Rongcheng's big win keeps them leading, but the "real test" will begin at Workers' Stadium.

Journalist Lu Mi reports. On the evening of March 3rd, the first match of the 4th round of the Chinese Super League kicked off. Chengdu Rongcheng hosted Qingdao West Coast at home. Thanks to Silva's consecutive goal-scoring, Sorokin's debut goal, and Felipe's stunning hat-trick after coming on as a substitute, Chengdu Rongcheng defeated their opponent 5-1 in a dominant performance. They achieved a record of 3 wins and 1 draw in the new season, maintaining their top position on the CSL standings with 10 points, while also extending their unbeaten streak against West Coast to 5 matches across seasons. Against the backdrop of traditional strong teams being deducted points, Rongcheng has already shown strong championship contention momentum early in this season.

In this match, Rongcheng made lineup adjustments. Key foreign player Yusa was absent, with Yang Mingyang partnering Liao Lisheng in midfield. The team's tactics were accordingly adjusted. As the opponent focused on limiting central attacks, they shifted to emphasizing wing play, continuously creating threats through a combination of wing and central attacks. Just 7 minutes into the match, Rongcheng seized on a defensive mistake by the opponent for a dream start. They initiated an attack from a throw-in. West Coast player Wang Peng's failed clearance from a header gave Silva the chance to volley and score, marking another consecutive match with a goal, putting Rongcheng ahead first.

The West Coast defense repeatedly showed gaps, with coordination between domestic and foreign players frequently faltering, which Rongcheng precisely exploited. In the 40th minute, Rongcheng launched successive attacks. Romulo's cut-in and long-range shot pierced the opponent's defense, and Sorokin timely followed up to score, changing the score to 2-0, establishing a leading advantage for the team. Meanwhile, Rongcheng's defensive end became a crucial guarantee for stabilizing the situation. In the first half, Hu Hetao almost completely sacrificed offensive attributes, specializing in defending against the West Coast foreign player on his side; Wei Shihao took advantage of the defensive vacuum on the left flank, making forward runs and positioning with ease; offensive player Silva also frequently dropped back to assist in defense, making the team's defensive system impenetrable.

At halftime, Rongcheng's advantage was very clear. Although the possession statistics showed only a slight difference, the offensive efficiency was vastly different. Rongcheng completed 7 shots with 4 on target, while West Coast's 3 shots had none on target.

In the 60th minute, Aloysius made a corresponding substitution adjustment. Felipe, who had been sidelined for two matches due to a finger injury, finally returned. This adjustment triggered a major outburst from Rongcheng. After coming on, Felipe was in full form, not only driving comprehensive firepower across all three lines but also performing a hat-trick in the final moments. Ultimately, Rongcheng defeated their opponent 5-1. After this match, Rongcheng capitalized on favorable scheduling, solidified their standings ranking, further widened the point gap with traditional strong teams, and successfully led the CSL standings.

In this encounter with West Coast, Rongcheng played with a four-defender formation, starting with only three foreign players. The team implemented a tactic of pressing early from the start. Through efficient offense and tight defense, they broke through previous offensive barriers, displaying a multi-point scoring offensive pattern. Silva's strong integration and Felipe's stunning performance became the two core contributors to this big win.

As a new addition to the team, Silva, compared to previous player Kalon, has excelled in systematically integrating into the team's tactical system and utilizing his personal technical traits. Not only is his offensive efficiency extremely high, making him a strong contender for this season's CSL Golden Boot, but he also possesses极强的职业精神. Previously, he persevered through a mouth injury to complete a goal; after being injured and substituted in the last round's Sichuan-Chongqing derby, he swiftly returned to play this round. Silva's arrival has completely changed Rongcheng's previous offensive difficulties. In the past, when Felipe was injured or unavailable, even with the team having other four foreign players and naturalized players, offensive efficiency would significantly drop. Now, Silva's perfect filling of the role means the team's offensive end no longer relies on a single core.

What's even more remarkable is that Silva is not solely focused on offense. He not only perfectly fits the team's tactical setup on the offensive end, efficiently completing scoring tasks, but also actively takes on defensive responsibilities, frequently dropping back to participate in wing defensive coordination, directly stifling West Coast's wing attacks. He practically demonstrates an极度负责 attitude towards the overall tactics. Facing Rongcheng's严密防守体系, West Coast attempted to strengthen frontline冲击 through rotation of forward personnel, but Rongcheng始终站稳防守篱笆, continuously压缩阵型空间, rendering all opponent's offensive attempts futile.

And Felipe's substitution appearance completely overwhelmed West Coast's defense. In the 81st minute, Hu Hetao dribbled into the box creating a cut-back opportunity, which Felipe precisely seized to score, netting his third goal of the match to seal the win; two minutes later, he scored again to complete a brace; in the final moments of added time, Rongcheng获得点球机会, Felipe took the penalty and scored, performing a hat-trick. Such efficiency served as a gift for his return and became the best birthday present for his 34th birthday on match day.

This 5-1 big win is not only a full release of Rongcheng's offensive火力, but also a reflection of the team's increasing maturity in磨合新的战术体系. The team把控攻防节奏恰到好处, allowing each player to complete合理的战术任务 at the right time, with团队整体性愈发统一. Regarding the current standings, Chengdu Rongcheng leads with 10 points, holding a巨大优势. However, it must be noted that among Rongcheng's first 4 league matches, aside from the away Sichuan-Chongqing derby which had some difficulty, the other 3 wins were within expectation. As the schedule unfolds, starting from the 5th round away challenge against Beijing Guoan, Rongcheng's真正的挑战 for this season will truly begin.