Five-straight defending champions Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC (12-1-3, 39 points) blanked cellar dwellers Shandong Luneng Taishan FC (2-9-4, 10 points), 2-0, on the road at the Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium on Sunday to extend their current winning streak to two games.

Brazilian imports Alan Carvalho and Paulinho scored a goal each in the contest to help the team stay on top of the league table after 16 rounds in the country's first division association football competitions, as reported by Xinhuanet.

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Alan broke the game's deadlock at the 33rd minute for the reigning champs as he managed to handle a pin-point assist from local striker Gao Lin and slot it in from close range, giving the Southern China Tigers a one-point lead at the halftime break.

World Cup-winning head coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's squad, who continues to miss the services of top Colombian striker Jackson Martinez because of injury, doubled the lead six minutes after the restart with a trick goal from Paulinho, via Soccerway.

Shandong defender Li Songyi stumbled in his recovery kick near their goal and the ball rolled towards Paulinho. The Brazilian's first shot clanged the post, but he was able to grab his own rebound and shot the ball softly towards the goal.

It was the second consecutive win for Guangzhou and also their 15th straight unbeaten performance in the China top flight after dropping their season-opener against Chongqing Lifan, 1-2, in March.

Curiously, their next game will be against Chongqing on Sunday, July 10, and so Scolari's boys will have the opportunity to redeem themselves from their CSL conquerors.

Meanwhile, with the loss, Shandong Luneng had been winless in their last 10 CSL games even as they had changed head coaches from Mano Menezes to Bundesliga champion manager Felix Magath in the middle of the season. The team had not tasted a victory in five games in all competitions under Magath.

A ray of hope, however, was the return of Brazilian striker Diego Tardelli from injury. Tardelli suited up in this game versus the Southern China Tigers, coming in as a substitute for midfielder Jin Jingdao at the 53rd minute.

TagsChina Football, Chinese Super League, Chinese Super League 2016, Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC, Shandong Luneng Taishan FC