Dejan Damjanovic (right) of Beijing Guoan competes with Mei Fang of Guangzhou Evergrande in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province on Sunday. Photo: CFP

Chinese Super League (CSL) leaders Guangzhou Evergrande failed to seal their fourth league title in as many years on Sunday after they were defeated 1-0 at home by title contenders Beijing Guoan.

Evergrande led the 16-team Chinese top-flight league on 69 points heading into Sunday's penultimate round of the season, six points ahead of second-placed Guoan. A draw would have been enough to bring Evergrande the league title.

Evergrande were playing without South Korean center back Kim Young-gwon who was injured playing on ­national duty. Coach Marcello Lippi ­replaced Kim with Chinese defender Mei Fang.

There weren't many clear-cut chances for both sides in the first half. Bosnian midfielder Darko Matic's powerful long shot from outside the box in the 15th minute was saved by Evergrande goalkeeper Zeng Cheng in the top right corner of the goal. A header from Evergrande's Italian striker Alberto Gilardino found Rene outside the box 10 minutes before halftime, and the Brazilian midfielder's long shot hit the bar.

Left back Sun Xiang was sent off ­after receiving his second yellow card six minutes into the second half, leaving Evergrande to play with just 10 men. But Guoan failed to score in the next half hour despite playing a man up.

When it seemed the match would end 0-0 and Evergrande would keep hold of the title, Chinese veteran Shao Jiayi changed everything.

Guoan were awarded a free kick minutes before the end of the match when Matic was fouled by Rene. Shao, who had just come on to substitute South Korean midfielder Ha Dae-sung, scored with his first touch of the ball - his left-footed free kick going ­directly into the bottom left of the net.

Guoan still had a chance to score in added time, but Dejan Damjanovic's header from the center of the box was saved by Zeng.

After the win, Shao, a well-known free kick expert, said he knew he could score a free kick from that spot. But ­despite the win, "Evergrande are still leading in the title race. We need to enjoy our own game and hope we can make everyone happy after the last game," Shao told ­reporters.

Lippi was clearly unhappy about the result. "There's always coincidence in football," the Italian coach told a post-match news conference. "We should have confirmed the title last week, but Beijing won a penalty in the 92th minute. We had won nine consecutive games but lost today."

The World Cup-winning coach was also angry over the referee. "Sun Xiang was sent away, but their No.17 [Pablo Batalla] and No.28 [Zhang Chengdong] players also committed many serious fouls," said Lippi.

Despite the loss, Lippi thought Evergrande were the better side in the match. "We were left only 10 men on the pitch after Sun was sent off, but our players competed really hard, and the free kick was their only chance to score."

In the last round, scheduled for ­November 2, Evergrande will play fourth-placed Shandong Luneng, while Guoan will host relegation-threatened Henan Jianye.

According to CSL rules, if the two sides finish level on points, the one with better head-to-head results will win the league. So, if Evergrande lose to Luneng and Guoan defeat Jianye, Guoan will be the winners - the two sides drew 1-1 in their first matchup of the season.


Newspaper headline: Guoan revitalize hopes in penultimate round with win over leaders