Djordje Despotovic scored the only goal of the game as Orenburg beat Dalian Professional on Friday. The Serbian striker has now scored four goals in his side’s last four warmup matches.

A few minutes after half time Despotovic struck. He needed three attempts to bundle the ball in after desperate last-ditch defending thwarted his first two shots.

In truth the final score should have been far more comprehensive against Rafael Benitez’s side. Mohammed Sylla had two goals disallowed for offside amid a whole host of clear sights at goal, while Orenburg were rarely threatened.

Dalian were let off the hook early on when Andrey Malykh latched onto a clever flick from Fedor Chernykh and fired a dangerous cross into the box. The linesman’s flag stopped the attack in its tracks.

A couple of speculative Orenburg shots went harmlessly wide before former Zenit St. Petersburg and Rubin Kazan striker Salomon Rondon set up a teammate inside the box for a blocked shot. Sylla’s close-range header was ruled out for offside late in the half.

Sylla was getting a lot of joy against a haphazard Dalian defence. His finish after a pacy run struck the post, before the Chinese keeper spread himself to block a powerful shot from close range and saw another free shot roll just wide.

A late Dalian free kick was palmed away, but Orenburg closed out the game without further trouble.

Orenburg 1-0 Dalian
14 February, Marbella, Spain
Goal: Despotovic (52’)

Orenburg: Dovbnya, Malykh, Ayupov, Radakovic, Sivakov, Terekhov, Kuat (Rogic 71’), Miskic, Sylla, Chernykh (Alves 71’), Despotovic