Defending AFC Champions League champions Ulsan Hyundai gave Southeast Asian hopefuls BG Pathum United a valuable lesson on Tuesday, with the South Koreans dispatching their Thai opponents 2-0 at the Leo Stadium in Group F’s second match. Meanwhile on the same day and at the same venue, Viettel FC recorded their first ACL win in style as they dismantled Kaya FC-Iloilo 5-0.
Ulsan Hyundai (South Korea) 2-0 BG Pathum United (Thailand)
The two early pacesetters of Group F went up against one another at the Leo, with both teams gunning for a win over the other to assume full control of the group. BGPU went for the same starting lineup that crushed Kaya 4-1 in the first matchweek, while Ulsan, without the injured Yoon Bit-garam, deployed Lukas Hinterseer in the frontline replacing Kim Ji-Hyeon.
Despite BGPU elevating themselves as a rising force in Southeast Asian football in recent years, Ulsan remained a cut above their opposition and it shows in the first 15 minutes. The Horang-i dominated possession in the first quarter of an hour of the match, unfettered despite technically playing in BGPU’s own backyard.
A Diogo chance in the 17th minute that went above Cho Hyun-woo’s goal sparked life into BGPU and the Glass Rabbits began to push forward, inadvertently exposing themselves for Ulsan to exploit.
As BGPU were too busy pressing Ulsan aggressively, the defending ACL champions managed to take advantage of the open spaces and punish the Thai champions in the 24th minute. Seizing a through pass from Valeri Qazaishvili, Kim Min-jun fired off a powerful cannonball from distance that took a deflection off BGPU defender Andres Tunez and into Chatchai Budprom’s net.
BGPU immediately charged forward in search of an equalizer, with both Diogo and captain Victor Cardozo threatening Hyun-woo’s goal, however it was Ulsan that nabbed themselves the next goal in the second minute of stoppage-time. Ulsan skipper Lee Chung-yong blasts a long-ranged shot, which was directed into Chatchai’s goal by Hinterseer’s excellent back-heel from point-blank range.
With Ulsan now holding the two-goal advantage, the Horang-i kept on attacking as they seek for a third goal that would kill off the contest. Both Min-jun and Chung-yong attempted to get themselves a brace, with Min-jun forcing a save from Chatchai in the 57th minute and Chung-yong had his long-ranged attempt missing the target moments later.
BGPU also had their fair share of chances as they seek to chase the game, with Diogo’s attempt in pulling one back being thwarted by the offside rule in the 69th minute and a shot from Yodrak Namuangrak striking the side netting in the 75th minute.
The torrential downpour over Pathum Thani that had been going on throughout the duration of the match finally took it’s toll in the 79th minute, when the waterlogged pitch of the Leo Stadium forced the referee to suspend all action. Both BGPU and Ulsan had to wait for half an hour to resume hostilities but while the former restarted the match with much rejuvenation, Ulsan simply had to sit back and defend their lead for the remainder of the match to ensure themselves their second consecutive win of the campaign.
Kaya FC-Iloilo (Philippines) 0-5 Viettel FC (Vietnam)
Viettel earned plaudits from the footballing fraternity thanks to their brave performance at the back against defending champions Ulsan in their first ACL match, despite eventually losing to a Hinterseer goal in injury-time. Against Filipino side Kaya, Viettel once again impressed everyone, but this time it’s their attacking prowess that became the highlight.
The Red Tornado took the lead after just 90 seconds on the clock, with Bui Duy Thuong managing to set up Nguyen Hoang Duc quite nicely for the latter to fire home past Kaya goalkeeper Louie Casas.
Only five minutes after the Hoang Duc’s opener, Viettel found themselves 2-0 up. Former Chiangmai FC man Caique Lemes managed to slot home past Casas, having outmuscled defender Masanari Omura after receiving the ball from Nguyen Trong Hoang.
To Kaya’s credit, the Visayans managed to kept their calm as they went forward in search of something that would keep them alive in the game, however Viettel’s sturdy defense managed to keep them at bay, marshaled by captain Bui Tien Dung.
Kaya’s backline, however, was not that durable and soon the Filipinos found themselves being bombarded from all fronts, with a brace-chasing Caique clipping the left post in the 22nd minute and Casas coming into Kaya’s rescue with a save to deny Trong Hoang in the 28th minute.
Viettel finally got their third goal in the 49th minute, with Tien Dung smashing home a header from Trong Hoang’s corner kick. And from that point on, there’s nothing Kaya could do to stop the Red Tornado’s rampage.
Casas had to work hard to keep both Trong Hoang and Caique at bay and the bald goalkeeper had his defenses penetrated for the fourth time in the 61st minute. Jahongir Abdumuminov made a vital pass to Caique and the Brazilian rifled home nicely, bagging himself his brace in the process.
Substitute Vu Minh Tuan then rounded up Viettel’s goal-fest in the 65th minute, firing off a shot from the edge of the area that left Casas stranded at his post.
Duong Van Hao almost made it 6-0 in the 81st minute, however his shot was deflected away by the Kaya defender. The miss would matter little for Viettel though, as they bounced back from their Ulsan defeat in some style with their first ever ACL win.
Viettel will take on BGPU in their third match on July 2nd, while Kaya have the unenviable task of stopping defending champions Ulsan on the same day.