Nemanja Covic (L) of Henan FC breaks through during a 2023 season
Yang Liyu's second-half strike gave Beijing Guo'an their first win of the season as they beat Henan 1-0 in the 2023 Chinese Super League (CSL) on Friday.
Both Henan and Guo'an entered the stadium with no wins from their first four games, with both teams sitting in the bottom half with only three points from three draws.
Guo'an took the initiative from the start and had the first chance of the game in the fourth minute. Henan had their best chance in the 26th minute, but Feng Boyuan's strike inside the box and Huang Zichang's follow-up shot from close range were both denied by Guo'an goalkeeper Han Jiaqi.
Despite having more possession, none of Guo'an's four shots in the first half were on target. Guo'an still broke the deadlock in the 56th minute, when Wang Gang's right-wing cross found Yang in the middle and the latter sent the ball into the bottom-right corner.
Henan thought they had equalized seven minutes from time, but Nemanja Covic's header was chalked off for a foul on a defender. With the win, Guo'an move up to seventh in the 16-team standings with six points from five games.
Elsewhere, Jurgen Locadia's second-half penalty lifted Cangzhou Mighty Lions to a 1-0 win over Shenzhen FC to register their first league win.
In other CSL fixtures on Friday, bottom side Zhejiang FC clinched their first point of the season with a goalless draw away to Wuhan Three Towns, while Shanghai Shenhua beat Dalian Pro 1-0 at home.
