Cerezo Osaka stamped their authority all over Group J on Saturday after they saw off Port FC 3-0 at the Chang Arena. Goals from Yusuke Maruhashi, Yoshito Okubo, and Tatsuhiro Sakamoto ensured that Cerezo would reap all three points off the Lions of Khlong Toei, while at the same time establishing some breathing space between themselves and 2nd placed Kitchee SC, who saw off Guangzhou FC 1-0 thanks to Dejan Damjanovic’s history-making penalty.
Port FC (Thailand) 0-3 Cerezo Osaka (Japan)
Cerezo head coach Levir Culpi went all-out for their second encounter with Port, after his second-stringers were forced to a 1-1 draw by the Bangkok-based side in their first meeting. The likes of Hiroaki Okuno, Riki Harakawa, Tatsuhiro Sakamoto, Hiroshi Kiyotake, Tiago Pagnussat and Kim Jin-hyeon all feature for the men in pink in Saturday’s showdown and their presence gave Cerezo a significant boost.
The J.League 1 side bossed the opening few minutes of the match and they deservedly took the lead in the 12th minute. Maruhashi greeted a Kiyotake cross from the right with his chest, controlling the ball for a bit before lashing in a left-footed shot that made its way past Watchara Buathong in the Port goal and into the net.
Four minutes later part-time rapper Watchara was called into action, when a backheel from Kiyotake allowed Hirotaka Tameda to have a pop at him, however Watchara managed to pull off an admirable save.
Despite Cerezo’s dominance, Port had their own flashes of brilliance too. Prior to Cerezo assuming control of the match, Port had actually placed the ball in Jin-hyeon’s net after just three minutes, however the goal was disallowed due to John Baggio being offside when he fired off the decisive shot.
Both Sergio Suarez and Nattawut Sombayotha had sniffs at Jin-hyeon’s goal amidst Cerezo’s commanding presence in the match, however the Japanese remained unfettered and just before half-time, the men in pink doubled their advantage.
A Hirakawa corner managed to slice open the Port defense, with Tiago heading the incoming ball towards Okubo. Veteran striker Okubo had his first effort on goal being saved by Watchara, however second time’s the charm as Okubo pounced on the rebound to seal a 2-0 lead for Cerezo going into the break.
Shortly into the second half Cerezo confirmed all three points thanks to an effort from Sakamoto, who was given all the space and time in the world to curl in a left-footer past Watchara.
Port attempted to claw their way back into the game, with Baggio’s lobbed effort from range being deflected into Jin-hyeon’s gloves by the crossbar while Pakorn Prempak’s powerful shot from distance was easily dealt with by the South Korean goalkeeper.
Meanwhile, Watchara was also kept busy by Cerezo at the other end and he managed to prevent the Lions of Khlong Toei from losing by an even bigger margin.
While Cerezo’s win poised them quite nicely for a ticket to the round of 16, Port must beat Kitchee on July 6th if they wish to keep their continental hopes alive.
Kitchee SC (Hong Kong) 1-0 Guangzhou FC (China)
Embarking on the best ACL run a Hong Kong club has ever done, Kitchee once again took on Guangzhou at the Chang Arena on Saturday, knowing well enough that a win would keep their round of 16 chances alive. However unlike the first encounter, Kitchee were made to work hard for their three points as Guangzhou managed to take advantage of the absences of rested duo Cleiton and Raul Baena to give the Hong Kong champions a tough time.
Kitchee knocked the Guangzhou door early on, with Damjanovic’s 8th minute effort unable to threaten Zhang Jianshi in the Guangzhou goal, before the Southern China Tigers’ backline handled two more Kitchee attacking attempts quite superbly.
The Chinese youngsters then had their chance in the spotlight, with a Huang Kaizhou header going wide and a Fan Hengbo shot clipping the goalpost.
However, Guangzhou’s hopes of salvaging even a point from this game were extinguished in the second half following the decision from Kitchee head coach Alex Chu Chi-kwong to introduce both Baena and Cleiton into the fray.
The introduction of the two experienced foreigners sparked Kitchee into life, with Alex Akande missing a clear opportunity in the 54th minute before the Hong Kong international won Kitchee a penalty in the 70th minute. Akande’s shot struck Zhang Zili’s outstretched arm within the area, leaving the referee no choice but to award Kitchee with the spot kick.
Cool and calm as always, Damjanovic dispatched the penalty with much aplomb, sending Zhang the wrong way to score his 40th goal in the ACL – the first man to reach such a milestone in the competition’s history.
Both Akande and Damjanovic threatened to increase Kitchee’s lead late into the game but failed to make their chances count, however the Hong Kong aces were happy that they were able to see out the match and seal the win.
Kitchee will face Port next on July 6th on a do-or-die battle for 2nd place, while already eliminated Guangzhou will try their best to stop Cerezo from clinching a round of 16 ticket on the same day.