Intro:

Henan Jianye stay second bottom in the Chinese Super League after a 1-0 home defeat to league leaders Guangzhou Evergrande in Zhengzhou on Sunday (27 July).

Script:

The Chinese Super League saw strugglers Henan Jianye welcome leaders Guangzhou Evergrande on Sunday.

The two sides were forced to battle against the pitch as much as each other, the condition woeful to say the least.

And Alberto Gilardino would certainly argue that was the reason he missed what can only be considered a simple chance by his standards.

The Henan defence getting itself into all sorts of trouble before the Italian striker found himself one on one with the goalkeeper.

But somehow Gilardino blazed his shot over the bar, the 32-year-old glancing at the pitch as if to suggest the bobbled up before he made contact.

Marcello Lippi's side eventually sealed all three points thanks to a wonderful solo effort by Elkeson.

The Brazilian dribbling a number of Henan played before beating the goalkeeper with nice long range effort.

The win means Guangzhou remain top, seven points clear, while Henan are second from bottom.