "domineering captain", but he takes care of the front and back field organization on the court, and he will react quickly when the team has problems, and even lose his temper. Then realizing that his tone just now was not very good, Oscar immediately took advantage of the time between fouls and took the initiative to pat Vargas on the shoulder to encourage and ease the atmosphere. Vargas was very happy with this and quickly adjusted his style of play.

If Oscar's "instruction manual" is well known, then the use of live Vargas can show Muscat's wisdom even more.

After transferring to the harbor in the second half of the 2022 season, Vargas's 18 games, 1 goal and 8 assists can only be said to be mediocre, including the controversy with the overlap of Oscar's position, and even the "famous scene" of quarreling with the then coach Javier.

In Spain, between Vargas and Wu Lei, as midfielders, one main pass and one main shot, hence the name "Wuba Connection", but in the harbor system, Vargas's "pass" can only give way to Oscar. Muscat has given Vargas more attacking freedom when he took over Harbour, often letting him play at his own pace, and Vargas has been able to score 11 goals and provide eight assists in 23 games.

Vargas came alive, and Muscat did not hesitate to praise him for the opportunity. Speaking after the match against Beijing Guoan, Muscat said: "We shouldn't underestimate Vargas's contribution on the pitch and sometimes there are chances that don't go through, but we have to recognise his value on the pitch. After the 7-2 win over Meizhou Hakka, Muscat praised Vargas for his pleasing world shots: "He shot really well, of course I'm happy about it, it's actually very special because it's easy to fly a lot of times." ”

Of course, relying only on Oscar and Vargas would not be enough to make the harbor so strong. Harbour's most cost-effective signing this season is Gustavo, with an annual salary of $1.2 million and a zero transfer fee, but it has brought excellent statistics of 19 goals and 4 assists in 23 league games.

Another cost-effective foreign player is Chitadini. Although the stats suggest that Chitadini has only three goals and six assists in 25 appearances in all competitions for Harbour this season, this does not affect his role in passing and converting, and if Oscar does leave in the future, he may become an important playmaker in the Harbour team.