Chengdu blow 12-point lead to miss out on Chinese title on final day

What the report says

Chengdu Rongcheng suffered a dramatic late collapse in the Chinese Super League, finishing without the title after leading the race by 12 points earlier in the run-in. BBC Sport reports that John Aloisi’s side lost their final four matches, ending with a 3-2 defeat to Shandong Taishan on the last day. That result, combined with Dalian Yingbo’s 3-1 win over Tianjin Tiger, left both clubs level on 52 points, with Dalian claiming the championship on head-to-head record.

The final day began with Chengdu still in control and needing only a point to secure the trophy, but they fell 2-0 behind inside the opening 25 minutes. Although they twice reduced the deficit, they could not force an equaliser. The defeat came after a poor closing stretch in which Chengdu collected only one point from their last five league matches.

Dalian, by contrast, finished strongly and won all five of their final games. Their title-clinching victory was sealed in front of home supporters, after they recovered from an equaliser to retake the lead late on and score again in stoppage time. The turnaround makes the result one of the most striking finish-line reversals in recent football seasons and a major disappointment for Chengdu, who were within touching distance of the club’s first league crown.