On Wednesday 24 October, Kashima Antlers played their second leg of the AFC Champions League (ACL) 2018 semi-final against Suwon Samsung Bluewings (Korea Republic). After an intense battle where the two sides exchanged multiple goals, the match ended in a 3-3 draw, and as a result, Kashima advanced to their first ever ACL final with an aggregate score of 6-5.

Following their dramatic come from behind victory in the first leg, Kashima carried their momentum into the second leg as they captured the opening goal in the 25th minute. The goal came when SERGINHO delivered the ball towards the goal from a freekick, allowing YAMAMOTO Shuto to flick the ball into the net from the nearside. The first half saw no further action as the match entered halftime with Kashima’s one goal lead.

The Suwon side however, did not stay quite at their home, as the team welcomed back Coach SEO Jung-Won, who resigned from the post before the first leg. After scoring the equaliser in the 52nd minute, the home side took the lead a minute later from a corner kick. Dejan DAMJANOVIC captured Suwon’s third goal in the 60th minute to extend their lead. With their back against the wall, Kashima huddled up on the pitch to lift up their spirit. The 64th minute goal scored by Kashima’s NISHI Daigo levelled the aggregate score at 5-5 with both teams scoring the same number of away goals.

From there on, the two sides showcased an equally matched bout, until Kashima broke the deadlock in the 82nd minute when SUZUKI Yuma delivered the last pass to Serginho, who capitalised the opportunity to equalise the match, putting Kashima ahead in the aggregate score. With the match ending in a 3-3 draw, Kashima advanced to the club’s first ever ACL final. With Urawa Red Diamonds making it to the final last year, it is the second straight year a Japanese club has reached the final at the ACL.

In the other side of the bracket, Persepolis F.C. (Iran) drew against Al Sadd SC (Qatar) 1-1 at home, and as a result the Iranian side advanced to their first ever final with the advantage in aggregate score.

With both sides seeking for their first title, the first leg of the final will take place at Kashima’s home on Saturday 3 November, followed by the second leg in Iran on Saturday 10 November.

Coach and Player's Comments

OIWA Go, Coach (Kashima Antlers)
The two goals we conceded at the beginning of the second half has really made the match tough for us. However, the players did a great job to keep their composure and stayed with the game plan, which as a result gave us the ticket to the next round. I am very proud of my players. We will prepare ahead of our next match so that we can achieve our goal of winning the title. We will strive to win at both home and away, but ahead of the final, we must play the league matches as well, so we must be able to maintain our condition during this tight schedule. We will do our best to prepare ourselves.

YAMAMOTO Shuto (Kashima Antlers)
(Regarding the opening goal) Serginho delivered a great ball and I managed to break away without getting caught offsides. As a player, I feel very fortunate to be able to play at this stage. We faced a tough stretch after we conceded the second and third goal, but we knew we just needed to score one more goal, so we focused to keep our composure.

Tournament Period：30 January 2018 (Tue.) - 10 November 2018 (Sat.)

Final 1st Leg: Sat. 3 November
Kashima Antlers (Japan) vs Persepolis F.C. (Iran)
Tournament Information