ACLE's appearance Kangwon FC is holding the Shanghai Shenhua master's line? Media Slutsky's possible replacement

Sep 15, 2025

ACLE's appearance Kangwon FC is holding the Shanghai Shenhua master's line? Media Slutsky's possible replacement
◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association



Shanghai Sunhwa's atmosphere is unusual ahead of the first edition of the 2025-2026 Asian Champions League (ACLE) League Phase against Gangwon FC on the 16th.

Chinese soccer journalist Li Xuan recently wrote in his Weibo that "Coach Leonid Slutsky is in a dangerous position."," he wrote. "Shanghai Shenhua tied Shandong Taishan 3-3 after the A-match break. Considering Shandong won Beijing Guoan by six goals, a draw is not a problem. "There is no reason for Slutzky to be blamed as well," he said. "However, this game was played after Shanghai Shenhua suffered a sharp slump last month. Slutzky seems to have failed to solve the team's problems properly. Looking at Slutsky's performance at the post-match press conference, it seems that he has run out of ideas."

In fact, after the match against Shandong, Slutsky made remarks that seemed to hint at his future. Asked about his relationship with the club recently, he said "I may not be the one preparing for the next game." In response, Li Xuan said "If this is true, Shanghai Shenhua has not communicated with Slutsky since August, or seems to have issued a warning. If the situation does not improve, there is a possibility that the club will make a serious decision."




"Of course, Slutzky doesn't think this situation is entirely his problem," Rishan said. In a pre-match press conference, referring to Shandong striker Kazayshvili (Baco), 'We have scored 11 goals in the last five games, and no player has scored that many goals for our team this season. It was purified through interpretation, but coach Slutsugi expressed dissatisfaction with the composition of foreign players in the team. "The question facing Shanghai Shenhua is who will prepare for the next game..." he concluded.

ACLE's appearance Kangwon FC is holding the Shanghai Shenhua master's line? Media Slutsky's possible replacement
◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association
Shanghai Shenhua ranks third with 50 points in 24 Super League games, three points behind Chengdu Longcheng (53 points), led by coach Seo Jung-won. Although he is looking to win the championship beyond his regional rival Shanghai Haigang (51 points), the pursuit of fourth-place Beijing Guoan (48 points) is also not easy. Shanghai Shenhua's aspiration, which has not won the league for 30 years since 1995, seems to be approaching manager Slutsky under pressure.

Coach Slutsky had a major career with CSKA Moscow, a prestigious Russian team, and also served as the head coach of the Russian national team from 2015 to 2016. In 2017, he briefly took the helm of Hull City (England), and has been in charge of Shanghai Shenhua since last year after passing through Pieterser and Rubin Kazan.




As expected in China, Shanghai Shenhua may play the match against Gangwon as an agent. As no official announcement has been made yet, there is still a high possibility that Slutsky will lead the match against Gangwon. If coach Slutsky saves the spark of a rebound against Gangwon, he may calm public opinion on the change in his future, but if the opposite result comes out, it could be his last game. This is why attention is focused on Gangwon's performance to face Shanghai Shenhua.








This article was translated by Naver AI translator.