Title-holders Guangzhou Evergrande destroyed Diego Forlan`s Cerezo Osaka 5-1 as they moved towards their third straight AFC Champions League quarter-finals in ominous style on Tuesday.
|Last Updated: May 07, 2014, 11:47 AM IST|Source: AFP
Osaka: Title-holders Guangzhou Evergrande destroyed Diego Forlan`s Cerezo Osaka 5-1 as they moved towards their third straight AFC Champions League quarter-finals in ominous style on Tuesday.
A quickfire double from Elkeson, a stylish brace from fellow Brazilian Muriqui and a lone effort from Gao Lin meant Marcello Lippi`s team will have an easy task in next week`s home leg.
Guangzhou had not previously won away in this year`s competition and they were in danger of crashing out in the group stages before coming through in their final pool game.
But China`s very first AFC Champions League-winners roared back to title form as they took apart Cerezo, spearheaded by Uruguay star Forlan, in front of their own fans in Osaka.
Guangzhou had the best of the early exchanges and there was an air of inevitability as Italy international Alessandro Diamanti and Muriqui combined for the opener on 22 minutes.
Receiving the ball from Asian player of the year Zheng Zhi, Muriqui played a one-two with Diamanti, whose sliding return pass put last year`s top-scorer through on goal for his first of the tournament.
Cerezo were quick to respond. After breaking on the right, Forlan crossed and Ariajasuru Hasegawa squeezed an accurate first-time shot just inside the far post on the half-hour.
But two Elkeson goals in the space of four minutes turned the tie firmly in Guangzhou`s favour, starting from Yuta Someya`s needless foul on the Brazilian in the penalty area.
From the spot, Elkeson sent goalkeeper Kim Jin-Hyeon the wrong way, and Cerezo also made it easy for Guangzhou on 37 minutes when the striker rose unchallenged to nod home Diamanti`s curling free-kick.
Cerezo failed to hit back after half-time and with 12 minutes left, Chinese forward Gao Lin-brought on as a substitute for Elkeson-made it 4-1 when he put a shot between the goalkeeper`s legs.
The quick-thinking Muriqui deepened Cerezo`s plight when, leaping for a high ball, he used his shoulder to bounce it into the net, crashing into the post in the process and leaving the field.
Guangzhou have reached the quarter-finals in both their previous appearances and Cerezo will have to pull off one of the event`s great turnarounds to deny the Chinese league-leaders this year.
Earlier, Pohang Steelers came from behind to grab a precious 2-1 win against fellow former winners Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the first leg of their all-Korean clash.
The visitors fell behind to Lee Jae-Sung`s header shortly after the break but they were quickly back on terms through Son Jun-Ho, before Go Moo-Yul fired the winner 16 minutes from time.
The victory gives Pohang, the 2009 winners, the advantage ahead of next week`s return against Jeonbuk, who lifted the trophy in 2006 and again reached the final in 2011.
Meanwhile, Asamoah Gyan continued his fine form in the tournament as he helped Al Ain beat Al Jazira 2-1 in Abu Dhabi.
Ghanaian Gyan, who was Al Ain`s mainstay on the Group stage with seven goals, struck off an Ismail Ahmed assist in the 11th minute and Omar Abdulrahman made it 2-0 four minutes later in the battle between the top UAE teams.
Musallem Fayez reduced the margin for Al Jazira in the second half off a pass from Abdelaziz Barada but Al Ain held on to their lead going into the home leg with a significant advantage.
In the holy city of Mecca, Al Ittihad edged Al Shabab 1-0 in a battle of Saudi giants. Mukhtar Fallatah netted the only goal of the match in the 75th minute to give the two-time champions a crucial victory.
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.