With just a single point between them in the Chinese Super League, there is plenty to play for on Thursday when Cangzhou Mighty Lions host Henan Songshan Longmen.
The hosts currently sit one place above their opponents, but a victory for either team could lead to them climbing the division depending on other results.
Match preview
Cangzhou will be hoping to get back to winning ways immediately on Thursday after they were surprisingly knocked out of the Chinese FA Cup at the weekend.
The result was something that the team will be aiming to put behind them immediately, especially since another defeat would lead to their opponents overtaking them in the division.
Zhao Junzhe's men currently sit 10th in the league table after a mixed start to the campaign with three wins, four draws and five defeats so far.
Cangzhou have struggled more at home than anywhere else which is something that they will be aiming to change, having only won once at this point.
There is only one other team that has conceded more goals than them in the division as well, which is a big reason for their struggles overall.
That is something that the visitors will be attempting to exploit on Thursday even though they are one of the lowest-scoring teams in the division.
Even though Henan are currently just behind Cangzhou, they have been in better form recently which should provide some confidence to the group.
Sergio Diaz's men are undefeated in their previous four matches in all competitions which is something that the team will be hoping to keep going as they aim to progress up the division.
Unlike their opponents, Henan were able to progress in the Chinese FA Cup after a 1-0 win, with Song Runtong getting the only goal of the game.
However, even though they are in a strong run right now the team will be hoping to simply push away from the relegation zone this weekend as there is only a four-point gap at the moment.
Team News
Deabeas Owusu-Sekyere has been a threat from the bench as of late for the Mighty Lions, and that is something that could end up continuing in midweek.
However, the hosts will be without Yan Zihao this time around after he was sent off in their most recent outing.
For the visitors, Runtong will be hoping his performance in the Chinese FA Cup was good enough to earn him another start this time around.
Nemanja Covic is someone who will retain his place in the team as he has been the main attacking threat for Henan this season.
Cangzhou Mighty Lions possible starting lineup:
Shao; Sun, Whang, Zheng, Liu, Zhao; Maritu, Zhukov, Skoric, Yao; Locadia
Henan Songshan Longmen possible starting lineup:
Wang; Sunjic, Gu, Yang; Luo, Li, Tudi, Zhong; Covic, Song, Goa
We say: Cangzhou Mighty Lions 1-1 Henan Songshan Longmen
One of the weakest defences meets one of the worst attacks of the season in this game, and that is something that could lead to them cancelling each other out to earn a point each.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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