The History of a Rivalry : 9-1

It was a hot summer's night in 1997 and a huge crowd showed up at Gongti to watch their beloved Beijing Guoan take on the hated Shanghai Shenhua. You see, Beijinger's don't like Shanghainese and vice versa and back in those days, just like it is today, both teams were made up with mainly local players who knew the rivalry between the cities and the teams that represent those cities.

What those fans didn't know is that they'd be treated to one of the greatest footballing feats in Guoan history. Over the course of two hours, those fans witnessed a total shellacking of a hated rival, as Andres Olivas Rubio and Casiano each scored 3 goals, Campos added 2, and Cao Xiandong finished off the scoring. Shenhua's only response came from Wu Chengying and couldn't serve as consolation for Shanghai fans who watched the match.

While most Beijing fans won't admit it, we are more than a little jealous of Shanghai's titles in 1995 and 2003. We've yet to win the league, though we are the "Kings of the Cup" having won it 4 times in our history. The lore of the 9-1 match is something Guoan fans have held on to tightly over the years. It is still possible to see "9-1" signs show up in the stand in Beijing and sometimes when road fans make the trip to Shanghai as well.

To those fans involved in this rivalry, its like Arsenal-Tottenham or Yankees-Red Sox, it is a true hatred and the only thing that can comfort me when Guoan loses is seeing Shanghai lose as well.

The rivalry has everything to do with the hatred between the two cities and of all the "China Derby" matches that receive that title, this one is truly the one that takes the cake. These two teams and their fans don't like each other and these matches always live up to it. During the CSL years, Beijing has won 3 times, lost 4, and came up with 3 draws. I'm not expecting Friday to be 9-1, but I hope the history of that game is remembered and when the final whistle is blown, Beijing secures 3 points.