BEIJING, Nov.1 (Xinhuanet) -- The 2015 season of the Chinese Super League wrapped up on Saturday, and in the last round and maybe the most crucial match, Luiz Felipe Scolari's Guangzhou Evergrande travelled to Beijing Guoan, knowing a win over Beijing would seal their fifth consecutive CSL title. The host team on the other hand, also had plenty to play for. They also needed the victory to qualify for the next year's AFC Champions League.
Guangzhou held a two-point lead at the top of the standings over SIPG going into the final game of the league season.
And the defending champions were awarded a penalty on 42 minutes after the referee had deemed South Korean Ha Dae-Sung to have handled the ball in the box.
Ricardo Goulart then sent goalkeeper Yang Zhi the wrong way from the spot to put the visitors 1-0 ahead going into the break.
They then doubled their advantage in the closing stages. Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Paulinho scored from a free kick in the 87th minute.
It ended 2-0 to Guangzhou as Scolari's side became champions for the fifth time in a row. The win also continued Guangzhou's unbeaten run under Scolari to 21 competitive matches.
With five Chinese Super League titles in hand, Guangzhou Evergrande have become the most dominant football club in China. They also won both the FA Cup and the Super Cup in 2012. In the continental stages, Guangzhou have made four consecutive appearances in the AFC Champions League. They won the trophy in 2013, beating South Korea's FC Seoul in the final.
Scolari's side will now look to continue their strong performance in this year's AFC Champions League final. Their opponent is UAE's Al-Ahli, with the first leg taking place on November 7th, and the second leg two weeks later.
Back to the final standings of the CSL, SIPG beat Liaoning Whowin 2-1 in the final round and had to settle for a second place. Shandong Luneng beat Shijiazhuang Ever Bright 3-1 and ranked third, securing a place in the next season's AFC Champions League.
In the bottom half of the table, Shanghai Shenxin was the first team to relegate. Guizhou Renhe, who played in the 2013 Champions League, earned a 2-2 draw against Changchun Yatai, and became the second team to relegate.
Guangzhou Evergrande win Chinese championship
SHANGHAI - Guangzhou Evergrande clinched the Chinese football championship on Saturday following an epic battle between two of world football's heavyweight coaches.
Phil Scolari's Evergrande won 2-0 away to Beijing Guoan to finish two points clear of Sven-Goran Eriksson's Shanghai SIPG on a dramatic final day of the 2015 Chinese Super League season.
The veteran coaches have previously clashed on several occasions in the international arena.
Scolari's Brazil knocked Eriksson's England out of the 2002 World Cup quarter-finals, and the man affectionately known as "Big Phil" repeated the feat with Portugal at both Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup.
The duelling pair resumed their rivalry in China this season when Scolari was named Guangzhou coach back in May, following Eriksson's appointment to the SIPG hotseat at the end of last year.
This weekend's championship conclusion came after a nail-biting final few weeks of the season in which last minute goals in several matches saw both teams fight tooth and nail for the leadership position.
Guangzhou looked set to win seal their fifth consecutive title in front of their own fans last week, only for opponents Shandong to score a late - and clearly offside - equalizer in the 95th minute to draw 2-2, throwing Sven's SIPG a championship lifeline going into the final weekend of the Chinese season.
The Cantonese club's misfortune last week meant SIPG needed to beat lowly Liaoning on Saturday to have any chance of winning their maiden title.
SIPG did manage to triumph 2-1 after initially going behind in the first half, but their fightback was in vain as they required Beijing to defeat Guangzhou to have any chance of sealing their maiden title.
Scenes of dejection were the order of the day at Shanghai Stadium as Sven's players learnt of the final result in Beijing - a 2-0 victory for Guangzhou.
Before the match, SIPG were hopeful that Beijing could do them a favour - the capital side were unbeaten at home all season and Evergrande had not won at the Worker's Stadium since their return to top flight Chinese football in 2011.
However, following a careless handball from Beijing's Korean defender Ha Dae-Sung, Brazilian striker Ricardo Goulart stepped up and scored to give Guangzhou the initiative in the first half.
In the second half the huge 50,000-plus home crowd were furious when Dejan Damjanovic's penalty box finish was disallowed for offside. But a late close-range effort from Brazilian playmaker Paulinho sealed the win for Evergrande as they finished two points clear of SIPG.
Guangzhou's attention now turns to the Asian Champion's League final against Al-Ahli of the UAE in a two-legged affair on November 7 and 21.
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