Group G of the 2021 AFC Champions League played out their second matches at the Rajamangala National Stadium in Bangkok on Friday, with Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta’zim managing to etch their first win of this season’s competition. The Southern Tigers managed to eke out a 1-0 win over Ratchaburi Mitr Phol thanks to a superb Leandro Velazquez strike in the second half, while the earlier kick-off saw Nagoya Grampus thrashing 10-men Pohang Steelers 3-0.
Nagoya Grampus (Japan) 3-0 Pohang Steelers (South Korea)
The two early pacesetters of Group G clashed against one another at the Rajamangala, each of them eager to extend their 100% record with a win over the other.
Massimo Ficcadenti’s Nagoya immediately floored the gas right after the referee blew for kick-off, with the men from Aichi Prefecture pressing 3-time ACL winner Pohang almost right away. Sho Inagaki forced Pohang goalkeeper Kang Hyeon-mu into a save after just three minutes, before both Naoki Maeda and Manabu Saito came close in the 10th and 12th minutes respectively.
Eventually it was Yoichiro Kakitani who managed to beat Hyeon-mu in the 34th minute to give Nagoya the lead, beating his marker before unleashing a powerful cannonball that went beyond the goalkeeper’s reaches.
The second half saw calamity for Pohang after Shin Kwang-hoon received his marching orders after receiving a second yellow card in the 65th minute, having handled the ball inside the box to concede a penalty for his team.
Nagoya’s Mateus made no mistake from the spot, slamming home past Hyeon-mu to make it 2-0 Nagoya.
Brazilian Mateus then bagged himself a brace in the 82nd minute, blasting home from the edge of the penalty area that stuck the goalpost on its way into Hyeon-mu’s goal. The goal sealed an emphatic 3-0 win for Nagoya and they assumed total control over Group G with two wins out of two.
Ratchaburi Mitr Phol (Thailand) 0-1 Johor Darul Ta’zim (Malaysia)
The late kick-off at the Rajamangala saw a clash of Southeast Asian teams as JDT took on Ratchaburi in the latest chapter of a footballing rivalry between Malaysia and Thailand. Both teams, who had lost their first games to East Asian opponents, are looking to bag themselves all three points that would help their chances of qualifying for the knockouts.
Ratchaburi captain Steeven Langil showed JDT what to expect from this match, with his 5th minute attempt going straight towards Farizal Marlias’ gloves.
Langil’s early chance turned out to be Ratchaburi’s only meaningful chance of the first half, as JDT retaliated by pushing forward and giving the Dragons copious amount of pressure. Safiq Rahim almost opened the scoring for the Southern Tigers in the 9th minute, however his header went off target.
Bergson then struck the crossbar in the 19th minute, before the Brazilian found Natxo Insa moments afterwards. Unfortunately the naturalized Malaysian also squandered his chances, allowing Ratchaburi goalkeeper Kampol Pathomakkakul to breathe a sigh of relief.
In the 29th minute, JDT received a golden opportunity to take the lead after Bergson was brought down in the box by Vafa Hakhamaneshi, prompting the referee to award JDT a penalty. Bergson took it upon himself to take the spot kick, however Kampol did well to deny the Brazilian from scoring, pulling off an excellent save after judging the direction of Bergson’s kick correctly.
And while Kampol frustrated JDT to no end throughout the first half, the Malaysians finally found their way past the former Rayong FC custodian in the 47th minute. Safiq managed to find Velazquez, who curled in a stunner from inside the area that went beyond the reaches of Kampol and into the top left corner.
Velazquez almost bagged himself a brace in the 53rd minute after collecting an excellent ball from Arif Aiman, however the Argentine went off-target with his thunderous shot.
In the end Ratchaburi was thoroughly outclassed as JDT went close to making it 2-0 in two occasions, with Safiq smashing the crossbar with his long-ranged effort in the 66th minute before Safawi Rasid came close in the 68th. Nonetheless, JDT did enough to claim themselves their first win of this season’s ACL campaign, while Ratchaburi were left to rue their second successive defeat.
Last-placed Ratchaburi will take on leaders Nagoya in their third game in June 28th, while JDT take on Pohang on the same day.