The reporter reported coldly At the end of the AFC Champions League group stage, Yokohama Mariners won 6-1 and scored 18 points, ranking first in East Asia, and their opponent in the knockout round was Shanghai Port, ranked 8th in East Asia.

Yokohama Mariners, who only finished 9th in the J1 League last season and missed out on the league to get a place in the AFC Champions League Elite League next season, made a big move in the winter window. Geneones, who was brought in from the Colombian league, spent 1.75 million euros on a transfer fee and was the top player in the J1 league in the winter window. In addition, Yokohama Mariners also brought in Japanese North Korean goalkeeper Park Il-gyu, South Sudanese-Australian central defender Thomas Deng, Indonesian-Dutch naturalized central defender Walsh, left winger Fuyuchi Suzuki, attacking midfielder Daiya Tono, and right winger Kantaro Matsuda, who was loaned from Niigata Swans. At the same time, the team let go of left-back Yuta Koike, central defender Makinosuke Tanaka, Brazilian central defender Eduardo, midfielder Takuma Nishimura and 35-year-old right winger Kota Mizunuma, and the third line has undergone major changes. On paper alone, Yokohama Mariners have improved from last season.

However, perhaps it is too many reinforcements, or it may be a change in the style of play after the change of manager, the players have been adapting to the relationship, and the record of the team led by Englishman Steve Horan has not been satisfactory at least so far. With the exception of home and away defeats to Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai Port in the AFC Champions League Elite League in February, Yokohama Mariners have drawn 3 and lost 1 in 4 J1 league games and have yet to win.

The new coach Horan mainly switches between three central defenders and four defenders, which puts high demands on the individual ability of the players. Yokohama Mariners have reported seven foreign players in the AFC Champions League, in addition to the forward trident of Lopes, Mateus and Elber, which are familiar to Chinese fans, as well as Togolese midfielder Jean Crowder, who joined the team last summer, and new central signings Walsh, Thomas Deng and Quignones in the winter window.

In February this year, the AFC Champions League elite league, Yokohama Mariners won Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai Port in a row, especially in the away game against Shanghai Port, Horan discharged a 4411 formation of 5 foreign aids, Quiñones and Walsh partnered in the central defender, and the double back was partnered by Jean Claude and Lu Yamane, Lopes rushed forward, and behind him was Asahi Uechu, Jun Amano and Matteius to support the attack. In the end, it was Asahi Uechu and Jun Amano who scored and beat Shanghai Port.

In the J1 League last Saturday, Yokohama Mariner was held to a 1-1 draw at home by Shonan Ocean. Horan sent four foreign players to start, goalkeeper Park Il-gyu, Colombian central defender Quinionez, defender Jean Claude and left winger Asahi Uechu and center Lopes all started against Shanghai Port, but their performances were mediocre. At the beginning of the second half, Horan replaced Teki Watanabe with Indonesian naturalized central defender Walsh, and at the last moment, he successively replaced Jun Amano and Mateus, trying to win at home, but had no choice but to waste many chances on the offensive side and draw 1-1. In the new season, Yokohama Mariner scored only 5 goals in 6 games, 3 goals in the AFC Champions League, 2 goals in the league, and the goal against Shonan Sea was an own goal of the opponent, and the remaining 4 goals came from 4 players, and the offensive 4 people scored 1 goal per person in the 4 people, and the offensive efficiency was too low.

Compared to his predecessor Hutchinson, Holland has not rotated much between the AFC Champions League and the J1 League. Goalkeeper Park Il-gyu, centre-back Quiñones, midfielder Jean Claude, attacking Uechu Asahi, Lopes and Matteus have kept their core frameworks in place and fine-tuned elsewhere. Walsh and Taiki Watanabe will compete for a central defender position, Shota Watanabe and Riku Yamane will compete for a midfield position, and Kenta Inoue and Daiya Tono will be the main rotations for the bilateral road.