Football
Michael Church, Asia correspondent 7y

Guangzhou Evergrande stay top of CSL following draw with Shanghai SIPG

Guangzhou Evergrande maintained their hold on first place in the Chinese Super League on Saturday as a late equaliser from Wu Lei earned Shanghai SIPG a share of the points in the top-of-the-table clash at Shanghai Stadium.

Alan Carvalho gave Guangzhou the lead six minutes into the second half before Wu pulled his side level seven minutes later, only for Yu Hanchao to look to have given Luiz Felipe Scolari's side all three points with 20 minutes remaining.

But five minutes from time, Wu scored again for Andre Villas-Boas' team to ensure the gap between the clubs remains locked at a solitary point with 12 games remaining.

"The two teams are so tight in the rankings, they must be the best two teams in the Chinese Super League," Scolari said. "The title won't be decided until the end.

"It was a pity we couldn't hold on to the lead, but I want to say SIPG is always a strong team, there is no question about that. In an even match like this, there is no room for any mistakes."

However, the Brazilian World Cup-winning coach launched an attack on the officiating in the game, claiming SIPG's players had an influence on the decisions made throughout the match.

"By the way, there were six referees if you count: four referees plus Hulk and Elkeson," Scolari said. "So that might be why you think there are 12 players on the other side."

The game also served as a dress rehearsal of the Asian Champions League quarterfinal meeting to be played between the teams next month as Guangzhou attempt to win a third continental title in three years and SIPG set their sights on a first-ever semifinal appearance.

"The Asian Champions League and the Chinese Super League are different, the rules are different too," Villas-Boas said. "We will have Oscar back in the Asian Champions League and for us it is important to have him. He assisted us a lot in the league.

"Of course games like this can inspire us a lot and increase our confidence. I hope we can have a win in the next match instead of being comfortable with draws. Today I'm OK with the draw because a draw didn't change the scenario in the rankings."

Meanwhile, Fabio Capello claimed his first win in the league since taking over at Jiangsu Suning last month as the Italian's team handed Liaoning Whowin a 4-0 thrashing to move out of the relegation zone.

Jiangsu now sit in 14th place in the 16-team league while Liaoning dropped into the bottom two positions, three points ahead of Yanbian Funde, who take on Guangzhou R&F on Sunday.

Hebei CFFC's poor run of form continued as Manuel Pellegrini's side went for a fifth game without a win as they lost 4-3 to Guizhou Zhicheng to drop to fifth in the standings as Shandong Luneng moved up to fourth following their 3-2 victory over Changchun Yatai.

Chongqing Lifan moved up to sixth in the standings as goals from Ding Jie and Fernandinho delivered a 2-1 win over Tianjin Teda.

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