Two clubs expected to contend in the CSL were instead trying to move towards the middle of the table when Beijing Renhe hosted Dalian Yifang. Both teams impressed after jumping to the top flight last year, but as Damion Jones reports, their encore campaigns are leaving a lot to be desired.

Despite a slow Chinese Super League start in 2019, just three wins and two draws in the first 14 matches, to sit 15th among 16 sides, fans of Beijing Renhe remain optimistic, knowing that the 15th of their 30 games would provide yet another chance to return to safety.

DAMION JONES BEIJING "Getting into Fengtai Stadium takes a little bit longer after Beijing Renhe's eighth place finish following their promotion to the CSL last season. The second time around, however, has been a different story for the Men Who Wear Orange, as they approach this year's midway mark in the relegation zone, but only three points behind their latest opponents, they almost equally underperforming Dalian Yifang."

The visitors marked their move to the CSL by taking 11th place last season and were a trendy pick to challenge for the title this year, only to see the first 14 matches produce just three wins and five draws, leaving them mired in 11th again. And it looks like things might get worse when Makhete Diop's header puts Beijing ahead in just the second minute of the game.

EMMANUEL BOATENG DALIAN YIFANG FORWARD "We had some difficulties in the first half because the pitch also wasn't helping us a lot, but in the second half we came all out, and we were trying to put our best, whether the pitch is bad or good, we're trying to do our best."

Dalian would emerge from the halftime break looking in some respects like a completely different squad, with Yannick Carrasco's penalty kick tying the score at 1-all in the 51st minute. And while the hosts are still processing that blow, Marek Hamsik finds the back of the net less than 60 seconds later to put Yifang on top. The suffocating surge is then capped in the 59th minute, when Emmanuel Boateng makes Zhang Lie pay for some extremely lax goalkeeping, resulting in 3-1 revelry for the roadside, and regrets for Renhe.

MAKHETE DIOP BEIJING RENHE FORWARD "Every time we play first half very good, but second half we come down. I don't know why, but we must think about this because all four games we played very good in first half. In second half they beat us, so we must think about this."

And while Renhe look to regroup after a third straight defeat, snapping a three-game winless skid bumps Dalian Yifang up one spot to 10th, a trajectory they'll try to build on, as the campaign proceeds into its second half. DJ, CGTN, Beijing.