While one title was being decided in the arena in Chengdu, attention was to say the least divided in the media centre with most Chinese sports journalists following streams of the season’s football final-day climax that saw Guangzhou Evergrande needing at least a point at Shandong Luneng to guarantee retaining their Chinese Super League crown at the expense of Beijing Guoan.
There were plenty of laptops showing split screens of the games at Shandong and Beijing’s home match with Henan Jianye. If it had been Sky, the Chinese characters across the top would have read ‘Judgment Day, There Can Be Only One’, it was that kind of occasion – not unlike the Mark Allen vs Ricky Walden clash down the corridor.
An early goal for Shandong raised briefly the prospect of a title decided on head-to-head-record in favour of Beijing, but their goal-shy strikers and a Guangzhou equaliser handed the title to veteran Italian manager Marcelo Lippi’s side, leaving many from the capital in the room dejected.