Shenhua start season with win over rivals Beijing

HONG KONG: Second-half goals from Giovanni Moreno and Wu Xi earned Shanghai Shenhua a winning start to the new Chinese Super League campaign on Friday as Choi Kang-hee's side beat Beijing Guoan 2-1 in Kunshan.

Moreno gave his side the lead in the 59th minute and Wu, who captained Jiangsu Suning to last year's title before the club folded, doubled the advantage six minutes later before Li Lei claimed an injury-time consolation for Beijing.

The game was played in front of 5,000 fans at the Kunshan Sports Center Stadium after some coronavirus restrictions were relaxed by the Chinese authorities.

The win sees Shenhua join cross-city rivals Shanghai Port at the top of the Group B standings on three points following their 6-1 thrashing of Tianjin Tigers on Thursday, which came courtesy of a Marko Arnautovic hat-trick.

Also on Friday, Jean Kouassi struck on the hour mark to earn Wuhan a 1-1 draw with Hebei after Yin Hongbo had given Kim Jong-boo's team the lead two minutes after the restart.

Changchun Yatai are level on three points with the Shanghai clubs after Thursday's 2-1 win over Dalian Pro.

In Group A, Jordi Cruyff's Shenzhen sit joint-top with Shandong Taishan following Wednesday's 2-1 win over Henan Longmen.

Qingdao are also on three points after they beat Cangzhou Mighty Lions 2-1 while Guangzhou and Guangzhou City are two points behind after their draw earlier in the week.

The early rounds of the Chinese Super League are being played in two groups in a pair of centralised hubs due to restrictions in place as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.