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The Chinese football championship resumed on Saturday July 25 after a five-month hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Guangzhou Evergrande beat Shanghai Shenhua (2-0) for the shock of the recovery, and the Belgian Marouane Fellaini, affected by the coronavirus, offered himself a resounding treble.
A minute of silence to pay tribute to the victims. Head to the ground, the players respected this symbolic minute in remembrance of the victims of the coronavirus, which appeared in Wuhan, China at the turn of the year, and medical personnel, during the resumption match between the reigning champion Guangzhou Evergrande, trained by Italian Fabio Cannavaro, and National Cup winner Shanghai Shenhua.
Moments before kick-off, Evergrande captain Paulinho, the Brazilian international midfielder, and his teammates unfurled a banner that read “Tribute to the medical staff,” while Shenhua’s players carried T-shirts in honor of the “heroes” of the coronavirus.
Reconnaissance
The opening match was held behind closed doors in Dalian (northeast), one of two cities along with Suzhou (east) that will host the Chinese Super League (CSL) matches for the next two months, without an audience in program. Equipped with masks, a few security staff and medics were however allowed to watch the match from the stands, in recognition of their efforts against the virus.
Another symbol: it is Wuhan Zall, club in the city where the new coronavirus appeared, which played and won 2-0 the second match on Saturday, against the promoted Qingdao Huanghai.
The CSL, which should have started on February 22, was one of the first sports competitions in the world to revise its schedule when the epidemic struck the country in late 2019 before spreading around the world.
Marouane Fellaini scored an eight-minute headed hat trick in China after recovering from coronavirus.
Back doing what he does best ???? pic.twitter.com/gbZI1GyGJ8
ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) July 26, 2020
70 days in camera
The organizing league of the competition, however, remains on edge after the emergence of several new cases of contamination in the port city of Dalian.
The players of the 16 teams divided into two groups joined their respective hotels at the beginning of the week for a 70-day closed session. They will only come out to train or play two games per week during this first phase which lasts until the end of September.
Marouane Fellaini signed a shattering return to the Chinese football championship on Sunday with a hat-trick for his first match, after spending three weeks in hospital in April, infected with the new coronavirus. Thanks to the 32-year-old Belgian’s hat-trick, Shandong Luneng clinched a 3-2 victory over Rafa Benitez’s Dalian Pro on the day of resumption of the Chinese championship.
Fellaini headed three times late in the match (79th, 83rd, 86th), while Shandong was led after a goal from Venezuelan Salomon Rondon (57th). Sweden’s Marcus Danielson scored the goal 3-2 in stoppage time.
In April, Fellaini, the only known case of coronavirus infection among Chinese Super League players, spent three weeks in hospital although his team assured he was not showing symptoms.
(With AFP)
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