On March 3, the Yokohama Mariners departed for Jinan this morning to prepare for the first leg of the AFC Champions League 1 4 finals. The match will be held at 6 p.m. on March 6 at the home of Shandong Taishan team.
The Yokohama Mariners are no strangers to the home of the Tarzan team. In the AFC Champions League group stage on October 3, 2023, Yokohama Mariners once came to Jinan to play. Despite their victory over the Tarzan team, the Tarzan team hit the post twice during the game, which made many fans feel sorry for the misfortune of the Tarzan team.
In the AFC Champions League 1 8 finals, Shandong Taishan eliminated Kawasaki Frontale with an aggregate score of 6:5, while Yokohama Mariners defeated Bangkok United with an aggregate score of 3:2. Two teams that have played each other in the group stage before now meet again in the 1 4 finals.
The Yokohama Mariners chose to arrive in Jinan 3 days early, which shows how seriously they take this match. In fact, the last match between Shandong Taishan and Yokohama Mariners was played on March 1. Shandong Taishan team defeated Changchun Yatai with a score of 4:2 and made a good start in the Chinese Super League. The Yokohama Marinos, on the other hand, lost 0:1 to the Fukuoka Hornets in the second round of the Japanese Professional League. Although the Tarzan team can rely on the advantage of the home field, they may have a slight advantage in terms of physical reserves.
However, Shandong Taishan will face a bigger challenge as their match against Yokohama Mariners was actually played the day before the next round of the Chinese Super League kicks off. The time for the Tarzan team to prepare for the game is very limited. From March 6 to 13, the Taishan team will play three matches for seven consecutive days, including an away game against Japan. In this case, the coaching staff of the Tarzan team has long been prepared for the necessary rotation.
It is worth mentioning that in the home game against Yokohama Mariners, Jinan once again ushered in a hot ball market. It is understood that tickets for the competition will be sold in batches, and the online ticket purchase time is from 10:00 on February 28 to 18:00 on March 6, and a certain number of ticket purchases will be opened every day. To date, almost every ticket has sold out immediately. It is worth noting that ticket scalping will be strictly investigated.