Preview: Shenzhen vs. Wuhan Three Towns - prediction, team news, lineups

Reigning champions Wuhan TT, meanwhile, have fallen a long way off the pace after winning just one of their last nine league games.

Match preview

Shenzhen are attempting to remain clear of the relegation zone, but four defeats in their last five matches means they head into Monday's meeting against Wuhan TT only three points above the drop zone.

Youth Army have only ever won the Chinese Super League on one occasion, back in 2004, and they have largely been fighting against returning to the second tier since being promoted in 2018.

However, they did finish sixth two seasons ago, which was their best effort since their historic triumph almost 20 years ago. Formerly managed by the likes of Clarence Seedorf, Sven-Goran Eriksson and Jordi Cruyff, 21-capped China international Chen Tao has been in charge since April.

The 38-year-old is embarking on his first ever managerial role and has found the going tough so far, but he will be confident of turning things around providing that he is given time, potentially starting at Shenzhen Universiade Sports Centre against the reigning champions.

Wuhan TT, on the other hand, would have expected to be far higher up in the table after 13 games than their current position of ninth, with their dismal run of form leading to Pedro Morilla being sacked last month.

The Spaniard, who had briefly managed Granada in 2018, secured his legacy by guiding them to successful title wins in China's second and first tier's, with Wuhan TT enjoying a remarkable rise in status having been competing at the fourth level of Chinese football as recently as 2018.

However, they are embarking on a new era under the tutelage of Japanese coach Tsutomu Takahata, who has moved up two levels after leading Hainan Star into Chinese League Two in his first season at the club.

The 55-year-old has clearly got his work cut out to turn things around at Wuhan TT, though, with expectations incredibly high at the club having finished first in three successive seasons.

Replicating that appears to be a complete long shot this time around, but he will be expected to rebuild momentum and confidence at the club, with a trip to relegation-threatened Shenzhen potentially representing the perfect opportunity to begin that process.

Shenzhen Chinese Super League form:

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Wuhan Three Towns Chinese Super League form:

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Team News

Shenzhen may recall Shuai Pei to their starting XI after surprisingly leaving the defensive midfielder on the bench during their 3-0 defeat to Chengdu Rongcheng on Thursday.

Zhang Yuan may also be in contention to start as a more offensive midfield option, but Tao is not exactly blessed with an incredible amount of options as he attempts to stop the rot at the club.

In contrast, Wuhan TT have a much larger and more lavishly assembled squad, making their current predicament and poor run of form all the more surprising after being almost faultless in recent seasons.

Takahata will be searching for more attacking verve from his side after seeing them frustrated during a 0-0 draw against Dalian Pro in his first game in charge on Wednesday, with Davidson potentially set to start after only being used from the bench at Wuhan Sports Centre Stadium.

Shenzhen possible starting lineup:

Wei; Zheng, Yang, Yuan, Jiang; Liu, Xu, Pei, Shahsat; Yuan; Du

Wuhan Three Towns possible starting lineup:

D Liu; Deng, Y Liu, Wallace, Gao; Stanciu, He; Davidson, Yan, Ademilson; Yakubu

We say: Shenzhen 0-2 Wuhan Three Towns

Despite failing to find the breakthrough goal in Takahata's first game in charge in midweek, Wuhan TT's performance levels clearly improved compared to prior to the mid-season break, and we expect them to have too much class for the hosts on Monday.

Shenzhen are generally a club that battles against relegation nowadays, and while they should have enough to save themselves between now and the end of the campaign, we are predicting a fifth defeat in six league games for Tao's side.

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