On January 18 at 15:30, Dalian Yibo faced Shanghai Shenhua in a friendly match. All five foreign players of Dalian Yibo were present and participated in training. Considering the short time since the players joined the team and the need to evaluate them, only one foreign player, Kalanga, was fielded in the starting lineup for Dalian Yibo. The national team players of Shanghai Shenhua have returned to training but did not participate in the match, while five foreign players including Myniro and Teixeira started the game. On the Dalian side, Xiao Wen faced his former team, with players such as Jin Pengxiang, Lv Peng, Sun Bo, Lv Zhuoyi, and Yang Mingrui in the starting lineup. The son of Dalian Yibo's investor, Wang Yingwei, live-streamed the match, which was the team's first real confrontation with a Super League team after their promotion. As a title-contending team, Shanghai Shenhua showed no mercy from the start, adopting an aggressive pressing tactic with a fast pace that caught Dalian Yibo off guard. Early in the game, Kalanga had a one-on-one opportunity but failed to capitalize on it. Shortly after, Shenhua launched a counterattack with Yang Haoyu scoring the first goal, putting Dalian Yibo behind 0-1 early on. Coach Li Guoxu is also adapting to playing against Super League teams, constantly shouting instructions to his players on the sidelines. Dalian Yibo also had attacking opportunities, with Kalanga once again finding himself in a one-on-one situation, only to be denied by the goalkeeper. After winter training, Kalanga's physical condition and stamina are good, but his finishing…

With the arrival of Mamadou, Dalian Yibo now has four foreign players: forwards Kalanga and Malele, attacking midfielder Labiade, and central defender Mamadou. They are just one short of completing their five foreign player quota, with only the last defensive midfielder puzzle piece missing. These four foreign players have all been tested in actual combat; Kalanga, Malele, and Mamadou were all mainstays in the Chinese Super League (CSL), not "blind boxes," while Labiade, although he played in the China League One last year, was once a regular in the Eredivisie and has experience on big stages. Just with these few foreign players, Yibo indeed has more confidence in avoiding relegation! According to a video shot by Wang Gang, the Yibo team reporter, Mamadou has arrived in Haikou and joined the entire Yibo squad. Before training, Dalian Yibo head coach Li Guoxu and the players warmly welcomed Mamadou with applause. Mamadou made a brief speech, saying that he was very happy to come to Dalian and hoped that everyone could defend the honor for this family and the city of Dalian and play an exciting season. Mamadou is currently 30 years old and made 27 appearances for Guoan in the 2024 season, contributing one assist. After his contract ended, both sides did not renew it, and Mamadou joined the newly promoted CSL team as a free agent. Both Malele and Mamadou have the character "Ma" in their names, and Dalian Yibo really has a connection with "Ma." The club's recruitment strategy is relatively clear; Malele was the main striker in last…