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The second round of fixtures in Group B of the 2021 Chinese Super League has concluded, so here is a round-up of all the action in the Suzhou-based group.
Shanghai Port 3-1 Beijing Guoan
While Group A started and ended in disappointment, the first fixture in Group B kicked off with plenty of goals between the two strongest teams playing in Suzhou this season.
Ricardo Lopes stunned the Imperial Guard with two goals in the opening five minutes of the match, which Beijing would not be able to pull back from – despite having the majority of chances and possession throughout the match.
Jonathan Viera brought Slaven Bilić’s side back to just one goal back in the 22nd minute of the match, but Shanghai Port held on and even extended their lead through Lü Wenjun with less than ten minutes remaining.
The defeat sees Beijing open their 2021 campaign with back-to-back losses, sending them to the foot of a group that they should realistically be competing at the top end of.
Dalian Professional 0-1 Hebei
After seeing so much upheaval during the off-season, Dalian Professional continued their disappointing start to the 2021 season, with Hebei able to claim victory with just a solitary goal.
Chances were surprisingly fairly even in this match, with both sides having just two shots on target each, while Hebei controlled possession – but it took a long VAR review to award Hebei with a penalty for handball late in the match.
Marcão, who has been a reliable and consistent goal scorer in the Chinese Super League over the past two seasons, scored from the penalty spot in the 80th minute of play to ensure Hebei claimed all three points.
Wuhan 1-3 Shanghai Shenhua
Group B also featured another goal-fest with Shanghai Shenhua taking on Wuhan, seeing the blue half of Shanghai claim all three points after fighting back from an early deficit.
Stéphane Mbia opened the scoring after just five minutes, but Wuhan were unable to hold onto their lead for a full half an hour before Kim Shin-wook netted from the penalty spot.
Peng Xinli scored just shy of the hour mark and Christian Bassogog extended the lead with Shenhua’s third in the 78th minute of play.
Two minutes later saw misery piled onto Wuhan when Zhao Honglüe saw red for an extremely rash, mid-air challenge that saw him send his studs into Bassogog’s knee – a challenge that saw the Cameroonian forward taken off on a stretcher.
Changchun Yatai 0-0 Tianjin Jinmen Tiger
The final Group B match of the second round ended without a goal, despite Changchun Yatai’s best efforts against a heavily depleted Tianjin side.
With their offensive quarter of Júnior Negrão, Erik Lima, Serginho and Tan Long, expectations were that Changchun would pile on further disappointment against Tianjin, but hitting the post and crossbar on three separate occasions ensured the team that almost ceased to exist claimed their first points of the season.
Changchun Yatai dominated in this one, but were unable to convert on their truly threatening opportunities and will need to be at their very best over the next few matches, when they take on some significantly harder opposition.
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