In the 26th round of the Chinese Super League (CSL) on the evening of Nov. 21, Guangzhou City played against Beijing Guoan in Jinjiang, and still struggled to recover from the loss by playing an extra man in the second half, losing 1-2 in a row.
Guangzhou City won 1, drew 1 and lost 3 in the last five rounds and lost three consecutive games in the last three rounds, three points away from Wuhan Changjiang, the 15th place in the league. Beijing Guoan has won four and lost one in the last five rounds, losing only to Wuhan Sanzhen, and was ranked sixth before the match. Beijing Guoan beat Guangzhou City 1-0 for the first time this season.
Guangzhou City team members
Two foreigners from Guangzhou City, Guilherme and Caldona, started the match, while Ye Chugui was not included in the roster. Beijing Guoan got off to a fantastic start. In the fourth minute, Zhang Xizhe crossed the ball for Zhang Yuning to head home. In the 24th minute, Jiang Xiangyou scored on a shot off an assist from Wang Gang to help Beijing Guoan end the first half with a 2-0 lead. Guangzhou City only had two feet of shots and zero shots on goal. There weren't many ways to attack and 37% possession was at a disadvantage.
Guangzhou City had a great opportunity to chase points in the second half. In the 51st minute, Beijing Guoan's Yu Dabao committed a foul to stop Cardona's one-touch goal and was given a red card. Guangzhou City played with one more player and attacked several times with 9 shots on goal. Unfortunately, the shots were not accurate enough, with only one shot on goal in the whole match. It was not until stoppage time that Guangzhou City equalized with a penalty from Guilherme after Cao Yongjing's handball "gave away a penalty".
Guangzhou coach Li Weifeng was suspended and Guangzhou City team captain Li Zhe attended the post-match press conference. He said both sides played hard. Guangzhou City's recent schedule has been intense and to a certain extent injured, "In the second half, we fielded many young players and played with momentum. This is what our team needs and what we hope for in the future. If every game goes like the second half, I believe we can avoid relegation."
