Asia: Tough challenges ahead for Asian football’s finest

Asian football’s two major continental tournaments have reached the knockout stages following the conclusion of the group stages this week.

The AFC Champions League is usually dominated by South Korean clubs but only two of this year’s four representatives have made it through the group stage. The two successful clubs are Ulsan Hyundai and Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma, both of whom topped their groups with unbeaten records, whilst the unfortunate clubs to depart the tournament are last season’s losing finalists Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Pohang Steelers. The latter two clubs, who have been crowned Asian champions four times between them, could only finish third in their respective groups and are eliminated.

The most successful countries in this year’s group stages are Japan, Iran and Saudi Arabia who all have three clubs remaining in the last sixteen. Gamba Osaka, the last Japanese team to win the Asian Champions League, was the only J-League club to fail to progress this time with Nagoya Grampus Eight, FC Tokyo and Kashiwa Reysol going on to represent Japan in the latter stages. Al-Ittihad and Sepahan FC, the last Asian champions from the nations of Saudi Arabia and Iran respectively, have made it through to the last sixteen with both clubs finishing top of their groups. Al Hilal and Al Ahli also progress as Saudi Arabian representatives while Iran can count on two of Asian football’s biggest names, Esteghlal and Persepolis, to provide tough competition in the latter stages.  The United Arab Emirates will feature two clubs in the latter rounds. Al Jazira finished top of Group A with an unbeaten record whilst Baniyas Sports Club finished second in Group B behind Al Ittihad and well above Nasaf Qarshi, the club from Uzbekistan who gained a place in this year’s AFC Champions League having won the secondary AFC Cup in 2011.

Nasaf’s compatriots Bunyodkor are the only club from their nation still involved in the last sixteen with the ambitious Tashkent based side hoping that the major investment pumped into the club over the last five years will soon pay off. Australian side Adelaide United, who finished above Bunyodkor in Group E, are the only side from Down Under to make it through while Central Coast Mariners and two-time defending A-League champions Brisbane Roar, were easily swept aside by stronger opponents. The only country left remaining with one representative in the top competition is China who will rely on Ghangzhou Evergrande to fly the flag. The club has announced today (see previous report) that former FIFA World Cup winning coach Marcello Lippi has joined on a two-and-a-half year deal and expectations are high that Ghangzhou could become the first Chinese club to become Asian champions for a quarter of a century.

AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ROUND OF 16 DRAW

Adelaide United (Australia) v Nagoya Grampus Eight (Japan)

Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) v Baniyas SC (UAE)

Al Ittihad (Saudi Arabia) v Persepolis (Iran)

Al Jazira (UAE) v Al Ahli (Saudi Arabia)

Ghangzhou Evergrande (China) v FC Tokyo (Japan)

Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (South Korea) v Bunyodkor FC (Uzbekistan)

Sepahan (Iran) v Esteghlal (Iran)

Ulsan Hyundai (South Korea) v Kashiwa Reysol (Japan)

The AFC Cup, Asian football’s equivalent of the Europa League or Copa Sudamericana, will see three Kuwaiti teams progress to the last sixteen. Two of those three, Al Qadsia and Al Kuwait, will meet each other in the Round of 16 whilst Kazma Sports Club face the only remaining Jordanian side Al Wehdat SC. Another tie which features two teams from the same country is the all-Malaysian affair between Kelantan and Terengganu. Iraq is the final nation to be represented by two clubs in the latter stages, namely Arbil SC and Al Zawra’a SC, while another seven nations will be represented by lone representatives in a competition showing great diversity, as is shown in the draw (below):

AFC CUP ROUND OF 16 DRAW

Al Qadsia (Kuwait) v Al Kuwait (Kuwait)

Al Ettifaq (Saudi Arabia) v Al Suwaiq (Oman)

Al Wehdat (Jordan) v Kazma Sports Club (Kuwait)

Al Shorta (Syria) v Home United (Singapore)

Arbil SC (Iraq) v Neftchi Farg’ona (Uzbekistan)

Chonburi (Thailand) v Al Zawra’a (Iraq)

Kitchee SC (Hong Kong) v Arema FC (Indonesia)

Kelantan (Malaysia) v Terengganu (Malaysia)

China: Lippi takes over Ghangzhou Evergrande

Chinese club Ghangzhou Evergrande have made a statement of intent for the year ahead by appointing former FIFA World Cup winning coach Marcello Lippi to take charge of the team.

Lippi takes over a club who are in fine health having won their maiden Chinese Super League last season and leading ten games into the current campaign with 22 out of 30 points (seven wins, one draw, two defeats), one more than nearest challengers Ghangzhou R&F. Evergrande are also in the Round of 16 in the AFC Champions League where they face off against FC Tokyo. For Lippi, and Evergrande owner Xu Jiayin, the aim is for the club to consistently compete at home and abroad with the intention of becoming a major force in Asian football.

Lippi has spoken of his intention “to bring the Italian football concepts to China” and he will have a difficult act to follow given that his predecessor, South Korean coach Lee Jang-Soo, was the man who brought the long-awaited title to Evergrande. However the club has decided that big moves need to be taken if they are to maintain their place at the top of Chinese football and stay one step ahead of Shanghai Shenhua who are also battling to become China’s first super club.

Marcello Lippi’s first match in charge comes this Sunday against bottom of the table Qingdao Jonoon and the pressure will be on the Italian to keep up the club’s early season momentum. However, having won all of the game’s biggest prizes at club and international level, expectation is something that the 64 year old should be able to cope with.

Japan: Tokyo to savour Emperor’s Cup triumph (video)

First of all I should start this piece by wishing everybody a happy new year! I’ve been enjoying myself over the Christmas holiday and have neglected the blog over the last few days so I need to rectify this, starting off with a piece regarding the new Emperor’s Cup winners in Japan.

FC Tokyo have done an unlikely league and cup double in Japan following their 4-2 triumph over Kyoto Sanga in last Sunday’s Emperor’s Cup final. FC Tokyo had already clinched the J-League second division, topping the table with an eight point advantage over nearest challengers Sagan Tosu, and then went on to win the first ever Emperor’s Cup final to be played by two teams outside of the top flight.

FC Tokyo were the obvious favourites going into the cup final but Kyoto Sanga struck first on 13 minutes thanks to Hiroki Nakayama only for the capital city club to equalize just three minutes later through Yasuyuki Konno. Tokyo then exerted their dominance on the game and went into the half-time break with a 3-1 lead courtesy of further strikes from Masato Morishige and Lucas Severino. Tokyo sealed the victory with Lucas again on the score sheet midway through the second half only for Kyoto, who finished in a respectable seventh position in the second division this term, to pull a goal back through Yuya Kubo.

The victory proved extra sweet for FC Tokyo as it was their maiden triumph in Japan’s premier knockout cup competition, having won the secondary tournament J-League Cup twice in 2004 and 2009. Not only that but FC Tokyo will get a chance to prove themselves on Asian football’s biggest stage next season as they will feature in the 2012 AFC Champions League in Group F alongside Ulsan Hyundai (South Korea), Brisbane Roar (Australia) and Beijing Guoan (China).

Asia: Bahrain leave it late to secure first Arab Games title (video)

Bahrain have won the Gold Medal at the 2011 Pan Arab Games football tournament in Qatar.

Bahrain had qualified for the final by virtue of topping their group in the first stage, defeating Iraq and gaining a much needed point against Qatar, before eliminating Palestine in the semi-final ahead of yesterday’s final match. Jordan were Bahrain’s opponents in the final and they had qualified by finishing top of their group with five points from three games, defeating Palestine 4-1 in their opening group match before two goalless draws against Sudan and Libya followed. Jordan needed extra-time to get past Kuwait in the semi-finals and thus set up the game against Bahrain.

The game looked to be heading for extra-time but was decided as late as the 89^th minute with Ismail Abdul Latif taking advantage of a defensive lapse in the game’s dying moments. The win sealed Bahrain’s first ever triumph in the Pan Arab Games football tournament.

FIFA: Barça outclass Santos to win world title; Al Sadd come third

It may not have been the most difficult challenge that FC Barcelona would have to face in their quest to become FIFA Club World Cup winners. That, however, did not dampen the celebrations as the Spanish and European champions strolled their way past a poor Santos FC team courtesy of a 4-0 victory.

The game was over bar the shouting after the first 45 minutes of the game were played following strikes from Lionel Messi and Xavi, both of whom would go on to win the Golden and Silver balls as the best two players of the tournament after the game, and Cesc Fabregas who helped himself to their third goal on the stroke of half time.

Santos showed slightly more ambition in the second half after being overwhelmed in the first but chances from Neymar and Borges went begging. With eight minutes of the game remaining Barça sealed the deal once and for all after Dani Alves set up Messi for his second goal of the game to complete the rout. South American champions Santos FC were never in the game from the first kick and precocious teenager Neymar found out, just like Cristiano Ronaldo had done a week earlier, that Messi is still the main man on the big occasion.

FC Barcelona’s victory was their second triumph in this competition following their maiden win over Estudiantes de La Plata in 2009. Earlier in the day Asian Champions League winners Al Sadd had claimed third place in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup having got the better of this year’s J-League champions Kashiwa Reysol by virtue of a 5-3 win in a penalty shoot-out following a goalless ninety minutes.

FIFA: Santos ends Kashiwa dream; Monterrey wins 5th place

Kashiwa Reysol’s FIFA Club World Cup dream ended today at the hands of South American champions Santos FC. Neymar was amongst the goals for the Brazilians as they claimed a 3-1 win against the J-League champions whilst earlier in the day North and Central American champions Monterrey CF won the 5^th/6^th place play-off, getting the better of African champions Espérance Tunis by the odd goal in five.

Santos, in their first game of the new look Club World Cup, may have won the game against their hosts but Kashiwa continued to do themselves proud in this competition. Following earlier defeats of Auckland City and Monterrey, it was always going to prove tough to jump the final hurdle into the final but Kashiwa certainly weren’t overawed. Nonetheless Santos did what they had to do in a game which could prove to be a useful workout ahead of a potential final against FC Barcelona.

Quality strikes from Neymar and Borges gave Santos a two goal lead at the break but Hiroki Sakai reduced the arrears ten minutes into the second half to provide Kashiwa with a ray of hope. The hosts, however, would suffer a further setback in the 63^rd minute when Danilo restored Santos’ two goal lead which they would preserve for the remainder of the game. Santos will now face FC Barcelona or, in the event of a massive shock, Asian champions Al Sadd in Sunday’s final and hope to claim a first world title since their second Intercontinental Cup win in 1963.

The day’s other game saw Monterrey CF restore some pride in the 5^th/6^th play-off against Espérance Tunis in a game which saw plenty of goals. Espérance, who controversially lost their quarter-final against Al Sadd, went ahead after half an hour to a Yannick N’Djeng goal only to see Monterrey turn the match on its head just before half-time with Hiram Mier and Aldo de Nigris getting on the score sheet.

Monterrey carried on where they left off in the second half with Jesus Zavala’s close range header increasing their lead to two goals but the Tunisians weren’t finished and made it a tight finish when Khaled Mouelhi scored from the penalty spot to make it 3-2 with a quarter of an hour left on the clock. However the Mexicans held out to ensure that they would chalk up a maiden victory in this tournament and they will hope, along with their African counterparts, to win their respective continental titles once more in 2012 and have another shot at world glory in Japan next year.

Asia: India retain position as regional power in SAFF tournament (video)

The South Asian Football Championship has been taking place in India since the beginning of December. The biannual event retained its recent trend of seeing the Indian national team win the championship this time defeating Afghanistan in yesterday’s final by four goals to nil.

In the early stages of the tournament Afghanistan had the early advantage over India with both teams meeting each other in Group A, along with Sri Lanka and Bhutan, and the Afghans finishing top of the group on goal difference. Following a 1-1 draw with each other in the opening group match Afghanistan and India then recorded victories over their other opponents with Afghanistan’s goal difference of plus nine edging out the Indians by just one goal. In Group B the Maldive Islands and Nepal finished in the top two spots, and thus claimed the remaining semi-final places, with both teams getting five points out of nine, two better than Pakistan and four better than Bangladesh who propped up the rest of the table.

India had an easier time of it in the semi-finals getting the better of the Maldives by three goals to one with Sunil Chhetri bagging a brace as he continued to set the tournament alight as its start player. Afghanistan, on the other hand, were ultimately grateful to Balal Arezou as his goal ten minutes into extra-time proved the difference as in their semi-final against Nepal. The final proved to be a tight affair for most of the game and remained goalless until twenty minutes from time when the Indians won a penalty kick which was scored by Chhetri who scored his seventh goal of the tournament. India then began to open the floodgates putting three more goals past their valiant opponents who, by this stage, were down to ten men and with Clifford Miranda, Jeje Lalpekhlua and Sushil Singh all etching their names on to the score sheet to provide the score line with an emphatic feel which was perhaps not befitting the performance of Afghanistan. Nevertheless the Indians celebrated a second consecutive title win, and sixth overall, in front of an ecstatic home crowd and cemented their place as the dominant force in the region.

INDIA 4-0 AFGHANISTAN – FINAL HIGHLIGHTS

FIFA: Kashiwa and Al Sadd through to semis; Barça win El Clásico

Kashiwa Reysol and Al Sadd have booked their semi-final places in the FIFA Club World Cup following hard fought victories over Monterrey CF and Esperance Tunis respectively.

Kashiwa, representing the host nation Japan as the 2011 J-League champions, needed a penalty shoot-out to get past North and Central American champions Monterrey after the two teams had played out a 1-1 draw. Leandro Domingues gave Kashiwa the lead in the 53^rd minute only to see Humberto Suazo restore parity just five minutes later and the rest of the game proved frustrating for both sides as neither team could kill off their opponents. In the shoot-out Ryohei Hayashi converted the crucial final kick as Kashiwa went through 4-3 and secured themselves a meeting with South American champions Santos FC in the final four.

Controversy reigned in the other semi-final between African champions Esperance Tunis and Asian Champions League holders Al Sadd. Khalfan Ibrahim and Abdullah Koni had given Al Sadd a two goal lead by the 50^th minute but Oussama Darragi pulled one back on the hour mark. However the Tunisians had two goals controversially ruled out for offside, decisions which so enraged one supporter who ran on to the pitch. Al Sadd, who are based in Qatar, now look ahead to a semi-final clash with European champions FC Barcelona who will be in fine mood following a 3-1 win against Real Madrid in last night’s El Clásico.

Real Madrid took the lead after just 22 seconds as Karim Benzema took advantage of some uncharacteristic woeful defending by Barcelona only for the visitors to equalize on the half hour mark through Alexis Sanchez. Further goals in the second half from Xavi and Cesc Fabregas helped secure the three points for Barcelona who can go into the FIFA Club World Cup knowing that their arch rivals are not going to be so far ahead when they come back from Japan. Had Real Madrid won last night they would’ve been six points clear with a game in hand. Following last night’s result, however, Barcelona are now on the same points but Madrid, nonetheless, still have the advantage of an extra game to play.

FIFA: Double strike helps Kashiwa defeat Auckland

The FIFA Club World Cup officially got under way today with two goals just before half-time giving Kashiwa Reysol a 2-0 win over Auckland City in the qualifying play-off to send the Japanese club through to the quarter-finals.

Kashiwa, who clinched the 2011 J-League title last weekend, had Junya Tanaka and Masato Kudo to thank as the pair struck in the 37^th and 40^th minutes respectively to send the host nation’s representatives into the next round. For Oceania champions Auckland City it was a disappointing result, especially given that they were in confident mood following a 100% record of winning results this season going into today’s game. Alas, the Japanese were too strong for the Kiwis who can now go back and concentrate on defending their domestic and continental titles.

The two quarter-final matches will be played on Saturday with Kashiwa playing CONCACAF North and Central American champions Monterrey whilst CAF African Champions League winners Esperance meet AFC Asian Champions League holders Al-Sadd.

Australia: Brisbane’s historic run finally comes to an end

Hyundai A-League champions Brisbane Roar finally lost their unbeaten record this season when going down to a 2-0 reverse at the hands of Sydney FC today.

Two goals in the opening twenty minutes of the match put paid to Brisbane’s chances of victory today but the Roar still top the standings with a three point margin separating them from nearest challengers Central Coast Mariners. The action began almost immediately with barely half a minute of the game played before Dimitri Petratos gave hosts Sydney FC a dramatic early lead. Just eighteen minutes later an own goal from Brisbane goalkeeper Michael Theoklitos doubled Sydney’s advantage and the home side would go on to inflict Brisbane’s first defeat of the 2011-12 campaign.

Not only had Brisbane lost for the first time this season but today’s defeat heralded the end of an unbeaten run which had lasted for 36 games going back to last September. This unbeaten run proved historic in Australian sporting history as it surpassed the previous best of 35 matches produced by rugby league team Eastern Suburbs back in the 1930s.