Just six minutes in, Cui Qinglu skillfully crossed the ball into the right side, and Xu Li jumped up to head the ball, but slightly scuffed the bottom line.
In the 23rd minute, Wu Housheng took a long-range shot from just outside the box, and Bao Yaxiong was quick enough to hold the ball in his arms.
In the 30th minute, Teixeira managed to break the ball and direct it to Malalele, but Malalele's one-two failed to score and Kim Gengmin quickly took control of the situation.
In the 43rd minute, Malelai was too aggressive on the field and stepped on an opposing player, and Kuwaiti referee Ahmed Ali insisted on a yellow card after a VAR replay.
Near the 45th minute, Heo Li scored for Gwangju, however, a foul by Jung Ho Yoon on Ko Tien Yi preceded the goal. Kuwaiti video assistant referee Abdullah Kandari alerted referee Ahmad Ali to review the video and eventually canceled the goal.
In the 48th minute, André Luis took a shot from inside and outside the box, but the ball was unfortunately deflected off the line.
At the sixty-fifth minute mark, Gao Tianyi's set piece flew into the penalty area, where Wu Xi headed home and Kim Gengmin came close to a gift.
Shanghai Shenhua missed a good chance to equalize in the 88th minute when Xie Pengfei made too many adjustments and Manafa's shot was successfully blocked.
Technical statistics
Player Ratings
Shanghai Shenhua Lineup
Starting [4-3-1-2]
Goalkeeper: 30 - Bao Yaxiong
Defenders: 27-Chen Jin Yi, 5-Ju Chen Jie, 32-Eddy, 16-Yang Ze Xiang [66 points], 13-Manafa
Midfield: 15-Wu Xi, 33-Wang Haijian [77 points], 17-Gao Tianyi [66 points], 7-Xu Haoyang
Front: 10 - Teixeira
Forwards: 9-André Luis, 11-Malélé [84 points], 20-Yu Hanchao
Substitutes: 1-Ma Zhen, 41-Zhou Zhengkai, 3-Kim Soon-Kai, 29-Zhou Junchen, 31-Wang Yifan, 36-Fernando, 45-Han Jiawen
Gwangju FC Lineup
Starting [4-4-2]
Goalie: 1 - Kim Geng Min
Defenders: 27-Kim Jin-ho, 15-Byun Jun-soo, 23-Kim Gang-jo, 3-Lee Yeo-gi [79 points], 2-Cho Seong-kwon
Midfielders: 30 - Choi Kyung-rok [79 points], 17 - Jung Ji-yul, 14 - Jung Ho-yeon, 55 - Park Tae, 77 - Oh Ho-seong [57 points], 7 - Asani
Forwards: 10-Lee Hee-kyun [74 pts], 40-Sin Yew-woo, 18-Hsu Li [74 pts], 20-Lee Ken
Substitutes: 31-Ro Hee-dong, 6-Ahn Young-kyu, 8-Lee Yoo-wai, 22-Lee Sang-ki, 24-Lee Gang, 47-Kim Han-gil, 88-Moon Min-seo
