A blistering first-half performance from Machida Zelvia proved the difference as the Japanese side secured a 3–1 victory over South Korea’s Gangwon FC in their 2025/26 AFC Champions League Elite clash at Chuncheon Songam Sports Town Stadium on November 25.
Machida’s three-goal burst in a lethal 15-minute spell put the match firmly under their control—an advantage sturdy enough to withstand Gangwon’s spirited second-half rally.
The win adds to what has been a dream week for Machida, who lifted the Emperor’s Cup just days earlier. Their momentum now carries them to eight points from their first five continental outings. Gangwon, meanwhile, slump to a second straight defeat, remaining on six points.
The fixture brought together two of East Asia’s great recent overachievers. Machida’s remarkable rise—finishing 3rd in their debut J1 League season in 2024—has become one of Japanese football’s defining narratives. Their largely intact squad has continued to ride that wave in 2025, bolstered further by their historic cup triumph.
Gangwon, for their part, enjoyed an improbable resurgence of their own. Having survived relegation via the playoffs in 2023, they soared to a shock 2nd-place finish in the 2024 K League 1. But their fortunes shifted after the departure of teenage sensation Yang Min-hyeok to Tottenham Hotspur. The 2025 campaign forced the Bears to flirt with danger once again before a late-season surge pushed them safely into the championship round.
Machida showed their intent early. Henry Mochizuki and Na Sang-ho both threatened within the opening 10 minutes, while Keiya Sento dragged a low drive inches wide in the 16th minute.
Eight minutes later, Sento made amends. Drifting unmarked into the box, he nodded into an empty net after Asahi Masuyama’s surging run down the right pulled goalkeeper Park Chung-hyo out of position and opened up a simple finish.
Machida doubled their advantage just four minutes later through a moment of pure technique. Captain Hokuto Shimoda stepped up to a free-kick 20 yards out and bent a sublime curling effort into the top-right corner—far beyond Park’s reach.
Gangwon finally tested Kosei Tani when the Machida goalkeeper dropped low to block Kim Gun-hee’s close-range attempt, with Machida defenders reacting quickly to smother Song Jun-seok’s follow-up.
But the visitors were ruthless. Six minutes before halftime, Sento robbed Seo Min-woo near the right touchline and squared the ball to a completely unmarked Oh Se-hun, who guided his finish past the stranded Park to make it 3–0.
Desperate for a way back into the game, Gangwon head coach Chung Kyung-ho made three halftime changes. The shift paid off in the 55th minute when substitute Kim Kang-guk delivered a corner that fellow newcomer Park Ho-yeong met with a towering header, pulling a goal back for the hosts.
The momentum swung toward Gangwon, forcing Machida to absorb sustained pressure for much of the second half. Their only clear look at goal came in the 83rd minute when Yuki Soma unleashed a venomous strike from the edge of the area that rattled the crossbar.
Gangwon continued to press through Park Sang-hyeok, Kim Gun-hee, and Mo Jae-hyeon, but Machida’s early ruthlessness left too steep a mountain to climb. In the end, the J1 side’s first-half brilliance carried them over the line—another statement from a club that continues to defy expectations on every stage they enter.