Rejecting the "upset," Beijing Guoan is determined to perform well in the only home match of the FA Cup.

Special Correspondent/Song Ci In the past week, Beijing Guoan has successfully navigated two away matches, feeling a sense of relief. Securing three points in both Zhejiang and Qingdao West Coast not only helped head coach Setien overcome a crisis of confidence but also brought Guoan back into the championship race after three winless matches. On August 20, Guoan will face Yunnan Yukun in the FA Cup semifinals, and they certainly do not want to suffer an upset at home.

In the first 16 rounds of the Chinese Super League, Beijing Guoan remained unbeaten, boasting the highest number of goals scored and the fewest conceded. However, after a 1-3 home loss to Shenhua, their unbeaten streak was broken, and Guoan's defense became increasingly vulnerable, conceding 10 goals in the four matches leading up to the game against West Coast.

The harsh reality forced Setien to lower his guard, as he deployed a four-defender formation for the first time in the league match against Qingdao West Coast. Setien knew he had no cards left to play. With injuries to key foreign center-backs Spajic and Ngadeu, and another center-back Wu Shaocong also sidelined, sticking to a three-center-back setup would be counterproductive.

Regarding the tactical changes, Setien stated after the match: "The team has made numerous attempts defensively, such as forming a configuration of four defenders, four midfielders, and two forwards. We need to make different adjustments based on various situations, and the choice of formation entirely depends on the opponent we face."

This year, Guoan has faced Qingdao West Coast twice before, and the team led by Shao Jia Yi has caused Guoan quite a bit of trouble, making it a tough matchup. This encounter comes just before the FA Cup semifinals, forcing Setien to reluctantly adjust the starting lineup, allowing 19-year-old Li Ruiyue to make his first start in the CSL and positioning domestic players Bai Yang and Fan Shuangjie as center-backs.

Fortunately, similar to the previous match against Zhejiang, Guoan had some luck this time as well. After dodging the opponent's fierce attacks, they once again scored with a straightforward 45-degree cross. In the 39th minute, Yang Liyu received the ball on the wing, and despite a wide-open space ahead, he opted not to break to the baseline or cut into the middle for a combination play. Instead, he took a direct shot from his position, sending a diagonal long pass into the penalty area, where Fabio headed it in, marking Guoan's 1000th goal in the CSL. The two goals in the second half followed the same pattern: crosses from the wing and headers in front of the goal. It proved that regardless of the method, scoring and winning are the only truths.

In the midweek FA Cup, Guoan's opponent is Yunnan Yukun, who also won in the latest CSL round. As a newly promoted team in the CSL, Yukun has already accumulated 29 points, and many believe they have essentially secured their survival, beginning to dream of making history in the FA Cup. The players expressed their desire to advance further in the FA Cup, clearly hoping to pull off an upset against Guoan at the Workers' Stadium.

In contrast, Guoan has shown almost no external expression regarding their thoughts on the FA Cup. After two consecutive league victories, the head coach and players did not proactively mention the FA Cup during interviews. However, in reality, Guoan's goals for the FA Cup do not require much elaboration; even before these two away league matches, both the club and fans implicitly accepted that reaching the FA Cup final was the minimum expectation, regardless of the outcomes of the two away matches.

With this mindset, Guoan performed well in the two away matches, allowing the team to fully focus on the FA Cup semifinals. Guoan had a rough start in the first two rounds of this year's FA Cup, advancing only through penalty shootouts. Of course, both earlier rounds were away matches, and this time Guoan finally returns to their home ground. Moreover, this match will be the only home game for Guoan in this year's FA Cup; even if they reach the final, it has already been confirmed that the championship match will take place at the Suzhou Olympic Sports Center.

However, reaching the final will not be easy for Guoan. First, the team continues to face serious injury issues; two foreign center-backs are already injured, and during the match against Qingdao West Coast on the 16th, midfielder foreign player Dawan suffered an unexpected strain, leaving only two foreign players available for the midweek match. Secondly, Yunnan Yukun psychologically does not fear Guoan, having taken the lead against Guoan at the Workers' Stadium in their league match, and they have the "Guoan nemesis" Ye Chuguai on their roster. Yukun is also offering bonuses as incentives, making this tough battle no easier than the previous matches against Shenhua and Rongcheng.

Nevertheless, despite the numerous challenges, Guoan has only one goal: they absolutely cannot suffer an upset at home. The club has made it clear to the team to treat this match as if it were a final, preparing for 120 minutes or even penalty shootouts. They must consider the difficulties more seriously and view the problems more sternly to prepare adequately and achieve a positive outcome.