Chengdu Rongcheng’s late-season collapse leaves title to be decided on final day
Chengdu Rongcheng have seen a 12-point lead in the Chinese Super League cut to three, leaving John Aloisi’s side needing a point on the final day to secure their first title with one game remaining.
The season began under heavy sanctions, with nine of the 16 top-tier clubs starting on minus points after a joint statement from the Chinese Football Association, the Ministry of Public Security and the General Administration of Sport described the measures as a “special campaign to crack down on match-fixing, gambling and corruption in the football industry.” Chengdu were one of seven clubs to begin on zero, above defending champions Shanghai Port who lost five points and runners-up Shanghai Shenhua who were docked 10, and the Sichuan club opened up a big lead by dropping just two points from their first 12 games under coach John Aloisi, the former Portsmouth and Coventry striker.
The run that built the cushion has largely evaporated: Chengdu have managed only two wins in their last 13 matches and have lost three in a row. On 10 October, more than 40,000 fans were ready to celebrate a title when an added-time goal from Alberto Quiles gave Tianjin Jinmen Tiger a 1-0 win and postponed the coronation; the next fixture ended in a 3-0 defeat at Shanghai Port.
The penultimate game against title challengers Dalian Yingbo compounded Chengdu’s problems, a 1-0 loss after the leaders missed a first-half penalty and had a 90th-minute equaliser ruled out by the video assistant referee; Chengdu have not scored in almost seven hours of football. Dalian remain the form team with four consecutive wins and, should they beat Tianjin, the title will effectively be decided on the final day when Chengdu face fourth-placed Shandong Taishan, because the league is settled by head-to-head results before goal difference.
Chengdu Rongcheng’s rapid rise has been recent: the club were formed in 2018 and climbed through the divisions to reach this position, in a city better known for Sichuan cuisine, temples and pandas than football. The region’s football history includes Sheffield United’s purchase of a local club in 2006 — the Chengdu Blades, which were dissolved in 2015 — and City Football Group’s purchase of a stake in Sichuan Jiuniu before moving that club to Shenzhen in 2024.
Off-field issues have also shadowed Chengdu: the club was fined about $70,000 (£52,200) after some home supporters racially abused Henan FC’s Ghanaian striker Frank Acheampong, following an earlier $3,000 fine after travelling supporters threw bottles at Ulsan HD players at a Champions League game in South Korea. Average attendances across the league are set to finish at about 30,000, up from last season’s 25,755 and described in the season review as the best in Asia, while regional leagues have been enjoying increased popularity.
The national team has endured setbacks too, notably a 5-0 home defeat to Palestine described as the fourth-biggest loss in history, though a number of national-team players were at the Asian Games where China reached the bronze final and lost narrowly to South Korea. China also reached the finals of the under-17 and under-23 Asian championships this year before losing both to Japan, and the report argues that exporting more players to Europe is necessary to raise standards and that doing so could relieve some pressure on the senior national shirt.
If Dalian beat Tianjin, Chengdu must secure at least a draw at fourth-placed Shandong Taishan on the final day to claim the championship; failure can, however, be hard to shake off and Chengdu Rongcheng may well find out if they mess this up.
