Newcastle’s Asian Champions League hopes have taken a significant blow after a 1-0 loss to Japanese side Nagoya Grampus at EnergyAustralia Stadium.
Striker Sasho Petrovski missed the chance to become the Jets’ hero again after he had a 78th-minute penalty saved that would have given home side a share of the points.
A controversial goal to Nagoya midfielder Yoshizumi Ogawa in the 57th minute prompted Jets coach Gary van Egmond to bring on Petrovski after he surprisingly started on the bench.
The striker, who scored both goals in Newcastle’s historic 2-0 win over …

Persepolis of Iran and Saudi Arabia’s Al Shabab are in control of Group B of the ACL and looking good for a place in round 2.
Persepolis defeated Al Gharafa of Qatar 3-1. Meyzar Zare put the Tehran giants ahead after 36 minutes from the penalty spot and there was still time in the first half for Ibrahim Toure to make it 2 – 0.
It got worse after the break as Alireza Vahedi Nikbahkt made it three. Fernandao pulled a goal back for the visitors midway through the half but …

Saudi Arabia giants Al Hilal recorded their first win of the Asian Champions League, defeating UAE’s Al Ahli 2-1 at the King Fahd International Stadium.
The three points puts the Riyadh club on to five points from three games, two behind leaders Pakhtakor.
The visitors took the lead through the Young Asian Player of the Year, Ahmed Khalil, after just 12 minutes. 2007 Asian Player of the Year, Yasser Al Qahtani, levelled at the 30 minute mark.
With the game heading for a draw, Al Qahtani was brought down …

Al Ittihad, title winners in 2004 and 2005, drew 0-0 against Al Jazira.
Al Jazira are still looking for their first win and should have collected it against the Saudi Arabians.
Brazilian stars Rafael Sobis and Fernando caused problems for the visiting defence but goalkeeper Mabrouk Zaid was a brick wall, stopping all shots on goal.
That left Umm Salal to open a four-point gap between second and third as they won 1-0 at home to Iranian league leaders Esteghlal.
Fabio Cesar made it 1 – 0 for the Qatari …

Kawasaki Frontale cemented their place at the top of Group H of the Asian Champions League with a 5-0 mauling of the Central Coast Mariners in Gosford, as the Pohang Steelers moved into outright second with a narrow win over Tianjin Teda at home.
The J-League and K-League sides are now undoubtedly the favourites to progress from the group, the Steelers having grabbed their win courtesy of 68th minute strike by Hwang Jin-Sung.
It was in Australia where the headlines were written, as Kawasaki confirmed their status as the group’s heavyweight …

Gamba Osaka are almost in the second round of the Asian Champions league after a 5-0 thrashing of Indonesian team Sriwijaya.
The defending champions are the only team still to have a perfect record of three wins from three.
It was a third straight defeat for the South East Asians and virtually ends what little hope they have of the second round.
Going forward, the J-League club were just too strong for the visitors. Brazilian star Leandro bagged a brace, to follow his hat-trick in the previous round, Satoshi Yamaguchi, Michihiro Yasude and …

The race for qualification for the knockout stages of the Asian Champions League from Group E became particularly tight on Tuesday evening, as K-League outfit Ulsan Hyundai registered their first win of the competition and kept alive their hopes of progress from the group stages.
In the group’s other match, A-League side the Newcastle Jets managed to hold group leaders Nagoya Grampus to a 1-1 draw in Japan.
Dragan Stojkovic’s Japanese outfit remain top of the group on five points, with Newcastle moving into equal second-place with Beijing Guoan on four.
The Chinese …

Saudi Arabia giants Al Hilal recorded their first win of the Asian Champions League, defeating UAE’s Al Ahli 2-1 at the King Fahd International Stadium.
The three points puts the Riyadh club on to five points from three games, two behind leaders Pakhtakor.
It wasn’t all plain sailing, however. The visitors took the lead through the Young Asian Player of the Year, Ahmed Khalil, after just 12 minutes.
The 2007 Asian Player of the Year, Yasser Al Qahtani, levelled just after the half-hour mark.
With the game heading for a …