Preview: Zhejiang Professional vs. Henan Songshan Longmen - prediction, team news, lineups

Match preview

Zhejiang Professional were denied a third consecutive victory for the first time this year on Wednesday when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Changchun Yatai.

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After falling behind courtesy of Franko Andrijasevic's 39th-minute penalty, Chen Yang's side rallied in the second half as Dino Ndlovu struck five minutes after the hour mark to force a share of the spoils.

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Prior to that, the Green Giants picked up their first win of the season when they saw off Guangzhou City 4-2 on June 20 before claiming a 2-0 victory over Shandong Taishan five days later.

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With nine points from seven games, Zhejiang are currently 11th in the Chinese Super League table, but could rise as high as sixth place with all three points this weekend.

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Elsewhere, Henan Songshan Longmen suffered their first defeat of the season last time out when they were beaten 2-0 by Shandong Taishan.

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In a one-sided affair at the Wuyuan River Stadium Field 2, Jingdao Jin and Brazilian forward Cryzan scored first-half goals to hand the hosts their fourth victory in five games.

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Prior to that, Javier Pereira's side kicked off the new Super League campaign with a run of four wins and two draws from six games, scoring 14 goals and keeping three clean sheets in that time.

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While the Red Devils will be looking to quickly return to winning ways, they have managed just two victories in nine away games across all competitions since November 2021.

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They also face the stern challenge of going up against Jordi Vinyals's men, who are unbeaten in each of their last five home outings, picking up three wins and two draws since November's 3-1 loss to Chengdu Rongcheng.

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Henan Songshan Longmen have picked up 14 points from seven games to sit fourth in the league standings, five points off first-placed Wuhan Three Towns.

Zhejiang Professional Chinese Super League form:

Henan Songshan Longmen Chinese Super League form:

Team News

Zhejiang remain without the services of former Portimonense defender Lucas Possignolo, who picked up a muscle injury against Changchun Yatai on June 7.

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Bo Zhao will retain his place between the sticks for the hosts as first-choice goalkeeper Chao Gu continues his spell on the sidelines through a fractured finger.

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Veteran forward Matheus is set to sit out his sixth consecutive game after the 39-year-old picked up an injury against Changchun Yatai back in June.

31-year-old Andrijasevic has now scored four goals in his last three outings and we expect the in-form forward to spearhead the Zhejiang attack once again.

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Meanwhile, Henan Songshan Longmen will make do with the absence of Jinbao Zhong after the 27-year-old midfielder picked up a late red card against Shandong Taishan last time out.

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However, they will be boosted by Gu Cao, who returned to action as he was handed a nine-minute cameo in the aforementioned game after suffering an knee problem back in April.

Zhejiang Professional possible starting lineup:

Zhao; Yue, Leung, Sun, Gao; Zhang; Andrijasevic, Gu, Ewolo, Chenge; Mushekwi

Henan Songshan Longmen possible starting lineup:

Shi; Niu, Yang, Sunjic; Zhong, Ma, Wang, Mawlanyaz; Huang; Dourado, Karanga

We say: Zhejiang Professional 1-1 Henan Songshan Longmen

Zhejiang will look to take advantage of the Red Devils' slip up and exact revenge for their 3-1 defeat in June's reverse fixture. However, given the gulf in quality between the two sides, we are tipping the visitors to do just enough to leave with a point.

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