Chengdu blow 12-point lead to miss out on Chinese title on final day

Chengdu Rongcheng suffered a heartbreaking defeat, losing their last four games and losing the Chinese Super League title by a mere point. A 3-2 loss to Shandong Taishan on the final day of the season, coupled with Dalian Yingbo's 3-1 victory over Tianjin Tiger, denied John Aloisi's side the Li Guozu trophy. The Chengdu side managed only one point from their last five matches, while Dalian secured 15 points from 15.

Despite both teams finishing with 52 points, Dalian claimed the title due to a superior head-to-head record, including a win over Chengdu in the penultimate match of the season.

The collapse of the title race has been termed one of the worst in football history, particularly considering the faltering finish from the Australian-led Chengdu team, who have previously played for Portsmouth and Coventry City. Newcastle United's failure to secure the Premier League title in 1995-96 after falling 12 points behind Manchester United, and the subsequent 1997-98 campaign where they lost a 12-point lead to Arsenal, both serve as historical parallels to Chengdu's miserable run of form.