Beijing Guoan beat Guangzhou Evergrande to stay top of CSL

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Jonathan Viera's goal led Beijing Guoan to beat hosts Guangzhou Evergrande 1-0 at the Tianhe Sports Center in the eighth round of the Chinese Super League (CSL) season 2019 on Saturday.

Viera and Renato Augusto smoothly worked through a five player defense and Viera finally got his goal with a shot from near the penalty spot in the 64th minute, extending Beijing Guoan's winning streak to eight and giving his team the best CSL start in history.

With the victory, Beijing Guoan keep the top position of the table with 24 points from eight games.

"The league has only played eight rounds and we are only six points ahead Guangzhou Evergrande, there is still a long way to go to win the championship." Beijing Guoan coach Schmidt said.

Zheng Zhi (L) of Guangzhou Evergrande vies for ball with Jonathan Viera of Beijing Guoan in CSL Round 8 match, Tianhe Sports Center, Guangzhou, China, May 4, 2019. /VCG Photo

Guangzhou Evergrande, who won the league title seven times, are currently third in the table with 18 points, three points behind the reigning champion Shanghai SIPG, who won over Guangzhou R&F 2-0 on the same night.

"This result is not a reflection of the game." said Zheng Zhi, captain of Guangzhou Evergrande. "We played really well but luck wasn't on our side."

Meanwhile, Graziano Pelle's double saw Shandong Luneng eased past Hebei China Fortune 2-0 to become fourth.

Pelle fired Shandong Luneng ahead in the 12th minute before completing his brace from the penalty spot 10 minutes later.

"As a forward, I am happy to score twice in a match, I want to thank my teammates, they were creating opportunities throughout the match." said the 33-year-old Italian striker.

In other games on Saturday, Wuhan Zall drew 1-1 with Tianjin TEDA.

On Sunday, the five other matches are Beijing Renhe vs. Henan Jianye, Tianjin Tianhai vs. Chongqing Lifan, Shenzhen FC vs. Shanghai Shenhua, and Jiangsu Suning vs. Dalian Yifang.

Source(s): Xinhua News Agency