Dalian denies report it's going into bankruptcy

Chinese company Dalian Shide denied on Sunday that it is going through bankruptcy.

The company, which owns a Chinese Super League club of the same name, reportedly is having problems after chairman Xu Ming was detained in mid-March on charges of economic crimes.

A Chinese newspaper reported Shide has quietly begun preparing for bankruptcy, though the company denied the report and threatened legal action in retaliation.

The Dalian team was established in 1994 as Dalian Wanda. Dalian Shide took over after Wang Jianlin, who ran the Dalian Wanda Group, decided to pull out of soccer in 2000.

The team has won eight top league champions since 1994 and made the semifinals of the AFC Champions League in 2003. It's been home to many renowned Chinese players, including former Manchester City player Sun Jihai, former national team striker Hao Haidong, and Li Ming, general manager of Dalian Aerbin.

With the rapid growth and investment of its domestic counterparts, Shide has fallen from the league's top-tier teams in recent years.

With the support of the local government, the club hired Portuguese coach Nelo Vingada last year. The team felt to the bottom of the league after losing to Guangzhou R&F, 1-0, on Sunday, and suffered a 5-0 loss to Jiangsu Sainty on April 1.

Is Shenhua getting set to name new coach?

French coach Jean-Florent Ikwange Ibenge will probably take over CSL side Shanghai Shenhua after the team said compatriot Jean Tigana decided to quit.

Ibenge was introduced to the players - along with three other members of the team's new coaching staff - on Sunday morning, then took charge of training on Sunday afternoon.

Though Tigana said on Monday he hadn't resigned, Ibenge is expected to be announced as head coach today, Chinese media reported.

Ibenge, 50, is a senior instructor for the French Football Federation, and coached the Congo national team

The club said Tigana, whose three assistants were fired last week, handed in his resignation and was having his lawyers talk with the club.

The 56-year-old appeared at Hongkou Stadium ahead of a league game against Tianjin Teda on Friday, but refused to sign the starting lineup and left the stadium by taxi before the match started.

Nicolas Anelka was appointed player-coach for the game, which Shenhua lost to Teda 1-0.

"That is the first time I saw a soccer player playing on the pitch while coaching the team," said Teda player Li Weifeng, who talked briefly with Tigana before the match. "A player can only take care of part of the game no matter how capable he is. It's totally different from sitting along the pitch to coach the team.

"I feel it's not (professional) to change a coach like Tigana in this way. (Tigana) said he never thought he would face so many obstacles in China. He was a little confused when talking about the future. He said he wants to stay in China and help improve the Chinese league."

Punishment is coming for Jonoon-Shenxin fight

Shanghai Shenxin general manager Qin Ping said the club plans to punish the players responsible for the team's altercations with Qingdao Jonoon last Sunday.

The game, which Jonoon won 2-1, was interrupted at the 82-minute mark after Shenxin striker Antonio Flavio's flagrant foul of Guo Liang led to a brawl.

Flavio and Jonoon's Zheng Long, who was struck in the face by Flavio while pushing the Brazilian, were shown red cards.

"Fighting and flagrant fouls are strictly forbidden by our club, and we will certainly punish the offenders after we figure out the situation," Qin said.

Shenxin coach Zhu Jiong told Chinese website sina.com that the team is young and needs to learn how to control its emotions.

"We are a young team, and our players can't control their anger when they feel they are treated unfairly in games," Zhu said. "We will face the problems and help players better solve problems under such circumstances."

Shenxin players also fought with Shanghai Shenhua in a friendly between the two sides before league play began.

"Clubs should make detailed rules regulating players, and what those clubs did is far from enough," China's Soccer News quoted an official from the professional league executive committee as saying. "The clubs with loose management often break the rules and get more red cards, and are unable to make good results in the league."

According to the newspaper, referees' match reports and a video of the conflict will be sent to the CFA, and the disciplinary committee will meet to discuss the punishment.

(China Daily 04/17/2012 page24)