Chinese Super League side Guangzhou R&F defeated city rival Guangzhou Evergrande 1-0 in a domestic league game on Friday night at Tianhe Stadium.

"My players fought to win tonight. They did a very good job, which leads to a great victory," said Sven-Goran Eriksson, R&F head coach. Winning the derby game will help boost the team's confidence to move into the AFC Champions League next season, Eriksson said.

But Eriksson said big-spending rival Guangzhou Evergrande is still strong and very competitive in the domestic and Asian leagues.

Marcello Lippi, head coach of Evergrande, said tight schedules over the recent weeks had affected the team's physical condition.

Several major players, including Zheng Zhi and Italian international Alessandro Diamanti, did not play on Friday so they could prepare for next week's AFC championship game against Japanese side Cerezo Osaka.