South Korean manager Park Sung-hwa remained at the beginning of the season.

He wanted to build his team style by trusting South Korean players and put team captain Zhang Yaokun to the reserve team, while made many changes to the technical staff.

[3] In May, after losing 3 goals to Shandong Luneng Taishan, Dalian Shide fired Park,[4] and brought Portuguese Nelo Vingada instead.

[5] They merely escaped from relegation, ended up 12th in the league.

As of 29 March 2011[6] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply.