New Atmosphere in the Chinese Super League: Foreign Coaches' Tactical Battles – Ramos, the Gold Content of the Best Coach Continues to Rise

Written by Zuo Rui Foreign coaches are a constant feature of China's professional league, with each season's storyline varying based on individuals. This season, 9 out of the 16 CSL teams have employed foreign head coaches. Among them, three have been retained for their achievements: Muscat, Slutsky, Ramos; three are newcomers: Montgomery, Mora, John Aloisi; and three have changed teams: Jordi, Milan, Ross Aloisi.

Australian John Aloisi, who debuted in the opening match, led Chengdu Rongcheng to a 5-1 rout over Shenzhen New Peng City. Due to the opponent's weaker strength and Jiang Zhipeng's red card after 18 minutes leaving them with one player less, what was originally a tough battle against a packed defense turned into an effortless, heavily skewed offensive display by the home team.

In such a match, John's coaching prowess and adaptability were hard to demonstrate, but regarding the shift from a three-center-back to a four-back formation, the defense was untested while the offense yielded clear results. The most convincing example occurred at the 45th minute: two fullbacks connected in the attacking third, Wang Dongshang crossed from the right, center-forward Felipe provided the link-up, and Hu Hetao scored from the follow-up. Additionally, John's meticulously designed corner tactics also showed their edge in the first round.

The squad left by predecessor Xu Zhenyuan is quite solid. Lucky John had the best start in his debut. Following home matches against Qingdao Hainiu and away games against Tongliang Long, it is expected that after three rounds, Rongcheng's leading advantage at the top will be consolidated and amplified. Whether John can seize this unprecedented opportunity will truly reveal his capability.

Two days later, John's brother Ross also led Zhejiang Greentown, starting with -5 points, to a home-opening victory. In the 2-0 win over Qingdao West Coast, Ross's team handled the pressure, largely adapted to the tactical change from three-center-back to four-back formation, and controlled the match for most of the time. If not for the outstanding performance of the opponent's goalkeeper Li Hao, the winning margin would have been larger.

In the 59th minute, Tong Lei was injured and substituted, forcing Ross to make an early change. Youngster Xu Junchi came on, and simultaneously, Ross replaced Tolich with Tao Qianglong. Both substitutes played noticeably effective roles.

Another first-round clash between a foreign coach and a local coach ended with Shanghai Shenhua defeating Dalian Yingbo 5-3. Despite starting the new season with -10 points, Slutsky still displayed Shenhua's formidable home dominance. After learning from last season's closing 2-2 home draw lesson, the forward line of Gaye and Latang proved sharp and unstoppable. Shenhua held overwhelming superiority until, after securing a 4-1 lead and making consecutive substitutions, they gave the opponent a chance to retaliate.

Muscat and Ramos are the CSL Best Coaches of the last two seasons. Shanghai Port's home 1-2 loss to Henan Caitaofang, an "upset," also proves both are not undeserving of their reputations. Especially the latter's successful transformation of the "ordinary team" Henan Caitaofang, after half a season's洗礼 and adjustments through winter training and recruitment, managed to upset the defending champion away, once again delivering a big surprise to Henan fans, showcasing convincing coaching prowess.

The addition of Gustavo, discarded by Port, gave Ramos an offensive pillar. Nassario's organizational talent found greater release space, and the entire attacking system became more robust. While firepower improved, tighter, tougher, and wider-ranging defense also displayed at Shanghai's away venue the results of Ramos's meticulous preparation and dedicated training.

The confidence Ramos instilled in the team subjectively fueled the drive of朴实无华 players like Zhong Yihao, He Chao, Huang Ruifeng, and objectively created conditions for the team to quickly reset negative points and pursue better results. For the Portuguese, maintaining the team's current ceiling is more critical, as investment is limited, and this time they faced not Port at its peak.

With key players injured on both offense and defense, Muscat's response showed no obvious missteps. Instead, his adjustments after trailing by two goals were commendable. Port regained control of the match, found their rhythm, and created opportunities足以翻盘. Whether shots would find the net如愿 was beyond Muscat's control.

Yunnan Yukun's 3-1 win over Qingdao Hainiu was the first encounter between two former CSL figures now serving new clubs. Jordi, leveraging home advantage and squad strength, delivered an unsurprising performance, with initial成效 in tactical改造. Milan's重组 Hainiu lacked成型 in playstyle, so losing on高原 was understandable.

Wuhan Three Towns, with significant冬窗转会投入, had a disappointing start, thoroughly suppressed at home by Beijing Guoan. Mexican coach Mora made timely应变, but formation changes and substitutions couldn't withstand the visitor's潮攻势. However, trailing by two goals in the second half, the home team's fighting spirit不减, salvaging some信心 and patience for the second round.

Guoan's new coach Montgomery延续 the强势 of the Super Cup新科冠军. Tactical革新 in high pressing and quick transitions nearly doubled the team's战力. In the more激情-infused 442 formation, the new midfield组合融为一体, veteran fullback Wang Gang and youngster邓捷夫如鱼得水, and dual forwards Zhang Yuning and Fabio both scored.

Overall, in the 2026 CSL first round, the best-performing foreign coach undoubtedly belongs to Henan's Ramos – the gold content of last season's CSL Best Coach continues to rise.