Rodrigo Pimpao set Cerezo Osaka on their way to a crushing 4-0 victory as they reached the last 16 of the AFC Champions League at the expense of Shandong Luneng.

The Japanese side needed just to avoid defeat to secure a runners-up finish behind Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in Group G, but progressed in style with a home win at the Nagai Stadium.

Rodrigo netted the opening goal in the 39th minute before Hiroshi Kiyotake, Takashi Inui and substitute midfielder Shu Kurata scored in the second-half.

Chinese Super League side Shandong began positively, knowing a win would take them through, and Wang Liang surged forward from the kick-off before striking wide from just outside the penalty area.

With assistant coach Rajko Magic serving as caretaker boss following the recent dismissal of Branko Ivankovic, Shandong also made a few physical challenges which resulted in bookings inside the opening half-hour for Liu Jindong, Renato Silva and Cui Peng, who was later sent off.

Cerezo looked to show attacking purpose but were frequently floored by their hard-tackling opponents.

By the midway point of the first-half, Cerezo began to threaten the Shandong goal and forward Rui Komatsu cut into the penalty area from the right to hit a shot which was blocked by goalkeeper Yang Cheng.

The hosts opened the scoring when Yusuke Maruhashi’s shot was pushed out by Yang and Rodrigo seized on the rebound to fire in from 10 yards.

Boosted by the goal, the J. League side went on the offensive and created numerous threatening chances before the interval.

Inui and Rodrigo could have doubled their team’s lead but were both thwarted by desperate defending.

Cerezo did increase their advantage a few seconds into the second-half when Kiyotake received a pass from Komatsu and fired in from the edge of the penalty area.

Midfielder Kim Bo-kyung then went close twice with fierce shots on goal, before Inui made it 3-0 in the 73rd minute by slotting home a loose ball after Komatsu cut into the box.

Shandong had threatened before the third goal went in, with an attempt from Ricardo in the 51st minute. But the visitors went down to 10 men with quarter of an hour to go when Cui Peng received his second booking of the day for a dangerous challenge on an opponent.

Substitute Cerezo midfielder Kurata then played a neat one-two and cut inside the box, rifling past the advancing Yang to find the net in the 81st minute

A hat-trick from Krunoslav Lovrek helped Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors ease to a 6-0 win over Arema Indonesia at Jeonju World Cup Stadium to ensure that the hosts progressed to the last 16 of the 2011 AFC Champions League as Group G winners.

The Croatian scored inside the first minute put the K-League leaders on their way against their Indonesian opponents and from then it was a question of how many the Korea Republic team would score.

Kim Dong-chan added a second shortly after and Jung Sung-hoon made it three before two more from Lovrek and a late strike from Kang sung-jo completed the scoring as Jeonbuk collected a fifth victory in six games. Arema also missed a late penalty.

The 2006 ACL winners took the lead after just 40 seconds. Jung Sung-hoon broke free down the right and his low cross fell to Lovrek. The Croatian was not closed down and had time to control the ball on the left side of the area before driving a left-foot shot into the far corner of the goal.

Five minutes later, it was 2-0. Luiz Henrique picked up the ball just inside the Arema half and his simple pass through the middle sent Kim Dong-chan free. The striker rolled the past the goalkeeper to double the hosts’ lead.

Apart from the occasional long-range effort from the visitors, the one-way traffic continued and midway through the first-half, Eninho shot weakly from close range.

It was 3-0 in the 27th minute. Zulkifli Syukur was at the far post to deal with Kim Dong-chan’s high cross from the right but the defender was out-jumped by the onrushing Jung sung-hoon who thundered a header home from close range.

Just before the break, Eninho almost made it four but his shot from 25 yards out beat the goalkeeper but bounced back off the crossbar.

There was still time remaining in the first-half for Jung to also hit the crossbar and Lovrek to add his second and Jeonbuk’s fourth. Luiz Henrique found Eninho who drew the keeper and then slipped the ball unselfishly to his right, leaving Lovrek to side-foot into an empty net.

It took Jeonbuk a little while to get going after the break but substitute Kim Hyung-beom beat two defenders on the right side and pulled the ball back to find Lovrek near the penalty spot. The Croatian’s first time shot flew into the bottom corner to complete his hat-trick.

Kang sung-jo added a sixth with 13 minutes remaining to complete a good day for the Korea Republic side.

Arema’s best chance of the game came with six minutes remaining from the penalty spot. Goalkeeper Kim Min-sik brought down Benny Wahyudi but saved Roman Chmelo’s tame effort.

Cerezo Osaka secured the three points they needed to keep their 2011 AFC Champions League chances alive with an emphatic 4-0 win over Arema Indonesia.

Goals from Hiroshi Kiyotake, Rodrigo Pimpao, Yusuke Maruhashi and Takushi Inui secured a one-sided win for the visitors, who moved level at the top of Group G to give themselves a fighting chance of progressing in the competition.

They did not have it all their own way in the early stages, though, as the home side looked lively in what turned out to be their best spell of the game.

The Japanese side made the breakthrough 31 minutes in with Kiyotake trading passes with Shu Kurata before beating two defenders for pace and slamming past Kurnia Meiga, who had little chance.

Two minutes before the break, Cerezo doubled their lead on the counter attack. Rodrigo ran at the Arema defence – who backed off allowing him space – and then drove home from the edge of the box.

Meiga was hauled off at half-time but only a minute into the second period his replacement Ahman Kumiawan was picking the ball out of the back of the net after Rodrigo and Inui linked up to free Maruhashi, who did the rest and put his side out of sight.

The rout was completed on the hour, with Inui scoring the goal of the game as he broke free of his markers and netted with a clinical finish that Kumiawan could do little about.

They could have made it five before the end too, with Kurniawan saving from Rodrigo with 18 minutes remaining but in the end Cerezo settled for four goals and three points.

A late strike from Lee Dong-gook gave Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors a 1-0 win over Cerezo Osaka to put the Korea Republic team on top of Group G of the 2011 AFC Champions League.

With the game heading for goalless draw, Lee broke the deadlock 12 minutes from the end of an entertaining game to give the hosts a vital three points in a tight group. With two games remaining, three points separate Jeonbuk in first and Cerezo in third.

Jeonbuk attacked from the start and went close after just five minutes. Kim Dong-chan was released by Park Won-jae down the left side and the striker took the ball past his marker only to shoot straight at Cerezo goalkeeper Kim Jin-hyeon.

As the early exchanges calmed down, Jeonbuk began to put the visitors under pressure. The impressive Park was in action down the left again after 26 minutes and his cross from the left was headed just wide of Osaka’s left-hand post by Kim. Seconds later, Lee Dong-gook blasted over from just outside the area.

On the stroke of half-time, the J-League team came even closer to breaking the deadlock. A clever short corner wrong-footed the Jeonbuk defence. A shot from Inui was blocked and a subsequent attempt from Rodrigo was deflected into the grateful and unsuspecting arms of Yeom waiting on the goalline.

Both teams started the second-half as they did the first but the best chance of the game fell to the busy Inui 11 minutes after the restart. The goalscorer from Cerezo’s 1-0 win over Jeonbuk in Japan broke into the area and with just the goalkeeper to beat, tried to curl the ball home with the outside of his boot only to see his shot bounce harmlessly wide.

As full-time loomed into view, Cerezo were on top but it was Jeonbuk who broke the deadlock. Park pulled the ball back from the left byline to behind the penalty spot where Lee picked his spot to fire the ball past goalkeeper Kim.

Sydney FC v Kashima Antlers – Live Score (0 – 3)(FT)

Sydney FC’s prospects of making the AFC Asian Champions League knockout phase have nosedived after crashing to a 3-0 loss to Japanese side Kashima Antlers at the Sydney Football Stadium on Wednesday night.

It was Sydney’s first home loss in an ACL game and left it in a parlous position with all three of its remaining games offshore.

Kashima joined Korean side Suwon on five points in the four-team group, with Sydney and China’s Shanghai Shenhua both three points further back at the halfway stage.

Midfielder Takuya Nozawa lashed the ball home from close range in the 41st minute for the first goal and provided the cross for unmarked Brazilian Gabriel to head home early in the second half.

Shinzoh Koroki blasted home a third in time added-on.

With its two most creative players in Nicky Carle and David Williams out injured, Sydney struggled to create clear cut chances.

Sydney’s main threat was the aerial presence of striker Bruno Cazarine.

In the first half, the big Brazilian had a stooping header comfortably saved and powered another one just wide from a corner.

He was narrowly off target with another aerial attempt after the break and had a shot saved just before Kashima scored its third goal.

Kashima threatened more at ground level, with classy midfielder and skipper Mitsuo Ogasawara and Toru Araiba going close before Nozawa broke the deadlock.

With Carle and Williams out and defender Sebastian Ryall hurt, Sydney coach Vitezslav Lavicka gave a first ACL start to Dimi Petratos and Rhyan Grant and recalled Shannon Cole.

Chances were at a premium early on in front of a third straight ACL crowd of just over 7,000 at the SFS.

Lavicka made a change at halftime, bringing on defender Andrew Durante for Stephan Keller, who suffered an ankle injury.

For all its industry and purpose, Sydney lacked the guile to unlock a Kashima defence which has conceded just one goal in its three ACL games.

Cerezo Osaka 1-0 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors
Takashi Inui’s second-half goal saw Cerezo Osaka beat Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 1-0 in their 2011 AFC Champions League Group G game.

Cerezo, playing their first official game since March 16, struggled to find their rhythm. It was however Inui who came close from outside the box in the 31st minute and Shu Kurata, playing well in the middle of the park, struck from the edge of the box only to be denied by Kim Min-sik.

The hosts delivered some dangerous crosses from the left but Jeonbuk centre-backs Sim Woo-yeon and Jin Kyiung-sun were solid enough to snuff out possible danger.

Cerezo’s first real chance came in the 44th minute when Kurata fed Inui, who fired a shot from 12 yards out but his attempt was blocked by a Jeonbuk defender.

The game picked up after the break and a neat move from Cerezo saw Inui latch on to a fine pass from Rodrigo Pimpao and dribble past a Jeonbuk defender on the edge of the box before blasting home from 15 yards to give Cerezo a 1-0 lead.

Jeonbuk manager Choi Kang-hee responded quickly and brought on former Cerezo Osaka forward Kruno Lovrek in an attempt to rally his side.

Cerezo looked the more organised side in the second half and threatened the visitors again in the 61st minute when Kurata fired a Hiroshi Kiyotake pass goalwards from just inside the box but Kim reacted well to deny the attempt.

The visitors again came close a minute later when substitute Lovrek shot too high from outside the box, as did fellow replacement Huang Bowen from Lovrek’s pass.

Arema 1-1 Shandong Luneng
Arema Indonesia earned their first point of the 2011 AFC Champions League with a 1-1 draw against Shandong Luneng.

Arema needed a positive result to keep alive their hopes of reaching the last 16 but it was Shandong who dominated from the start.

The Chinese side had their first chance in the sixth minute when a shot from Li Wei went well wide but Shandong took the lead just a minute later following an error from Arema goalkeeper Ahmad Kurniawan, who failed to deal with a harmless cross and Brazilian striker Obina was on hand to score.

For a match featuring the two champions of their respective leagues, not much happened in the first-half with both sides content to play direct football, hitting long ball after long ball.

Arema boss Miroslav Janu introduced Syukur Zulkifly and Waluyo for Johan Farizi and Pratomo Purwaka after the break.

Shandong again piled the pressure on Arema and would have doubled their lead if Kurniawan did not stop a thunderous shot from Lebanon international Roda Antar in the 53rd minute.

That shot proved to be the only action in the first 25 minutes of the second-half as both teams failed to create much in the way of chances.

Shandong failed to extend their lead after Obina, unmarked in the six-yard box, missed a sitter and the 2005 ACL quarter-finalists paid the price for missing that chance when Arema equalized three minutes into stoppage time.

Iranian referee Alireza Faghani pointed to the spot after Sunarto was fouled in the box by Liu Jindong and Fakhrudin sent Shandong keeper Yang Cheng the wrong way from the resulting penalty.

Shandong Luneng 2-0 Cerezo Osaka
Shandong Luneng pick up their first win in the 2011 AFC Champions League with a convincing 2-0 defeat of Cerezo Osaka.

Cerezo had the first opportunity of the game eight minutes in when Brazilian Martinez fired a free-kick just past the post.

Shandong then went on the offensive and took complete control of the game, applying constant pressure to Cerezo.

Another clear opportunity came when Cape Verde defender Ricardo rose highest to connect with Wang’s free-kick from the left but his header was just off target.

The hosts continued to attack and Renato Silva broke the deadlock midway through the first-half.

A corner taken by Wang was headed across the face of the Cerezo goal and the Brazilian was on hand to poke the ball past goalkeeper Kim.

The visitors created a chance of their own five minutes later when Rodrigo Pimpao broke clear from the right and unleashed a drive that was palmed away by keeper Yang Cheng.

Shandong doubled the lead with Wang latching onto a through ball from Han and one-on-one with Kim, he calmly steered his finish past the keeper.

Shandong maintained their dominance of the game in the second period. Ricardo thought he headed in the third goal five minutes after the break only to see Kim make a superb save to deny him.

Substitute Rui Komatsu called Yang into action four minutes later, pulling the trigger from 25 yards after pouncing on a failed clearance but the keeper was equal to the attempt.

Shandong earned a penalty 18 minutes from full time when Obina was brought down by Teruyuki Moniwa but the Brazilian forward failed to beat Kim as the Cerezo stopper brilliantly tipped the ball onto the right post.

Arema Indonesia 0-4 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors
Two goals from Luiz Enrique and one each from Huang Bowen and Kim Jee-wong saw Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors ease past Arema Indonesia 4-0.

The hosts had the first chance of the game in the third minute after Mohamed Ridhuan was fouled but Roman Chmelo blazed his free-kick over the bar. A minute later, a shot from Kruno Lovrek was off target for Jeonbuk.

Arema kept attacking and had another opportunity in the eighth minute but Kim Min-sik saved from Benny Wahyudi.

Arema created a glorious opening to take the lead in the 22nd minute after Chmelo jinked past a defender and fed Yongki Aribowo but the young striker could not reach the pass.

Jeonbuk then drew first blood in the 25th minute when Kim Jee-wong met Lee Sung-hyun’s delivery with a volley that beat the Arema keeper.

The home side almost pulled level four minutes later when Ahmad Amiruddin glided past a defender but his shot smacked the crossbar after keeper Kim Min-sik managed to get a touch on it.

Ahmad Bustomi was then fouled near the penalty area but Esteban Guillen wasted the chance when the Uruguayan’s free-kick flew over the bar in the 40th minute

Arema introduced their talisman in the shape of Noh Alam Shah in the second-half but the Singaporean striker was unable to improve his team’s fortunes.

Jeonbuk, meanwhile, stepped up their performance in the second period. Henrique met Ha Sung-min’s cross with a fine header but it was saved by Kurnia Meiga.

The Korean side doubled their lead in the 76th minute when Jung Hoon crossed into a dangerous area and Kim Dong chan headed the ball across the goalmouth before former Beijing Guoan midfielder Huang applied the finish.

Luiz Henrique made it 3-0 to Jeonbuk in the 80th minute with a sublime finish from a narrow angle before a solo effort from the same player led to a fourth goal.

Cerezo Osaka 2-1 Arema Indonesia
Cerezo Osaka celebrated their AFC Champions League debut by beating Arema Indonesia 2-1 in their Group G opener at Nagai Stadium in Osaka on Wednesday.

Rodrigo Pimpao, who is on loan from Rio giants Vasco de Gama, scored both goals, with the Brazilian striker grabbing the opener early in the first half before netting the winner in the 76th minute after Singapore international Noh Alam Shah had equalised from the penalty spot.

Cerezo, who qualified for their first-ever ACL by coming third in last year’s J. League, displayed aggressive football from the start of the game, with Pimpao, Taskashi Inui and Shu Kurata moving well in attack.

The hosts went ahead in the 14th minute thanks to the combination of trio.

Inui latched on to a through ball from Kurata and went down to the byline before returning the ball to Pimpao, who headed home the opener from inside the area.

In the 25th minute, Inui threatened the Arema goal with a shot from a Kurata pass but the ball went wide.

Arema, playing in the ACL for only their second time after making their debut in the 2007 edition, tried to find their pace with the services of forwards Slovakian Roman Chmelo and Alam Shah.

In the 30th minute, midfielder Ahmad Bustomi got a ball from the back and ran down the left flank to hit a shot from just inside the box but his effort, hit under pressured by Daisuke Takahashi, sailed past the woodwork.

After the break the Indonesian side, currently placed second in their domestic league, rallied and came close with a mid-range attempt from Chmelo, forcing Korea international goalkeeper Kim Jin-hyeon to palm the ball out of the area for a corner.

A minute later, referee Torki Mohsen penalised Cerezo defender Taikai Uemoto for a handball in the area as he attempted to clear an Arema cross out of the area and Alam Shah subsequently converted the 49th minute penalty.
Boosted by that goal. Arema found their passing ability and frustrated the hosts by pressuring them hard.

Nevertheless, Cerezo passed the ball around patiently and came in to the box with chances and half chances from Kim Bo-kyung and Kurata halfway through the second half. Kim hit the bar in the 70th minute, while Arema goalkeeper Achmad Kurniawan reacted well to deny an attempt from Kurata two minutes later.

And their efforts were finally rewarded in the 76th minute when Pimpao connected with a Masaki Chugo free-kick and put his side ahead once again from close range.

Arema fought hard and came close to levelling the scores again in the 85th minute when Alam Shah’s shot beat advancing goalkeeper Kim, but Cerezo defender Teruyuki Moniwa rushed in to rescue the south Osaka team.

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 1-0 Shandong
A second-half header from Park Won-jae was enough to give Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors a deserved 1-0 win over Shandong Luneng at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Group G of the AFC Champions League.

On a cold night at the home of the 2006 ACL winners, the former Pohang Steelers and Omiya Ardija wing-back struck on the hour after Jeonbuk had missed a number of chances against the Chinese champions.

Most of the first-half was spent in Shandong territory and the best opportunity of the opening period fell to Lee Dong-guk after 14 minutes.

Eninho launched a ball down the right side for Cho Sung-hwan to cross and it fell to the former Middlesbrough marksman 10 yards out but with the goal at his mercy, he sent the shot wide.

Two minutes later, Cho almost put his team ahead when he latched on to a left-sided corner to fire in the direction of the goal but Li Wei managed to get his body in the way.

Shandong offered little going forward and just after the half-hour, the busy Eninho went close with a free-kick from inside the arc on the edge of Shandong’s area. The Brazilian’s curling shot just shaved the outside of Yang Cheng’s left post.

Seven minutes after the restart, Cho was involved yet again as he headed over a corner from close range.

Just as Jeonbuk fans were starting to think that it wasn’t going to be their night, the deadlock was broken in the 60th minute.

From outside the right corner of the penalty area, Eninho floated over a tantalising cross to the far post. It eluded a host of players from both teams but Park followed in and, after the ball had bounced, headed over the line from close range from a narrow angle.

Shandong then began to push forward in search of an equaliser. A mix-up in defence on the right corner of the box allowed Zheng Zheng to steal possession and the midfielder unleashed a fierce low shot that flashed past Jeonbuk’s left-hand post.

The visitors came even closer 12 minutes from time.

Han Peng had been on the pitch for just a few minutes when he was afforded space to head Zhou Haibin’s cross from the right towards the far corner of the Jeonbuk goal, forcing a flying save from Jeonbuk debutant Yeom Dong-hyunm, who managed to tip the ball round the post for a corner.

Both sides continued to create half-chances but the scoreline stayed the same to get Jeonbuk off to a winning start.

Today we move on to Group G and the East of the AFC Asian Champions League 2011.

Group G is made up of the following teams:

• AREMA MALANG (IDN)
• CEREZO OSAKA (JPN)
• JEONBUK HYUNDAI MOTORS (KOR)
• SHANDONG LUNENG FC (CHN)

Arema Malang
Arema are 2010 Indonesian domestic champions. In the latest season which is 14 matches old, they are sitting 2nd with 26 points and 7 wins so far. On that form, Arema is in a great position to be competitive this year, the only issue I see is that they have probably been tagged with the hardest group in the championship. Jeonbuk and Shandong are the favourites in this group and then you also have Cerezo another japanese team. Arema certainly have their works cut out for them.

Cerezo Osaka
Cerezo finished 3rd in the latest J League season only one point adrift of 2nd with 17 wins, 10 draws and 3 losses during the season. Cerezo did not compete in the 2010 AFC Champions League so recent form will not be any guide. As mentioned above being grouped with Jeonbuk and Shandong means they will have to be on their game every match in order to clinch 2nd place and qualify for the knockout round.

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors
Jeonbuk finished 3rd in the 2010 K League championship, 8 points behind 2nd and 11 points behind first place. Third place domestically was achieved by winning 15 games, drawing 6 and losing 7 games. In 2010 AFC Champions League, Jeonbuk was eliminated in the Quarter Finals 2 – 0 by Al Shabab. During their group games they comfortably made it into 2nd position. Along with Shandong from China they are the favourites to qualify for the 2011 knockout rounds.

Shandong Luneng
Shandong was the 2010 Chinese Super League champion, comfortably winning the league with 18 wins, 9 draws and 3 losses. Based on this form, they are a favourite to progress along with Jeonbuk. Their 2011 appearance doing go anywhere as well as they would have liked finishing last in their group with 2 wins and 4 losses. My guess for 2nd position in this group will be between Shandong and Cerezo from Japan.

Top spot was all that was left to fight for in Group G.

Suwon Bluewings 6–2 Singapore Armed Forces

Singapore took a shock lead after just five minutes, controlling brilliantly before curling a long rage shot past Lee Woon-jae. Six minutes later however, Suwon equalised through Jose Mota. They then took the lead through Lee Hyun-jin, who was first to react to a rebound. Kwak Hee-ju then headed home a set piece on the half-hour mark to make it 3-1. Mota grabbed his second seven minutes before the break.

Second half substitute Yeom Ki-hoon then celebrated his Bluewings debut with a goal less than a minute after the restart. Ivan Lovric grabbed a consolation for SAF with 20 minutes left before Yeom scored his 2nd on debut with a curling in a 20-yard shot.

Henan Jianye 1–1 Gamba Osaka

With Henan already eliminated, expectations weren’t high for a competitive match but it didn’t turn out that way tonight. Gamba took the lead just after half time through a Takashi Usami’s strike and they held on to the lead until the finla minute of regular time, when they managed an equaliser from Song Tae-lim.

Group G

Gamba Osaka 2-1 Suwon Samsung Bluewings

A last minute strike by Takashi Usami, assured Gamba Osaka first place in Group G.

Gamba started the game in second position, 2 points behind Suwon, who had also yet to lose a game.

Suwon scored first in the 58th minute through Jose Mota, his fifth goal of the competition.

However, the Koreans were pegged back only three minutes later by Takahiro Futagawa.

Scores remained at 1-1 until injury time when the 17-year-old Usami netted the winner.

Gamba now lead the group with 1 point and play their final group game away to Henan. Suwon host Singapore Armed Forces in a game they will be expected to win convincingly.

Singapore Armed Forces 2-1 Henan Construction

Singapore Armed Forces won their first AFC Champions League game last night, beating Henan Construction by 2 – 1. This leaves the Chinese Super League side propping up the table with one match remaining.

Daniel Bennett’s 66th minute strike was equalised by Le Yu six minutes later but Erwan Gunawan Suherman assured Singapore’s first win with 12 minutes to go.

Group H

Pohang Steelers 0-0 Adelaide United

Pohang Steelers and Adelaide United have both progressed through to the next round at the expense of Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Shandong Luneng, by sharing the points with a 0 – 0 draw.

Adelaide lead by goal difference and host Shandong on matchday 6. Pohnag are away to Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

Shandong Luneng 2-3 Sanfrecce Hiroshima

A thrilling second-half, which saw four goals scored, left Sanfrecce Hiroshima the eventual winner but it was all in vain as Adelaide and Pohang secured the top two spots in the group.

Shandong took the lead through a Peng Han penalty on the 45 minute mark before Koji Morisaki levelled for Sanfrecce in the 75th minute. Sanfrecce made it 2 – 1 five minutes later thanks to Tadanari Lee but Shandong battled back to level five minutes from time thanks to Fred Benson. Lee was to have the last say though as he scored on the stroke of full time.

Group C

Pakhtakor Tashkent 3-2 Al-Ain

Pakhtakor needed a win over Al-Ain of UAE to all but guarantee their qualification to the second round. It didn’t however start that favourably when Jorge Valdivia gave Al Ain the lead after just three minutes with a trademark free kick.

Odil Ahmedov was left unmarked to head home an equaliser for Pakhtakor just six minutes later. Three minutes later Ahmedov put Pakhtakor ahead with an excellent finish. A frantic opening 20 minutes to the second half ended with an equaliser via an own goal from Ilhomjon Suyunov. Ahmedov then completed the scoring, and his hat-trick, on 28 minutes from close range.

Sepahan 1-0 Al Shabab

Iran’s Sepahan knew a win was needed to stay alive in Group C, while a victory for Shabab would see them seal their path into the second round.

It was the home side who grabbed the only goal of the game to bag three vital points. Midfielder Ahmad Jamshidian’s tenth minute strike was enough to take Sepahan to the verge of qualification.

Group D

Al Ahli 2-1 Mes Kerman

Five time UAE League champions Al Ahli have endured a pretty miserable ACL campaign so far this season. Their victory over Mes Kerman probably won’t be enough to take them into the second round, although mathematical they still have hope.

Things started well for the home side when Farzad Hosseinkhani put through his own net to gift the Dubai based club the lead after just three minutes. Mehdi Rajabzadeh’s 75th minute equaliser looked to have condemned Al Ahli to elimination, but Ahmad Khalil’s 83rd minute penalty leaves them with a slim chance of second round qualification going into their final group game with Al Sadd on matchday 6.

Al Hilal 0-0 Al Sadd

Al Hilal lead group D with ten points from four games and a win would be enough to see them progress to the next round.

Despite the home side being unable to break down the 11-time Qatari League champions, the goalless draw confirmed Hilal’s qualification for the second round while Sadd know that a home win over Al Ahli on matchday 6 will be enough to secure their progression.

With all games in Match Day 4 of the AFC Champions League completed, two more teams have confirming their places in the Round of 16.

Seongnam Ilhwa made it four in a row in Group E to go through while Suwon Bluewings made sure of their advance in Group G.

Group A

Esteghlal, of Iran, drew 1-1 away to Qatar’s Al Gharafa and Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli scored a 2-0 away win over Al Jazira.

Younis Mahmoud gave Gharafa a 1-0 lead before the interval but Mehdi Salehi equalised for the visitors on 58 minutes.

Brazilian striker Victor was the hero for Ahli. He scored a goal in each half with Jazira down to 10 men following the second-half sending off of midfielder Sultan Al Menhali.

Group C

Sepahan have put themselves back into contention for a round of 16 place after their 2-0 home victory over Pakhtakor while Shabab beat Al Ain 3-2 at home.

Ibrahima Toure and Mohsen Bengar scoring within the last 17 minutes to earn victory for Sepahan.

Brazilian midfielder Marcelo Camacho rounded off a stirring comeback by Shabab with his late winner against Al Ain. Flavio gave Shabab the lead after 11 minutes before Jose Sand and an own goal from defender Masead Nada handed the visitors the lead on 60 minutes.

Camacho then set up Flavio for the equaliser before finishing it off himself with seven minutes remaining.

Group E

Korea Republic’s Seongnam have earned a place in the next round after their 1-0 away victory over China’s Beijing Guoan.

Melbourne Victory won for the first time after three straight defeats, beating Japan’s Kawasaki Frontale 1-0 at home.

Mauricio Molina scored with 15 minutes remaining for Seongnam. Whilst in the other game Kevin Muscat scored a penalty to breath some life into Melbourne’s campaign.

Group G

Suwon Bluewings have also progressed into the last 16 with a 2-0 home victory over China’s Henan Jianye.

Gamba Osaka beat Singapore Armed Forces 3-0 at home to boost their chances.

Jose Mota followed up his two goals against Henan from last week with an early strike on Wednesday with Kim Dae-ui adding the second.

Goals from defender Michihiro Yasuda, Shoki Hirai, and substitute Ze Carlos gave Gamba an easy win.

Group A
Esteghlal 3-0 Al Gharafa
Al Ahli 5-1 Al-Jazira

Al Gharafa couldn’t compete with Esteghlal today and went down 3-0 in the Azadi Stadium today. Esteghlal striker Farhad Majidi bagged himself two goals today. Majidi put the hosts ahead after a quarter of an hour before doubling their lead ten minutes after the break. Defender Pejman Montazeri then sealed the victory ten minutes from time.

In Group A’s other fixture, Al-Ahli, who so far have leaked five goals in their first two matches, turned things around against Al Jazira scoring 5 goals and winning 5-1. Ahli took the lead withing 2 minutes of the kick-off through Brazilian striker Victor Simoes and never looked back. Abdulrahim Jezawi scored two goals and the Saudi’s other Brazilian Marcinho also bagged a brace while Ivory Coast striker Toni Nantcho grabbed a consolation for Al-Jazira.

Group B
Zob Ahan 3 – 0 Bunyodkor
Al Wahda 0 – 2 Al Ittihad

Iranian side Zob Ahan stood out after their stunning 3-0 victory over Uzbek glamour side Bunyodkor.  The victory puts them on top of Group B. Two of Zob Ahan’s goals were stand-out with Mohammed Hosseini firing the hosts ahead before Mohammad Ghazi made it 2-0. Mohammad Khalatbari hit the last goal 10 minutes from time.

Former two-time champions and last year’s runners-up Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia picked up their first full points in this year’s competition with a 2-0 defeat of UAE’s Al Wahda.

The Jeddah giants were sitting with a loss and a draw so far in the competition, but goals from Abdulmalik Ziaya and Mohamed Nour helped them to their first win.

Group C
Pakhtakor Tashkent 2–1 Sepahan
Al-Ain 2-1 Al Shabab

An Alexander Geynrikh free kick gave Pakhtakor a deserved win over Iranian champions Sepahan and first place in Group Ch. Artur Geykorian’s low shot put the hosts in front five minutes before the break, only for Ahmad Jamshidian to head in an equaliser in first-half injury time. However, with 20 minutes remaining, Geynrikh swung in a free kick that beat several players before hitting the back of the net. Sepahan have had two draws and a defeat so far, making it difficult for them to progress past this stage.

Al Shabab came into their clash with Al-Ain with a number first team players unavailable and Jaime Pacheco’s side found themselves two down after 25 minutes. Former Flamengo striker Emerson but the hosts on their way 15 minutes in before Argentinian forward Jose Sand doubled their lead ten minutes later. Abdulaziz Bin Saran pulled a goal back for the White Lions but it wasn’t enough to save the 2006 quarter-finalists.

Group D
Al Sadd 4 – 1 Mes Kerman
Al Hilal 1 – 1 Al Ahli

Qatari giants Al Sadd showed Mes Kerman who’s the boss by beating them 4 – 1 whipping at the Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha.

Strikes by in-form Brazilian Leandro, who neutralised Mes’ lead through Edinho, before adding another, this was followed by goals from Felipe Jorge and Talal Al Baloushi.

The contest was well over within the hour and Al Sadd are now a point removed from section leaders Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia to whom they lost in their opening match. Mes are stranded on three points.

The other group game between Al Hilal and Al Ahli ended in 1-1 draw. Al Hilal’s form has been such that they were tipped to destroy the visiting side by a huge margin.  But the Saudi champions from Riyadh wasted many opportunities even as Mohamed Al Mahyani put them ahead only for the lead to be cancelled by Hosni Abd Rabou’s stoppage-time heartbreaker.

Al Ahli goalkeeper Abdulla Yousif stood firm and guarded his net against numerous Al Hilal assaults and saw his heavily favoured rivals find the woodwork twice before half-time.

Group E

Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma 3-1 Beijing Guoan
Kawasaki Frontale 4-0 Melbourne Victory

Korean side Seongnam Ilhwa Chunwa recovered from a goal down at home to Chinese Super League outfit Beijing Guoan to eventually win 3-1 victory in the closing stages of the game. Maurice Ross gave Beijing an early lead but the hosts drew level through Song Ho-Young. Seongnam went ahead just three minutes from time through the Montenegro midfielder, Dzenan Radoncic, before Jo Jae-Chol wrapped up the points in injury time.

Kawasaki Frontale thrashed an uninspiring Melbourne Victory 4 – 0. After losses to Seongnam and Beijing, Kawasaki needed victory at home to the Australians and three goals within 20 minutes all but ended the game in the fist half.

Chong Tese, the North Korea international, struck three minutes in and the lead was doubled by Masaru Kurotsu eight minutes later. The former Santos player Renantinho made it three and game over just after the 20 minute mark.

Then on the 90th minute when captain Hiroyuki Taniguchi hit the fourth.

Group F
Changchun Yatai 1-2 Jeonbuk Motors
Kashima Antlers 5-0 Persipura

Lee Dong-gook broke Chinese hearts in the northern city of Changchun on Wednesday with a late winner that gives the South Korean champions a huge boost in their bid to reach the second round.

The hosts started well and controlled the first half. After 65 minutes substitute Du Zhenyu scored to put the hosts ahead. The game wasn’t over however, with 12 minutes remaining, Choi Yae-wook equalized from close range.  Heading for a draw, Lee bagged a priceless winner after good work from Seo Jung-jin.

As expected, the Japanese champions Kashima Antlers, beat group whipping boys Persipura 5-0 at the Kashima Soccer Stadium.

After last round’s 9-0 thrashing in China, the result is an improvement of sorts for the Indonesians. Two goals from Brazil’s Marquinhos and solitary strikes from Toru Araiba, Mitsuo Ogasawara and Yuya Osaka won the game for the J-League titans.

Group G
Singapore Armed Forces 2-4 Gamba Osaka
Henan Construction 0-2 Suwon Samsung Bluewings

Gamba Osaka were given a stern test against a determined Singapore Armed Forces but managed to win comfortably in the end 4-2. Shoki Hirai gave Osaka the lead within six minutes from the first whistle but Erwan Gunawan got the hosts level just after the half hour. After Hirai re-established a one-goal advantage after half-time, Singapore managed to peg the visitors back again, through the Sweden international Niklas Sandberg. However, Sota Nakazawa made it 3-2 with 19 minutes left on the clock before Hirai completed his treble with seven minutes to play. The result marked Gamba’s first win this year following two draws and they move onto five points. SAFFC stay bottom with just one point.

In the second Group G game, Brazilian Jose Mota scored twice as Suwon Samsung Bluewings overcame China’s Henan. The 30-year-old hit a second half double to put the K-League side back on top of the table. After three matches, Suwon sit on top with a two-point lead. Henan, with two draws and a loss, are only one point off the bottom.

Group H
Pohang Steelers 1-0 Shandong Luneng
Adelaide United 3-2 Sanfrecce Hiroshima

Pohand Steelers squeezed past Shandong with a 1-0 win at the Steelyard. Most of the action came at the beginning and at the end of the match. After just five minutes, Noh Byung-joon smashed a free-kick high into the Chinese net.

Then with five minutes to go, Shandong were awarded a penalty after Kim Jung-kyum brought down Benson in the box. Shin Hwa-yong made a brilliant save to deny Deng Zhouxiang’s penalty and move Pohang clear in second place.

Adelaide United came from behind to defeat Sanfrecce Hiroshima to maintain their three from three perfect record in Group H and keep the Japanese team pointless. Hiroshima bounced back after going down early to a Travis Dodd goal and a red card for defender Ilian Stoyanov to equalize and then take the lead in the second half thanks to Kazuyaki Morisaki and Issei Takayanagi. Adelaide however hit back with two late goals from Robert Cornthwaite and Cassio which won them the game and gave them three points to keep them on top of the group.

Quick summary of the results from the remainder of the Matchday 1 games played overnight in Asia’s premier club competition – Asian Champions League.

Group C

Al-Ain 0–1 Pakhtakor Tashkent
Al Shabab 1-1 Sepahan

Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan grabbed their first win over Al-Ain of the UAE  with a goal from Artur Gevorkyan right on the hour mark.

Saudi club Al Shabab hosted Sepahan from Iran. Their opening game ended 1 -1 after Sultan’s 70th minute equaliser cancelled out Hosseini’s first-half opener.

Group D

Al-Sadd 0-3 Al Hilal
Mes Krman 4–2 Al-Ahli

Saudi reigning champions Al Hilal made the right start with a thumping of Qatar champions Al Sadd in Doha. Yasser Al-Qahtani grabbed a brace before Brazilian Thiago Neves secured a comprehensive victory in the final minute.

Mes Krman celebrated their ACL debut with a 4-2 victory over Dubai based giants Al-Ahli. Krman got thier first goal on the 20 minute mark when Mostafa Sayfi put the hosts ahead. Goals followed from Salem Khamis and Mehrzad Madanchi either side of the break sealing off a great victory.  With 15 minutes remaining the home side clicked back into gear as Mehdi Rajabzadeh grabbed a brace before Ali Samereh put the icing on the cake with seconds remaining.

Group G

Suwon S.B 0–0 Gamba Osaka
Henan Siwu 0–0 Singapore Armed Forces

A very fry goal session for Group G overnight with no goals being recorded in the opening round. Gamba missed several chances with Hideo Hashimoto hitting the woodwork though former Paris St.Germain forward Reinaldo missed a golden opportunity for the Bluewings. Chinese side Henan Jianye were making their debut in the competition and won’t be too disappointed with a point against Richard Bok’s much improved Singapore Armed Forces.

Group H

Adelaide United 1-0 Pohang Steelers
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0-1 Shandong Luneng

Adelaide United kicked off their ACL campaign with a tough win at home over reigning champions Pohang Steelers. The only goal of the game came just before half time from Matthew Leckie’s lucky strike. The 19-year-old latched onto a clearance from a Pohang corner and ran the length of the field before Park Hee-Chul deflected an attempted clearance back off the forward’s shin and past a despairing Shin Hwa-Yong in the Steelers goal.

Three-time Chinese champions Shandong Luneng left Sanfrecce’s Hiroshima Big Arch Stadium with Chinese international Han Peng grabbing the game’s only goal 15 minutes from time.

Group G is made up of the following ACL teams.

Henan (CHN) – ended 2009 3rd in he Super league so enter ACL 2010 with some good form. Expect some tough opposition when playing away to Henan this year.
Gamba (JPN) – also ended 3rd in the 2009 J League. Their performance on ACL 2009 lead them to the round of 16, losing to fellow J League Kawasaki.
Suwon (KOR) – ended mid table last year in K League so form might be a telling factor in how they begin their 2010 campaign. They also only made it to round 16 in 2009.
Singapore Armed Forces (SIN) – Continue good form on 2010 following title win last year. They qualified through the playoffs this year so have  few games in hand already. Not likely to threaten the other teams.

Group G March Day 1 features:
SUWON SAMSUNG BLUEWINGS (KOR) vs GAMBA OSAKA (JPN) – Tough opening encounter but I would be putting my money on the home team for the opening game.
HENAN JIANYE (CHN) vs SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES (SIN) – Cold in China at the moment as Melbourne Victory found out last night. Henan likely to be the victors at home this time.

Suwon Samsung Bluewings booked their place in round 2 with a 3-1 win over Singapore Armed Forces.

They now join Kashima Antlers in the top two spots in Group G.

It was far from an easy win. Bae Ki-jong headed home the opener for Suwon after just four minutes of the first half. Alexander Duric headed an equalizer with 4 minutes to go in the first half.

Suwon took the lead again just after the break with a Lee Sang-ho header.

Both teams had chances to add to the scoreline but it was Seo Dong-hyun who sealed the win for Suwon in the final minute.

The striker scored from the penalty spot after Bae was brought down by Singapore goalkeeper Shahril Jantan, who was then red carded.

Kashima Antlers are in the second round of the Asian Champions League while Suwon Samsung Bluewings are on the brink.

It was a comfortable win for Kashima who avenged the 4-1 trashing they received in Korea in March.

Go Aiwa headed home the opener from a 27th minute corner and five minutes later, Marquinhos srambled a 2nd from close range.

Marquinhos was in the thick of it again, and sealed the win 15 minutes from full time.

Shanghai Shenhua needed to win against Singapore Armed Forces,the weakest side in the tournament. However, they were held to a 1-1 draw, the hosts’ first point of the tournament.

Singapore took the lead just before the half-hour thanks to Ahmad Latiff Bin Khamarudin while Hernan Barcos equalized in the last minute.

Suwon need a point at home against SAFFC in the final round to book their spot in the last 16.

Source: www.the-afc.com

Kashima Antlers manager Oswaldo Oliveira had plenty of reason to be happy after his side’s convincing 5-0 home victory over Singapore Armed Forces on Wednesday.

Midfielder Takuya Nozawa and forward Shinzo Koroki gave the J.League champions a 2-0 lead at half-time.

Captain Mitsuo Ogasawara and teenager Yuya Osako extended the advantage early in the second half before Koroki scored his second of the game to seal an emphatic win for the home side who joined Suwon Bluewings at the top of Group G with nine points.

“When I heard the final whistle, that was the best moment of the game today because we confirmed the victory and I had no injured players,” said Oliveira.

“I think we played well. One of the characteristics of our team is to play hard to the very end of the game, which they did today.

The Brazilian utilised a 4-3-3 formation for the first time and opted to rest some of his first-choice players for the visit of the Singapore league champions.

“I think the change to our team worked very well,” he said.

“As both the AFC Champions League and the J.League are high-level competitions and we have to play seven games in the space of 22 days, we have to carefully consider when and how to use our players,” Oliveira added.

SAF manager Richard Bok admitted that there was a gap between the two sides as his side remained without a point after four games.

“This is the first time for us in the Champions League. We are here to learn from the best teams in Asia not only about how to play but also how to run the club and so forth.

Source: www.the-afc.com

Suwon Bluewings coach Cha Bum-kun was delighted with the performance he got from his young players as the Koreans battled back for a 2-1 victory over Shanghai Shenhua on Wednesday.

Due to injuries and fatigue, Cha was forced to start four players who had not started a game all season for Suwon.

But they all stepped up to the plate as Suwon hit back with goals from Lee Sang-ho and Bae Ki-jeong securing the three points after Yanko Valkanov had put Shanghai in the lead.

“I was so proud of our young players who used today as a chance to prove themselves in a difficult situation,” said Cha.

Suwon were able to survive a penalty scare in the 77th minute when Park Ho-jin saved from Hernan Barcos.

However, Cha felt that the penalty never should have been awarded.

“In Shanghai we had a good goal disallowed and today there were multiple occasions where the referee made mistakes against our side,” he added.

With the victory, Suwon have given themselves a great chance to reach their goal of making the knockout stages.

Suwon have nine points from four games, level with Japanese side Kashima Antlers.

“Our domestic record doesn’t look so good at the moment but our team can take pride in our level of play so far against the best teams in Asia,” added Cha.

The loss leaves Shanghai third in the group and means the Chinese side need to take maximum points from their two remaining games if they are to progress.