Han Peng remains at Taishan, the only local coach fighting to uphold the honor of the championship contenders?

Reporter Chen Yong reports In the 2026 CSL season, most domestic coaches are clustered in the lower-ranking teams, while among those with realistic title chances, Han Peng is probably the only local head coach. During the 2025 season, he proved his strength in tough matches and will keep defending the reputation of local coaches in the upcoming season's key battles.

In the 2025 season, Han Peng took over Shandong Taishan starting from the 17th round of the CSL. After an initial record of one win and two losses, he led the team to an unbeaten streak in the following 11 matches. Ultimately, Han Peng’s team achieved 8 wins, 4 draws, and 2 losses, averaging 2 points per game, a significant improvement compared to the 1.56 points per game from the previous 16 rounds.

Regarding other statistics, under Han Peng’s leadership, the team averaged 2.57 goals per match, a clear increase from the 2.06 goals per game before his tenure. Tactically, Han Peng successfully resolved the coexistence issue between Cresan and Kazayishvili: in the first 16 rounds, Cresan scored 6 goals and made 4 assists, Wako had 8 goals and 1 assist, totaling 19 combined contributions; in the last 14 rounds, Cresan had 5 goals and 5 assists, Wako scored 19 goals and made 1 assist, combining for 30 goals and assists.

Due to Han Peng’s outstanding coaching performance, Shandong Taishan decided to retain him as head coach after the 2025 season. However, since Han Peng has not yet obtained a professional-level coaching license, the club needs to appoint a nominal head coach, and the candidate has basically been confirmed. Meanwhile, Han Peng also needs to strengthen the coaching staff, which is one of the club’s recent priorities.

Following Han Peng’s confirmation as coach, the club and coaching staff are focusing on recruiting both domestic and foreign players: on the foreign front, the team intends to replace two defenders or midfielders, while domestically, they hope to add 2 to 3 players to reinforce the squad’s strength.

As for local players, reports indicate that some veterans might be loaned out or transferred to other clubs. The club’s determination to rejuvenate the squad is evident, but this will be balanced by strengthening the team through foreign signings and selective domestic reinforcements to maintain competitiveness.

Regarding Shandong Taishan B team, it usually consists mainly of players born in 2007, but the club has made strategic plans: most of the 2007 players are expected to play in the “Su Super” league. The B team will be composed of three groups: first, U21 players included in the first-team roster, who can also play for the B team; second, key 2007-born players, especially those selected for the U18 national team, with six players from Shandong Taishan in the latest U18 squad; third, some outstanding players born in 2008 and 2009 may also represent the B team, though the 2008 group is currently training in Auxerre, France. The club will also keep track of those playing in the “Su Super” league and may recall them if they perform exceptionally well.

Shanghai Port, Shanghai Shenhua, Chengdu Rongcheng, Beijing Guoan, Shandong Taishan, and Zhejiang club are considered the top six teams in the 2026 CSL season. Zhejiang has made good progress in youth development over the past two seasons, and with quality foreign players, they could challenge the relatively stable “top five” hierarchy established in recent years.

So far, except Zhejiang which might seek a local coach, the two Shanghai clubs continue with foreign coaches, Beijing Guoan has confirmed its search for a European coach, and Chengdu Rongcheng is also likely to appoint a foreign coach. Therefore, Han Peng of Shandong Taishan is very likely the only local coach among the top six teams.

Under these circumstances, Han Peng faces considerable pressure: firstly, he must lead the team to better results, such as finishing in the top three to uphold the honor of local coaches, and ideally achieve even greater success. Secondly, he needs to maintain strong performances in matches against other top teams to defend the reputation of domestic coaches.

During the 2025 season, under coach Choi Kang-hee, the record against the other four strong teams was one draw and three losses. However, after Han Peng took over, except for a loss to Chengdu Rongcheng due to a red card and team cohesion issues, Han Peng showed strong performances in key matches: a 6-0 win over Beijing Guoan in round 23, a 3-3 away draw with Shanghai Shenhua in round 24, and a crucial 3-1 victory against Shanghai Port in round 28. If Chengdu Rongcheng had not missed chances, Han Peng might have rewritten the CSL title race.

Therefore, Taishan fans naturally look forward to the team’s performances in the upcoming high-profile matches. If Han Peng ends up being the only local head coach among the top six teams, his achievements will likely attract more attention from domestic supporters.