Unbeaten runs: Real’s 40 and China’s Dalian Wanda

World
Europe

‍By CGTN's Omar Khan

Spanish giants Real Madrid advanced to the Copa del Rey quarter-finals on Friday after a thrilling 3-3 draw against Sevilla at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. But it’s not so much the score as the milestone it represents that will be remembered: a 40th game without a defeat in all competitions for Los Blancos, marking the longest unbeaten run in Spanish football history.

The match saw over 30 fouls, eight players booked and some late-game heroics, but the high-scoring affair was always going to be about breaking that record.

Before Friday, the Spanish record for the longest unbeaten run was held by arch-rivals Barcelona.

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane gives instructions to his players during the Copa del Rey round-of-16 second-leg match against Sevilla FC on January 12, 2017 in Seville, Spain. /CFP Photo

The defending Champions League winners have had a marvelous run of form under player-turned-coach Zinedine Zidane and haven’t suffered a defeat since a 2-0 loss to German side Wolfsburg on April 7, 2016.

Let’s take a look back at the historic run that started 10 months ago.

Madrid’s 40

Zidane took over as Real Madrid manager in January 2016, after Rafael Benitez had been in charge for just seven months. Until then, the Frenchman’s only coaching gig had been for Real’s B team. But the former Real and Juventus player soon proved his worth.

The club’s first game under the new manager was a 5-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna on January 9, 2016. And this was just the beginning. A first-leg quarter-final loss to Wolfsburg in the UEFA Champions League did not stop Los Blancos, and they ended the month of April with six wins and one draw.

Sevilla's Argentinian midfielder Matias Kranevitter (R) vies with Real Madrid's Dominican forward Mariano during the Spanish Copa del Rey (King's Cup) round-of-16 second-leg football match in Sevilla on January 12, 2017. /CFP Photo

Finishing one point behind leaders Barcelona, Real Madrid had to settle for second place in La Liga at the end of the season, but the club secured its 11th Champions League title in May after defeating crosstown rivals Atletico Madrid in the final.

In August, the European champions claimed another piece of silverware as they defeated Sevilla in the UEFA Super Cup before kicking off their league campaign with wins against Real Sociedad and Celta Vigo.

A dip in form in September was followed by a new spur of energy a month later, as Los Blancos poured in 25 goals in six matches, conceding a mere six goals in return. In November, the stellar form continued with the club averaging over 2.5 goals per game, while delivering a crushing blow to Atletico Madrid as the soon-to-be crowned FIFA Player of the Year, Cristiano Ronaldo, bagged a hat-trick at the Estadio Vincente Calderon.

Real Madrid finished off 2016 on a high as they stole a point against bitter rivals Barcelona at the Camp Nou, and claimed the FIFA Club World Cup after defeating Kashima Antlers in Japan. In the new year, Real have continued to sit at the top of the table, while advancing to the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey where they will square off against Celta Vigo.

Dalian Wanda: China’s own record-holder

Qingdao play Dalian on October 22, 2016 in Qingdao, China. /CFP Photo

You don’t just have to look to Europe to find such records. Chinese club football is by no means comparable to other top leagues around the world in terms of finances and level of skill. But that doesn’t mean similar feats of consistency are unheard of.

From 1995 to 1997, China’s Dalian Wanda team, arguably the most successful in the country’s club football history, set an unbeaten record of 55 matches. The club went through a series of changes in its early years, with investment from Wanda Group boosting the club’s status in the early 1990s. Having no foreign players, the club was known for having a strong degree of camaraderie amongst the team’s players, which were all local talents.

League champions in the 1994 season, Dalian failed to retain their title the following season, falling to third place in the table. But that season saw the start of their record-setting streak. By the end of the 1996 season, the northern Chinese club was again top of the table and undefeated, becoming the first team in Chinese football league history to remain unbeaten for an entire season, with 12 wins and 10 draws.

The 1997 season had all the signs of a repeat success, but in devastating fashion Dalian suffered a 4-2 defeat to Shanghai Shenhua in the last round of the season, bringing an end to a record that spanned three seasons. To this day, the record remains unbeaten.