2021 Chinese Super League
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Regular season)
12 December 2021 – 4 January 2022
(Championship and Relegation stage)
7–12 January 2022
(Promotion–relegation play-off)
4th CSL title
5th Chinese title
 | |
| Season | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 20 April – 15 August (Regular season) 12 December 2021 – 4 January 2022 (Championship and Relegation stage) 7–12 January 2022 (Promotion–relegation play-off) |
| Champions | Shandong Taishan 4th CSL title 5th Chinese title |
| AFC Champions League | Shandong Taishan Shanghai Port Guangzhou Changchun Yatai |
| Matches | 176 |
| Goals | 447 (2.54 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Júnior Negrão (14 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Guangzhou 5–0 Qingdao (11 August 2021) Shanghai Port 5–0 Tianjin Jinmen Tiger (15 August 2021) Guangzhou City 5–0 Beijing Guoan (19 December 2021) |
| Biggest away win | Qingdao 0–6 Guangzhou (21 July 2021) |
| Highest scoring | Tianjin Jinmen Tiger 1–6 Shanghai Port (22 April 2021) Guangzhou 5–2 Cangzhou Mighty Lions (2 August 2021) Qingdao 2–5 Wuhan (15 December 2021) |
| Longest winning run | 10 matches Shandong Taishan |
| Longest unbeaten run | 13 matches Shandong Taishan |
| Longest winless run | 12 matches Wuhan |
| Longest losing run | 11 matches Qingdao |
| Highest attendance | 28,252 Guangzhou 2–0 Shenzhen (2 May 2021) |
| Lowest attendance | 335 Cangzhou Mighty Lions 0–0 Henan Songshan Longmen (27 April 2021) |
| Total attendance | 111,732 |
| Average attendance | 4,656 |
← 2020 2022 → | |
The 2021 Chinese Super League, officially known as the 2021 Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League (Chinese: 2021中国平安中国足球协会超级联赛) for sponsorship reasons, was the 18th season since the establishment of the Chinese Super League. The league title sponsor is Ping An Insurance.[1][2]
Jiangsu were the defending champions, but they folded on 28 February 2021, and were disqualified by the Chinese Football Association on 29 March 2021.[3]
Name changes
Clubs promoted from 2020 China League One
Dissolved entries
Changchun Yatai returns to the division after a 2-year absence. Cangzhou Mighty Lions were reprieved from relegation after finishing bottom in the previous season due to the dissolution of Jiangsu.
In December 2020, the CFA issued a policy to "neutralize" the names of all professional football clubs.[4] Club names cannot contain any term of a sponsorship or commercial nature, and non-Chinese characters cannot be used.[5][6] Most Chinese football clubs had to be renamed. There were some debates as to whether or not some long-existing club names, for example, "Shandong Taishan" and "Beijing Guoan", were acceptable. After Henan Jianye was renamed to "Henan Luoyang Longmen", club fans protested in front of the club stadium. Some clubs, including the 2020 Chinese Super League winner Jiangsu, China League One team Beijing Chengfeng and China League Two team Yancheng Luzhiying, dissolved subsequent to their renaming.[7]
| Current name | Previous name | Date changed | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guangzhou City | Guangzhou R&F | December 2020 | [8] |
| Guangzhou | Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao | January 2021 | [9] |
| Shandong Taishan | Shandong Luneng Taishan | January 2021 | [10] |
| Shanghai Port | Shanghai SIPG | January 2021 | [11] |
| Cangzhou Mighty Lions[a] | Shijiazhuang Ever Bright | January 2021 | [12] |
| Tianjin Jinmen Tiger | Tianjin TEDA | January 2021 | [13] |
| Qingdao | Qingdao Huanghai | February 2021 | [14] |
| Shanghai Shenhua | Shanghai Greenland Shenhua | February 2021 | [15] |
| Hebei | Hebei China Fortune | February 2021 | [16] |
| Wuhan | Wuhan Zall | February 2021 | [17] |
| Henan Songshan Longmen | Henan Jianye | February 2021 | [18] |
| Chongqing Liangjiang Athletic | Chongqing Dangdai Lifan | March 2021 | [19] |
| Beijing Guoan | Beijing Sinobo Guoan | March 2021 | [20] |
| Jiangsu | Jiangsu Suning | February 2021[b] | [22] |
Rule changes
The CFA imposed a salary cap on the Super League in December 2020, taking effect with the 2021 season. Each club's total player wages are capped at ¥600 million, with a separate limit of €10 million for foreign players. Individual player salaries are also capped, at ¥5 million before tax for Chinese players, and €3 million for foreign players.[23]
Clubs
Personnel and stadiums
Locations
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guangzhou City |  Giovanni van Bronckhorst |
Mutual consent | 3 December 2020[24] | Pre-season | Jean-Paul van Gastel |
22 February 2021[25] |
| Wuhan |  Pang Li (caretaker) |
End of caretaker spell | 27 December 2020 | Li Xiaopeng |
27 December 2020[26] | |
| Shanghai Port |  Vítor Pereira |
Mutual consent | 31 December 2020[27] |  Ivan Leko |
1 January 2021[28] | |
| Beijing Guoan |  Bruno Génésio |
6 January 2021[29] | Slaven Bilić |
6 January 2021[30] | ||
| Dalian Pro |  Rafael Benítez |
23 January 2021[31] | José González |
18 April 2021[32] | ||
| Hebei | Xie Feng |
28 March 2021 |  Kim Jong-boo |
28 March 2021[33] | ||
| Tianjin Jinmen Tiger | Wang Baoshan |
31 March 2021 | Yu Genwei |
31 March 2021 | ||
| Shenzhen | Jordi Cruyff |
Signed by Barcelona | 3 June 2021[34] | 7th | José Carlos Granero |
3 June 2021[35] |
| Shanghai Shenhua | Choi Kang-hee |
Resigned | 7 August 2021 | 9th | Mao Yijun (caretaker) |
7 August 2021[36] |
| Cangzhou Mighty Lions |  Afshin Ghotbi |
Mutual consent | 6 September 2021 | 13th | Liu Yan (caretaker) |
6 September 2021[37] |
| Guangzhou |  Fabio Cannavaro |
28 September 2021[38] | 2nd | Zheng Zhi (player/manager) |
7 December 2021[39] | |
| Henan Songshan Longmen | Javier Pereira |
7 October 2021 | 10th | Antonio Gómez-Carreño Escalona (caretaker) |
7 October 2021[40] | |
| Cangzhou Mighty Lions | Liu Yan (caretaker) |
End of caretaker spell | 5 November 2021 | 13th |  Svetozar Šapurić |
5 November 2021[41] |
| Wuhan | Li Xiaopeng |
Signed by China | 3 December 2021[42] | 11th | Li Jinyu |
4 December 2021[43] |
| Qingdao | Wu Jingui |
Resigned | 13 December 2021 | 16th | Yang Weijian (caretaker) |
13 December 2021[44] |
| Shenzhen | José Carlos Granero |
End of contract | 31 December 2021 | 5th | Zhang Xiaorui (caretaker) |
31 December 2021[45] |
Foreign players
- Players name in bold indicates the players that were registered during the mid-season transfer window.
- Players name in ITALICS indicates the players that left their respective clubs during the mid-season transfer window.
- ^1 For Hong Kong, Macau, or Taiwanese players, if they are non-naturalized and were registered as professional footballers in Hong Kong's, Macau's, or Chinese Taipei's football association for the first time, they are recognized as native players. Otherwise they are recognized as foreign players.
- ^2 Naturalized players whose parents or grandparents were born in Mainland China, thus are regarded as local players.
Neutral grounds for 2021 season
Regular season
Championship stage
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shandong Taishan (C) | 22 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 47 | 16 | +31 | 51 | Qualification for AFC Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Shanghai Port | 22 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 42 | 14 | +28 | 45 | |
| 3 | Guangzhou | 22 | 13 | 5 | 4 | 47 | 17 | +30 | 44 | |
| 4 | Changchun Yatai | 22 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 31 | 20 | +11 | 39 | |
| 5 | Beijing Guoan | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 26 | 28 | −2 | 33 | |
| 6 | Shenzhen | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 33 | 29 | +4 | 32 | |
| 7 | Guangzhou City | 22 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 32 | 31 | +1 | 29 | |
| 8 | Hebei | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 15 | 28 | −13 | 25 |
Rules for classification:
- During season: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.
- After season: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Scores of the weight ratio of the reserve league and youth leagues.
(C) Champions
Results
Positions by round
To preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. For example, if a match is scheduled for round 7, but then played between rounds 8 and 9, it will be added to the standings for round 8.
| Leader and qualification to AFC Champions League group stage | |
| Qualification to AFC Champions League Group stage | |
| Qualification to AFC Champions League play-off round |
Results by match played
Relegation stage
Relegation play-offs
Overview
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chengdu Rongcheng | 2–1 | Dalian Pro | 1–1 | 1–0 |
| Qingdao | 0–1 | Zhejiang | 0–1 | 0–0 |
Matches
Chengdu Rongcheng won 2–1 on aggregate.
Chengdu Rongcheng were promoted to the Chinese Super League: Dailan Pro were to be directly relegated to the 2022 Chinese League One, but were repreived after Chongqing Liangjiang Athletic and Qingdao both folded.
| Qingdao | 0–1 | Zhejiang |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Zhejiang won 1–0 on aggregate.
Zhejiang were promoted to the Chinese Super League: Qingdao were to be directly relegated to the 2022 Chinese League One, but Qingdao folded.
Statistics
Top scorers
- As of 4 January 2022
Top assists
- As of 4 January 2022
Hat-tricks
| Player | Club | Against | Result | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Marko Arnautović |
Shanghai Port | Tianjin Jinmen Tiger | 6–1 (A) | 22 April 2021 | |
 Ricardo Goulart |
Guangzhou | Cangzhou Mighty Lions | 5–2 (H) | 2 August 2021 | |
| Elkeson |
Guangzhou | Qingdao | 5–0 (H) | 11 August 2021 |
- Notes
- (H) – Home team
- (A) – Away team
Awards
Players of the Round
The following players were named the Players of the Round.
| Round | Player | Club | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
1 |
 Giovanni Moreno |
Shanghai Shenhua | [47] |
2 |
 Marouane Fellaini |
Shandong Taishan | [48] |
3 |
Zhang Xizhe |
Beijing Guoan | [49] |
4 |
Tyias Browning |
Guangzhou | [50] |
5 |
Vacant | Vacant | |
6 |
Zhao Mingjian |
Shanghai Shenhua | [51] |
7 |
Tan Long |
Changchun Yatai | [52] |
8 |
Zhang Yuning |
Beijing Guoan | [53] |
9 |
Yang Liyu |
Guangzhou | [54] |
10 |
Guo Tianyu |
Shandong Taishan | [55] |
11 |
Duan Liuyu |
Shandong Taishan | [56] |
12 |
Marouane Fellaini |
Shandong Taishan | [57] |
13 |
Shi Yan |
Tianjin Jinmen Tiger | [58] |
14 |
Guo Tianyu |
Shandong Taishan | [59] |
15 |
Oscar |
Shanghai Port | [60] |
16 |
Son Jun-ho |
Shandong Taishan | [61] |
17 |
Son Jun-ho |
Shandong Taishan | [62] |
18 |
Henrique Dourado |
Henan Songshan Longmen | [63] |
19 |
Marouane Fellaini |
Shandong Taishan | [64] |
20 |
Tan Kaiyuan |
Guangzhou | [65] |
21 |
Zheng Zhi |
Guangzhou | [66] |
22 |
Xie Weijun |
Tianjin Jinmen Tiger |
League attendance
| Round | Total | Matches opened to spectators | Avg. Per Game |
|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | 42,699 | 4 | 5,337 |
| Round 2 | 17,294 | 7 | 2,162 |
| Round 3 | 51,739 | 6 | 6,467 |
| Round 4 | |||
| Round 5 | |||
| Round 6 | |||
| Round 7 | |||
| Round 8 | |||
| Round 9 | |||
| Round 10 | |||
| Round 11 | |||
| Round 12 | |||
| Round 13 | |||
| Round 14 | |||
| Round 15 | |||
| Round 16 | |||
| Round 17 | |||
| Round 18 | |||
| Round 19 | |||
| Round 20 | |||
| Round 21 | |||
| Round 22 | |||
| Total | 111,732 | 17 | 4,656 |