All three title-contending teams in the Chinese Super League secured 3 points each in the 27th round; the leader Shanghai Port faces a crucial championship match next round and is set to forgo the AFC Champions League.

During the 27th round, the fourth-to-last round of this season, all three title challengers finished their games on Friday evening. Shanghai Port, Chengdu Rongcheng, and Shanghai Shenhua each won their matches, securing three points apiece, thus keeping the standings and point differences the same. Notably, Shanghai Shenhua’s 2-1 away victory over Qingdao West Coast sparked controversy. The referee awarded the home team a penalty and two red cards, while the assistant referee called an offside that was impossible to judge by eye despite VAR being available. This denied Qingdao West Coast a prime scoring chance, and after Shanghai Shenhua led 2-1 with two men advantage, they appeared to ease off. Overall, the match was filled with disputes and doubts, leading fans to debate whether Shanghai Shenhua truly deserves the Chinese Super League title. What’s your opinion?

The latest Chinese Super League standings after 27 rounds for the top three title contenders are as follows:Shanghai Port leads with 60 points, Chengdu Rongcheng follows with 58 points, and Shanghai Shenhua ranks third with 57 points.The three teams are tightly packed, separated by just one match difference, making this season’s title race very complicated. Shanghai Port will face a decisive championship match in the next round.

The leader and defending champion Shanghai Port will play away in the next Chinese Super League round againstShandong Taishan.This could be the key match determining whether Shanghai Port can achieve a three-peat this season. Before this game, Shanghai Port also has an AFC Champions League home match against Tianjin Zewiya (a Japanese J-League team) next week. Given the clash between the Chinese Super League’s calendar year format and the AFC Champions League's cross-year schedule, during this critical phase of the title race and with the AFC group stage just starting, Shanghai Port will likely field a rotated squad for the AFC match. While fans dislike seeing the AFC Champions League being deprioritized, it is understandable. Shanghai Port’s final two league matches are at home against Zhejiang and away against Dalian Yifang. Therefore, if Shanghai Port defeats Shandong Taishan, they are highly likely to be this year’s Chinese Super League champions.