Written by Zuo Rui On the evening of May 24, Zhejiang Club Greentown lost 0-5 at home to Liaoning Ironman. This astonishing result also marked the highest number of goals Zhejiang has ever conceded in the top flight. From a 4-1 reversal to a 0-5 rout, only four days had passed. After the game, head coach Ross Aloisi issued a public apology on behalf of himself and the entire squad.

Midfield and frontline efforts in vain

Zhejiang fielded the same starting lineup that had thrashed Taishan four days earlier, with four foreign players starting. Guarillapa had been either suspended or injured in the last 10 rounds, and his five appearances yielded nothing but yellow cards. Although he actively volunteered to play before the match, the coaching staff, considering medical team advice and other players' form, decided he should focus on recovery and return to the frontline in better condition.

The visiting team, led by Xu Zhengyuan, also deployed a four-foreigner lineup. Midfielder Li Tixiang faced his former club for the first time since joining Ironman this season. From the kickoff, both sides engaged in fierce midfield battles, unwilling to let the fight spread into their own halves. It wasn't until the 10th minute, when the visitors scored the first goal, that Zhejiang began to create threats.

Most of the attacks were orchestrated by Mitrisi. These included a shot from Tolic saved in the 14th minute, a close-range equalizer opportunity missed by Zhang Jiaqi in the 20th minute, and a last-gasp tackle on the goal line that denied Tolic's final pass in the 23rd minute. But by the 26th minute, Mbemba's long-range strike gave Ironman a second goal. Two goals down, Mitrisi continued to cause trouble with individual breakthroughs, free kicks, and corners, but the scoreline remained unchanged.

In the 59th minute, Mbemba completed his hat-trick, yet Zhejiang still pressed for a goal. However, after the visitors went 4-0 up in the 79th minute, the match was completely beyond doubt, and home fans began to leave. Tao Qianglong, who replaced Gao Di in the second half, tried hard, but his pass from an offside position rendered any goal futile.

In the post-match press conference, Ross admitted the team's overall performance was poor. "Only goals can turn the game around, but we didn't score any." In Zhejiang's history, the last time they lost by five or more goals in an official match was 25 years ago—the final round of the 2001 Jia B League season, when Zhejiang Greentown lost 0-6 to Changchun Yatai.

Numerous defensive errors

"Giving away easy goals" was one of the key issues Ross repeatedly emphasized. The first goal came from Sun Guowen's lax ball protection and Lucas's slack marking; the second was a gift from Tong Lei's passing error. At the start of the second half, Ross replaced both full-backs with Wang Shiqin and Xu Junchi, and captain Cheng Jin came on for Zhang Jiaqi, but the defense showed no fundamental improvement.

"The two early goals were extremely careless and completely unacceptable; later we created plenty of chances but lacked the desire to score, which is also unacceptable," Ross said. "We continued to create opportunities but continued to concede cheap goals. Today, none of the players followed tactical discipline. The second-half performance was disgraceful."

Xu Junchi failed to prevent An Yien's cross in a one-on-one situation, leading to the third goal; Cheng Jin chested the ball back into his own penalty area, where it was intercepted by an opponent who scored the fourth; by the time of the fifth goal, the defense was in complete disarray. After the game, Cheng Jin said that the dense schedule was fair for every team and was no excuse for the loss. "We have been conceding early goals too often recently, which puts us on the back foot. Today we couldn't fight back. The problem lies with us."

Ross understood the fans' anger. "I apologize to the fans on behalf of myself and the whole team. Their anger is justified." He believed the team's performance lacked any tactical discipline. He could not accept—and could "not understand at all"—the result and process of scoring four goals in the previous match but conceding five today.

In this match, Park Jin-seop received his fourth yellow card, which means an automatic suspension for the next round. However, according to the final negotiation result between Zhejiang Greentown and the Korean Football Association last week, Park Jin-seop will report to the Korean national team on the 25th. This means that even if he were not suspended, he would not be available for Zhejiang's Round 15 match against Henan Caidufang on the 30th.

Before leaving for the World Cup, Park Jin-seop, bidding farewell to the Chinese Super League, specially treated the whole team to dinner last Thursday, expressing his regret and blessings. As an important defensive shield, his absence will make the team's trip to Zhengzhou more difficult. But the bigger issue right now is not when Guarillapa or Park Jin-seop will return, but how Zhejiang can recover from this unprecedented pain after the devastating 0-5 defeat.