The Matchday 4 of the AFC Champions League (ACL) 2015 Group Stage had its second day on Wednesday 8 April as Urawa Reds drew with Beijing Guoan (CHN) 1-1 in Group F and grabbed a point to keep their slim hopes alive for the knockout stage.

In Group E, Kashiwa Reysol held Shandong Luneng FC 4-4 in China and carried over the final stage berth to the next fixtures.

Until this match, Urawa had not earned any point for first three consecutive losses and were in a situation where they would have been eliminated from the championship with one more defeat. Then the current J.League leaders took on Group F leaders Beijing marking three straight wins with clean sheets. In the first half, as Urawa allowed Beijing to keep the possession, the Chinese side took the initiative without much strain.

With their regular forwards Pablo Batalla and Dejan Damjanovic sitting on the bench, Beijing attacked with forwards Erton Fejzullahu, former Sweden international, and Shao Jiayi. In the 33rd minute, forward Yu Dabao headed home a right corner kick at the far post for his side’s opener.

Despite their efforts to win the ball, Urawa had hard time catching a pace because they made haste too much in attacking and gave away some counter-attack opportunities.

Yet in the 29th minute, midfielder ISHIHARA Naoki volleyed midfielder HASHIMOTO Wataru’s cutback and midfielder KASHIWAGI Yosuke also fired a shot in the 36th minute. But both still did not find the net.

After Urawa, striving for a comeback, sent midfielder SEKINE Takahiro onto the pitch from the start of the second half, they found an attacking rhythm and their intensity on the ball emerged back again.

With forward TAKAGI Toshiyuki in the 66th and midfielder ABE Yuki in the 72nd minute coming off the bench, Urawa’s attacking rhythm got even more active. In the 74th minute, Takagi threatened the opposing goal from the edge of the box and earned a corner kick. Then defender MAKINO Tomoaki finally headed it into the net to equalise the scoreline.

Urawa kept attacking even after that and made goal-scoring opportunities through efforts by Lee in the 81st and Sekine in the 85th minute. After 90 minutes, Kashiwagi met Moriwaki’s cross with his header, but the opposing goalkeeper denied the go-ahead goal effort. 

With the draw, Beijing kept the top spot with 10 points in the group. After beating Brisbane Roar (AUS) 3-1 in the other match, Suwon Samsung FC (KOR) take second with seven points and extended their lead to third-placed Brisbane by three points. Urawa stay fourth with one point.
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Click here for the match details (Japanese version only)

Kashiwa in goal-scoring thriller

In the meanwhile, Kashiwa, who would advance past the group stage for the first time since 2013 with one more win, played a goal-scoring thriller against Shandong, who were with their back against the wall to maintain their chance for the next round.

Just after four minutes, Shandong’s forward Wang Yongpo opened the scoring from a free kick. Yet in the 29th minute, forward Leandro broke through the opposing defensive gap to level the score for Urawa. Six minutes later, forward KUDO Masato rushed to meet Leandro’s vertical pass with his right foot to gain the first lead of the match with 2-1.

In the 30th minute, Urawa’s forward Cristiano dribbled in and scored a solo goal to give his side a 3-1 lead. Yet four minutes later, Shandong in a must-win situation went on attacking as midfielder Junior Urso grabbed a goal to close the gap to 2-3. In the 37th minute, Urawa’s goalkeeper SUGENO Takanori gave away an indirect free kick in the box. Shandong’s in-form forward Walter Montillo blasted an equalising free kick, and the first half ended 3-3.

Just after the break, Shandong scared Kashiwa’s side space and Kashiwa’s defender brought down an opposing player who attempted to receive a cross ball in the box, which resulted in a penalty kick in the 49th minute. Forward Yang Xu put it into the net from the spot to retake the lead at 4-3.

Kashiwa, however, got back on level terms in the 76th minute when Cristiano netted a free kick. Both teams had goal-scoring chances afterwards but were not able to convert them, and the match finished in a 4-4 draw.

As a result, Kashiwa, with eight points with two wins and two ties, stand second place and tail Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors by goal difference with the same points earned, followed by third-placed Shandong with four points. Binh Duong sit fourth place with one point.

Click here for the match details (Japanese version only)

The next fixtures are scheduled on 21 and 22 April as Urawa face Suwon Samsung FC and Kashiwa meet Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors.

Head Coaches’ Comments

Mihailo Petrovic, Head Coach (Urawa Reds)
It is a very disappointing result. The opponents got off to a quick start early on. We weren’t able to get into the match in our favour and gave up a goal from a corner kick. But after that, we possessed the ball and took the initiative. Especially in the second half, we played our favourite game with quick tempo. We had chances but lacked the accuracy at the end and eventually ended up 1-1. Because of players’ injury and condition, we didn’t have any option regarding who to start, apart from Sekine, but I believe our substitution tactics went well. When substitute Abe took the final defensive line, Makino moved up on the left side. Makino fed good crosses to make some critical situations. The second half performance was worthy of a win. I’m proud of players who played in such ways.

Gregorio Manzano, Head Coach (Beijing Guoan)
Today’s match was tough as I imagined yesterday. Although we played better than the opponents in the first half, Reds did better in the second half. The 1-1 result was fair. We had some chances to extend the lead in the first half but weren’t able to turn them into a goal. I think that also shows the difference between the two teams. Considering players’ condition, I replaced five starters from the last match. Today’s line-ups played very well with good combinations. We want to advance to the next round atop, so the next match against Brisbane is going to be important. But in the first place, we will keep up our work in the domestic league matches.

AFC Champions League 2015

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