Dalian Pro vs Shanghai Shenhua Prediction: Will The Flower Of Shanghai Be Able To Outplay A Resilient Dalian Pro?

As they host Shanghai Shenhua at the Puwan Stadium, Dalian Pro will try to prevent a drop in the Super League standings as they battle to hold onto their 12th place with a number of rivals in the Super League already pushing for their spot.

Form: DWWLD

Making amends for previous meetings with Beijing Guoan, they were able to hold their ground as they made valiant efforts to seriously cause a shock victory, but they were unable to hold on to their narrow lead in the second half and were held to a 2-2 draw.

With a point gained, they have been quite difficult to bend over in recent matches, as they have now seen three consecutive matches without a loss, with only two victories and a draw.

They have had an impressive streak thus far, as indicated by their performance in which they have amassed 8 points throughout the course of the last five games they have played and which has seen them placed in 12th place on 19 points level with Shenzhen FC placed in 13th.

Form: WDWWD

The visitors took advantage of a sluggish Meizhou Hakka team in their most recent game, showing signs of slumber in the final minutes of play. Yang Xu's goal in the 90th minute gave them a narrow 1-0 victory at home.

They have been progressing slowly, but their form has been steady, to put it mildly, and this has led to their placement in the continental spot in third place with 33 points. Despite this, they are far from safe because their position is not yet guaranteed.

Their defense in the last five matches has been commendable, as they have been a strong towering wall in defense, surrendering only three goals while remaining focused on the task at hand, allowing them to rack up 11 points.

Treading carefully against the hosts will be at the top of their priority list, as the head-to-head record will not be an advantage for them to record a victory, as the hosts have been untenable in recent matches, and with maintaining their position being their top priority, creativity will undoubtedly be required to outplay the hosts.

• Shanghai Shenhua has scored in five consecutive Super League games.
• Dalian Pro has lost all five Super League meetings with Shanghai Shenhua.
• When these two teams meet, the average number of goals scored is 4.
• Shanghai Shenhua scores 2.4 goals against Dalian Pro on average, while Shanghai Shenhua scores 1.6 goals against Dalian Pro.

In the last 15 meetings, Dalian Pro has won three times, Shanghai Shenhua has won seven times, and there have been five draws, with Shanghai Shenhua winning by a goal difference of 22-16.

Dalian Pro have experienced a realm of possibility that has seen them escape the clutches of the relegation zone, bridging a six-point gap to safety, and it is no surprise that the bookmakers still have faith to vouch for them to come out on top and continue their resurgence against the visitors.

While the visitors wait for Shandong Taishan to make a mistake so that they can close the 10-point gap, it will be too much to ask of a team that is already struggling to maintain their position and on the verge of dropping down the standings, and their hosts will not make it any easier for them to cruise to victory.

Given that both teams to score have been witnessed in four of Dalian Pro's last five games, we could fancy them to continue that trend against a team with a strong defense that has only allowed three goals in their last five.

Both teams to score appears to be a reasonable pick in this situation given that both teams have an equal arsenal at their disposal to compete with each other.

• Both Teams To Score (Yes) for 1.75
• Goals - Over 2.5 for 1.90
• Corners - Over 8.5 for 1.80