At 20:00 on the evening of July 27th, Guangzhou and Shandong Taishan started a top-of-the-table battle in the 9th round of the 2021 Chinese Super League. In the first half, Yang Liyu utilized an anti-offside break and opened the door to victory with a precise one-touch goal. In the second half, Ickerson's header sealed the victory. Despite Delgado's equalizer in injury time, Guangzhou beat Taishan 2-1, remaining undefeated for seven consecutive rounds and ending Taishan's undefeated season. In the standings, Guangzhou is tied with Taishan, but leads the Guangzhou Division by a small margin.
Taishan led the Guangzhou race with 18 points, while Guangzhou was right behind them, trailing by 3 points. The win was significant for Guangzhou as they managed to retain their second place. Although Guangzhou failed to keep their winning streak alive in the last round of the city derby, Taishan continued their two-game winning streak and became the only undefeated team in the division. It's worth noting that Artemisia Junmin's return to her hometown of Wuhan due to injury didn't have much of an impact on Taishan's starting lineup.
At the beginning of the match, the two sides started a fierce battle. Xu Xin's diagonal pass in the fifth minute, Liu Binbin's low left-footed shot, Deng Hanwen's clever breakthrough, and Shi Ke's mistake were all resolved one by one. In the 18th minute, Yang Liyu's pass from the bottom line almost caused chaos in Taishan's defense. In the second half, Ickerson's left-footed shot and Gaolat's header failed to pose a threat.
The key moment came in the 39th minute when Yang Liyu's one-touch goal was mistakenly ruled offside, but the video assistant referee corrected it in time to give Guangzhou a 1-0 lead.
At the end of the half, Guangzhou was leading 1-0. In the second half, Taishan made two substitutions, but Guangzhou still dominated the field. In the 60th minute, Luo Guofu's long-distance shot went over the crossbar. In the 67th minute, a brilliant header by Eckerson extended the score to 2-0.
Delgado's equalizer in injury time made the game dramatic. In the end, Guangzhou beat Taishan 2-1 and earned themselves three valuable points.
(Yang Hee-hee)
Guangzhou starting lineup (343): 32-Liu Dianzheng; 27-Wu Shaochong (U23), 2-Jiang Guangtai, 25-Deng Hanwen; 21-Gao Zhunyi, 15-Yan Dinghao (U23) (60'36-He Chao), 6-Liao Lixiang, 5-Zhang Linpeng; 17-Yang Liyu (60'37-Lo Guofu), 11 -Golart (74'22-Zhang Xiuwei), 9-Aixon;
Substitutes: 1-Liu Shibo, 13-Liu Weiguo, 7-Wei Shihao, 18-Alan, 22-Zhang Xiuwei, 28-Ling Jie (U23), 33-Zhong Yihao, 35-Li Xuepeng, 36-He Chao, 37-Lo Guofu, 39-Tan Kaiyuan (U23);
Shandong Taishan starting lineup (442): 18-Han Rongze; 39-Song Long (46'11-Liu Yang), 5-Zheng Zheng, 27-Shi Ke, 6-Wang Tong (81'19-Delgado); 21-Liu Binbin (59'17-Wu Xinghan), 28-Sun Junhao, 8-Xu Xin (79'36-Duan Liuyu (U23)), 15-Qi Tianyu (46'25-Fellaini); 7-Guo Tianyu (U23), 9-Leonardo;
Substitutes: 1-Li Guanxi (U23), 14-Wang Dalei, 11-Liu Yang, 16-Li Hailong, 17-Wu Xinghan, 19-Delgado, 25-Fellaini, 31-Zhao Jianfei (U23), 32-Tian Xin (U23), 35-Dailein, 36-Duan Liuyu (U23), 37-Ji Xiang.
Yellow cards: Guangzhou: 63' He Chao, 80' Liu Dianzheng, 82' Gao Zhunyi; Taishan: 44' Qi Tianyu, 82' Delgado, 94' Fellaini.
Referee: Wang Zhe.
