Matches are coming thick and fast as Round Five of the 2024 Chinese Super League season fell entirely in the middle of the week.
After having lengthy periods between the first couple of rounds this season, matches are starting to occur with increased frequency and the impact on teams and their standing in the league will become noticeable as the weeks go by.
We’re back with another roundup of results from the Chinese Super League, with some interesting results taking place in the fifth round of the competition.
Nantong Zhiyun 0-3 Shanghai Port
The first fixture of Round Five was a routine victory for reigning champions Shanghai Port, who dominated the hosts Nantong Zhiyun at the Rugao Olympic Sports Center.
Shanghai Port were gifted a penalty just 13 minutes into the match, with Brazilian midfielder Oscar calmly converting from the spot, scoring his first goal of the 2024 campaign and giving his side an early lead.
Things went from bad to worse for the hosts at the end of the first half, when Luo Xin was shown a red card, taking Nantong down to ten men while also conceding yet another penalty, which Oscar duly converted once again two minutes into added time.
Despite their comfortably two-goal lead, Shanghai Port did not rest on their laurels and eight minutes after the restart Li Ang netted to put them 3-0 ahead. It was a score line that would not change, with Shanghai happy to see out the rest of play while Nantong could not find any way into the match.
The result keeps Shanghai Port battling at the top end of the table, currently sitting in third place behind city rivals Shanghai Shenhua and Chengdu Rongcheng.
Beijing Guoan 1-2 Shenzhen Peng City
Easily the biggest shock of the round came when Beijing Guoan played host to recently promoted Shenzhen Peng City at Workers’ Stadium.
In what was expected to be a straightforward affair for the capital city club, turned out to be a stunning upset as Shenzhen picked up a shock 2-1 victory on the road.
Left back Li Zhi opened the scoring after 24 minutes of play, netting his first goal of the season in his first appearance of the season, despite Beijing controlling the majority of the match.
Despite the home side’s strength, finishing the match with more shots (15 to 9), shots on target (five to three) and even possession (62% to 38%), Shenzhen maintained their slim lead through the half-time break and even found themselves extending their lead just over 20 minutes after the restart.
Shenzhen were awarded a penalty and Spaniard Edu Garcia duly delivered from the spot, putting his side 2-0 ahead and on track for the most surprising of victories. Beijing continued to battle, desperately trying to find a way to pull things back, but they couldn’t until Zhang Xizhe finally scored from the penalty spot six minutes into stoppage time.
The result sees Shenzhen unbeaten in three matches, climbing up to eighth in the table, while Beijing sit just one point ahead of them in sixth place, with early results creating an interesting league table for fans.
Shandong Taishan 2-2 Henan
Another surprising result came as Shandong Taishan hosted strugglers Henan at Jinan Stadium, again expecting a straightforward occasion.
That’s what it looked like it would be when Henan found themselves down to ten men after Nemanja Covic received his marching orders after only 26 minutes, giving Henan a monumental challenge to overcome.
They fought valiantly, holding on for over an hour before Shandong took the lead they had been expecting all along through Liu Yang. Shandong looked to be on course for the win until Bruno Nazario produced a moment of magic and pulled Henan level with just ten minutes left in regulation.
Huang Zichang then sent the visiting fans into rapturous applause in the 88th minute, giving them a 2-1 lead that they certainly did not expect to have, putting them so close to claiming all three points.
Georgian international Valeri Qazaishvili dashed Henan fans’ hopes in added time, however, pulling Shandong level at 2-2 and securing his side a point in what was almost an embarrassing result, arguably worse than their 3-0 loss to Shanghai Shenhua in Round Three.
Henan still sit in the bottom rungs of the league standings, but the result could do much to boost morale and provide them with something to build on over the coming weeks.
Shanghai Shenhua 4-1 Wuhan Three Towns
It was a routine victory for Shanghai Shenhua in Round Five, which saw them maintain their perfect start to the season with five consecutive victories – making them early, and somewhat surprising, favourites for the league title this year.
André Luis hit the back of the net after 25 minutes to put his side ahead, while Xie Pengfei extended Shenhua’s lead just one minute before half-time, giving Wuhan Three Towns an almost impossible task to come back from.
They did try, however, as Jiang Zhipeng scored nine minutes after the break to put his side just one goal back of a point, but their hopes did not last long with Gao Tianyi scored in the 62nd minute, and joint leading goal scorer João Teixeira struck again just five minutes later – putting the match to bed with plenty of time remaining.
Qingdao West Coast 1-3 Tianjin Jinmen Tiger
Tianjin continued their impressive start to the season with another victory away from home as they put recently promoted Qingdao West Coast to the sword, scoring three goals in the process.
It took a long time for either side to break the deadlock, with Andrea Compagno opening the scoring in the 57th minute, but then the floodgates opened. Chinese international striker A Lan netted just four minutes later, pulling the hosts level at 1-1.
In the 85th minute, Albion Ademi scored to put Tianjin back ahead. Three minutes later, and West Coast’s fate was effectively sealed when Nelson da Luz received a red card, taking them down to ten men.
Shi Yan put the match beyond a doubt four minutes into stoppage time, securing Tianjin yet another three points, keeping them in and amongst the top teams in the league after picking up ten points through their opening five fixtures.
Chengdu Rongcheng 3-0 Zhejiang
Chengdu Rongcheng strengthened in all the right areas in the off-season and have started the year with a vengeance, showing the league that they are ready to contend and go for silverware after last season’s impressive fourth place finish.
In Round Five of the Chinese Super League season, Chengdu picked up a wholly convincing 3-0 victory over another strong team in Zhejiang, who have still yet to see last season’s talisman Leonardo find the net this season.
Chengdu opened the scoring after 23 minutes with Dutch centre back Timo Letschert picking up his first goal for the club. The 1-0 lead remained for a large majority of the match, until Chengdu extended it through Wei Shihao in the 71st minute, with Andrigo picking up his side’s third just six minutes later.
It’s a statement result from the club, who look poised to be one of the closest challengers to Shanghai Shenhua and puts them firmly in second place in the league after five matches.
Cangzhou Mighty Lions 2-0 Changchun Yatai
Changchun Yatai’s dismal start to the 2024 season continued as they travelled to face off against surprising outfit Cangzhou Mighty Lions, who are easily outperforming pre-season expectations at this stage of the campaign.
Changchun suffered a few injuries in their last fixture against Shanghai Shenhua, and were still without club captain Serginho, who continues to serve his three-match ban for profanity against Tianjin Jinmen Tiger.
Things could not have gone worse for Chen Yang’s side, who saw Hamit sent off just 15 minutes into the match, leaving the struggling Northeasterners already facing a tall order to even scrape a point.
Oscar Maritu netted in the 43rd minute, while Stoppila Sunzu scored just two minutes after the restart to give Cangzhou yet another three points as they find themselves sitting fifth in the league already.
Meizhou Hakka 0-0 Qingdao Hainiu
The final fixture of Round Five saw the first goalless draw between Meizhou Hakka and Qingdao Hainiu.
Meizhou dominated the possession game (61%), but otherwise it was a close affair between both sides, with Qingdao arguably having the better chances with six shots on target compared to the hosts’ three.
Neither side could find a way through, however, and left the Huitang Stadium with a point apiece. It is Hainiu’s first point of the season, which could give the team a much needed morale boost, despite them still sitting firmly in last place in the league.