Shandong Taishan can climb above Changchun Yatai in the Chinese Super League table by beating them on Thursday.
Changchun travel to Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium in fifth place, two points ahead of their forthcoming opponents.
Match preview
Having only missed out on retaining their Chinese Super League title on goal difference last season, with Wuhan Three Towns holding their nerve on the final day, Shandong have some work to do if they are to reclaim their crown this time around.
Choi Kang-hee's side trail league leaders Shanghai Port by nine points ahead of this week's action, with six draws from 12 matches slowing their progress in terms of moving up the table.
However, Taishan Dui have lost just one of their last 12 games in all competitions, illustrating how difficult they have become to defeat in recent years. Kang-hee, who replaced Hao Wei in their managerial dugout last month, has won four of his six games in charge so far.
Finding another win on Thursday could see them move as high as fourth in the table, and there is little doubt that they will require a winning streak sooner rather than later if they are to stand any realistic chance of winning the club's fifth title.
Changchun, meanwhile, are still establishing themselves following their promotion from China's second tier in 2020, having finished in 13th position last time around.
In fairness, they were at the bottom of a pack of closely-knit teams, with only five points separating them from Tianjin Jinmen Tiger in eighth place. Considering that they ended up finishing 21 points clear of Guangzhou City at the top of the relegation zone, there was never any danger that Changchun could find themselves falling back into League One.
Their head coach Chen Yang, who led his side to promotion in his first season in charge of the club, clearly has bigger aspirations this time around, with six wins from 12 games seeing them occupy fifth position. Yang's side have scored 11 goals in their last three matches, contributing to them having the strongest offensive record in the division.
However, with only three teams possessing an inferior defensive record, the 46-year-old will be hoping for a grittier performance from his players in Shandong on Thursday, otherwise they could find themselves outfought by their wily opponents.
Team News
Shandong will remain without Jun-ho Son, who was detained by Chinese authorities last month on suspicion of accepting a bribe. Regardless, the central midfielder was called up for international duty by South Korea manager Jurgen Klinsmann earlier this month, but he did not play a single minute in either friendly against Peru or El Salvador.
Kang-Hee is unlikely to make too many changes from the side that drew 1-1 against Wuhan Three Towns in their last league fixture, although former Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellaini may return to the hosts' starting XI.
Changchun, meanwhile, should be full of confidence having scored freely in recent weeks, but they will be forced to play without in-form forward Leo Souza against his parent club.
The 26-year-old is on loan from Shandong for the season, and there is little doubt that he will be sorely missed in the visitors' attack after bagging 11 goals in his last 10 appearances. His compatriot Serginho may be asked to fill the void in a different way.
Shandong Taishan possible starting lineup:
Wang; Ji, Shi, Zheng, Y Liu; Fellaini, Magalhaes, Huang; B Liu, Crysan, Chen
Changchun Yatai possible starting lineup:
Wu; Abdugheni, Yi, Okore, Qi; Tan, Zulj, Zhang, Wang; Serginho, Abdusalam
We say: Shandong Taishan 2-1 Changchun Yatai
The ineligibility of Souza against his parent club could be the decisive factor in this match, with the free-scoring visitors likely to be blunted by his absence.
Only three teams have conceded fewer goals than Shandong so far this season, and we can envisage them frustrating Changchun on the way to a crucial victory, which would see them leapfrog their opponents in the table.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Brett Curtis
