Shenzhen Juniors secured a 3-1 victory over Nanjing City in the League One regular season match on 23 August. The result keeps the hosts second in the table with 39 points from 21 games, while Nanjing City remain 13th on 21 points. And here's the thing: the scoreline tells only half the story of a game decided before the final whistle.
Su Yuliang gave the hosts the lead in the 26th minute, and the momentum stayed with the home side after the break. J. Ngom Mbekeli pulled one back for Nanjing City in the 53rd minute, and for a while it looked like the visitors might salvage something from the trip. G. Zhu restored Shenzhen's advantage in the 80th minute, though Zhou Xin added a late consolation for the away team.
The match was punctuated by yellow cards, with ten booked players in total. K. Huang and Fu Shang were cautioned in the 11th minute, while Rodrigo Henrique and Tayir Shewketjan joined them before the hour. Four substitutions were made around the interval, and another three came off at the hour mark. Things came to a head late on with cards for both Mbekeli and Zhou Xin in the closing stages.
Shenzhen Juniors controlled the tempo with 55 per cent possession and 301 total passes compared to Nanjing City's 252. The hosts registered six shots on target against three for the visitors, and while both sides hit the same accuracy rate of 33 per cent, the quality of chances told a different story. Big chances created were level at one apiece, but the hosts' 86 attacks versus 76 for the visitors suggested more sustained pressure.
What struck me was the penalty miss in the 37th minute. Su Yuliang sent his spot-kick wide when the score was 1-0, a moment that could have shifted the entire complexion of the game. By then Nanjing City were already finding their rhythm, and the visitors' goalkeeper made three saves to keep the visitors in contention.
The result means Shenzhen Juniors extend their sequence of unbeaten runs while Nanjing City's struggles continue. The hosts sit 18 points clear of the visitors with ten games remaining. There is no value left at that number, and the gap speaks for itself.