Yunnan Yukun reached the Chinese FA Cup final for the first time by beating Dalian Yingbo Haifa 4-3 at home on November 1. The Chinese Football Association’s match report charts a semi-final in which Yukun led by two, fell behind and then won through Oscar’s late header, with Dalian reduced to nine men.
From a two-goal lead to a deficit, then level again
Bunyamin capitalised on a misplaced back-pass to score after eight minutes, then set up Cleber in the 15th for a 2-0 lead. Dalian responded with two attacks involving Frank Acheampong: Delgado scored in the 21st minute and Yang Mingrui levelled in the 32nd, making it 2-2 at half-time.
Three minutes into the second half, Nicolae Stanciu followed a blocked effort with a finish that put Dalian 3-2 ahead. It was his third consecutive scoring round in the competition. Yukun replied in the 56th minute, when Xu Hongjie headed in Ioniță’s corner from the left for 3-3.
Song Yue and Delgado were subsequently sent off, leaving Dalian with nine players. In the 78th minute, newly introduced substitute Duan Liuyu crossed from the right and Oscar headed in at the far post. Yukun held the 4-3 lead to the finish, while Bunyamin’s goal and assist earned him player-of-the-match honours.
INKA SPORTS Analysis and Summary: Three turns in a seven-goal tie
The three changes of direction came in different ways: Yukun exploited an error and a combination early on; Dalian answered with three successive goals; Yukun then equalised from a corner before a substitute’s delivery created the winner. The red cards altered the late numerical balance, but Yukun had already made it 3-3 before the dismissals, so the whole comeback cannot be attributed to the extra players.
A first final sets a new club best in the FA Cup. The other semi-final is scheduled for November 20, with Beijing Guoan hosting Shanghai Port, and will determine Yukun’s opponent. Beyond the seven goals, Yukun’s achievement was to find two headed routes back into control after their early advantage had disappeared and the score had turned against them.
