Newly-promoted teams Hebei China Fortune FC, and Yanbian Funde FC are both exceeding expectations in the 2016 Chinese Super League season as the competition reaches its midway mark this week.

Hebei China Fortune, were runners-up of China League One last season. The team led by head coach Li Tie, is currently second place in the league table. Only three points separate them from league leaders and defending champions, Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC.

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According to the South China Morning Post, this season has been a "remarkable rise" for the Samba Kings as the club was only founded in 2010. The team started competing in the China League Two, the country's third division league before getting promoted to the China League One in 2014 before finally advancing to the Super League this season.

Right now, they are one of the teams to beat in the top flight league along with Guangzhou, Jiangsu Suning, and Shanghai SIPG. The club also embarked on a spending spree during the recent winter transfer window. They bought several  international big-names players including, Gervinho, Stephane M'Bia, Gael Kakuta, Ersan Gulum, and Ezequiel Lavezzi at the same time.

Meanwhile, last year's China League One champions Yanbian Funde is currently in the12th place in the league standings with three points above the bottom two relegation zone.

This season, Yanbian is also doing well for a CSL newcomer even though they do not have the same foreign firepower that Hebei has. Coached by manager Park Tae-ha, the club features Bubacarr Trawally, Nikola Petkovic and three South Korean players Ha Tae-goon, Yoon Bit-garam, and Kim Seung-dae.

The Yanji City residents recently pulled off a 1-1 draw against defending champions Evergrande in their home stadium. The draw signaled the team's readiness for the tough first division matches.

The two promoted squads are expected to remain in the Super League next season. Some pundits even predict that will have a slight chance of knocking out Guangzhou from their lofty spot in the league.

TagsChina Football, Chinese Super League, Chinese Super League news, Hebei China Fortune FC, Yanbian Funde FC