Newly-promoted side Hebei China Fortune FC nipped a hard-fighting Tianjin Teda FC eleven, 1-0, at their home ground of Qinhuangdao Olympic Sports Center Stadium last Saturday in a round 14 encounter of the 2016 Chinese Super League season.

CCTV reported that the Samba Kings "quickly get off to a perfect start when they open the scoring with their first possession of the match" as French winger Gael Kakuta scored the only goal of the contest right at the 26-second mark off an assist from local striker Dong Xuesheng.

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It was a quick play for Hebei right after kickoff when defender Ding Haifeng advanced from the left flank and left it to Dong, who then whipped it to Kakuta for the goal inside the penalty box.

The lone goal proved to be enough for head coach Li Tie's side as the two teams both went scoreless for the rest of the game.

Hebei China Fortune came away with the win and three points in the overall standings, cutting their deficit with current league leaders Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC to only three points as well, via Soccerway, as the Southern China Tigers settled to a sorry 1-1 draw with another newly-promoted team, Yanbian Funde, in their own round 14 fixture.

The victory also allowed Hebei to bounce back from their 2-2 draw with Shanghai Shenhua in the previous round that snapped their four-game winning run in the China first division domestic competitions.

Li's squad continues to play without Argentine import Ezequiel Lavezzi, who is still competing with his national team in the ongoing 2016 Copa America Centenario. Led by superstar Lionel Messi, the team is set to face the host team United States in the semifinals on Tuesday and Lavezzi is expected to again play a crucial role in the match.

Meanwhile, the Tianjin Tigers suffered their second consecutive loss after their 0-2 defeat to Guangzhou Evergrande in the previous round.

Tianjin is drifting in the middle of the standings at the moment, at the seventh spot, a safe 10 points above the bottom two relegation zone but nine points below the third and final AFC Champions League qualifying berth currently held by Jiangsu Suning.

TagsChina Football, Chinese Super League, Chinese Super League 2016, Hebei China Fortune FC, Tianjin Teda FC