Youngster Zheng Zheng scored the only goal of the game to send Shandong Luneng to the top of the Chinese Super League as the three-time champions edged Shenzhen Kingway 1-0 at Shenzhen Stadium.

The three points means Shandong move one point ahead of Shanghai Shenhua after eight rounds and have one game in hand. The visitors created the first effort of note after 14 minutes when Lu Zheng volleyed Yuan Weiwei's cross wide.

However, the winning goal arrived just three minutes later when Zheng collected the ball following a failed attempt at clearing by the Shenzhen defence - and then unleashed a 30-yard shot into the back of the net. That brought the hosts to life and they then had Shandong pinned inside their own half with Serbian Aleksandar Zivkovic pulling the strings in the midfield.

However, Shandong came close to extending the lead shortly before the break following a counter-attack that saw Deng Zhuoxiang clip a left-footed effort just wide from the edge of the box. Shandong became more dangerous in the second half as Shenzhen created a lot of space for them on counter-attacks and 15 minutes before time Deng latched onto Yuan's inviting cross before heading the ball against the post.

"Shandong's performance today proved that they are a super powerful team in the CSL," said Shenzhen manager Gao Geqi. "My players showed alot of endeavour in the second half, but we were not able to score." Shenzhen now have 11 points and are in sixth place.

"It was a hard-fought victory for my side," said Shandong coach Branko Ivankovic. "They overcame the high temperature and kept running for 90 minutes, though we missed the chances for a second goal."

Elsewhere, defending champions Beijing Guoan were held to a goalless draw by Changsha Ginde, meaning the capital side are third in the standings, two points behind Shandong. Liaoning Zhongyu beat Hangzhou Lucheng 1-0, Shaanxi Baorong shared a 1-1 draw with Henan Jianye and Nanchang Bayi were handed a 5-2 defeat by Chongqing Lifan.