The second day of the 2nd group-stage matches of the AFC Asian Champions League saw Gamba Osaka fail to post back-to-back victories and lose against Jeju United FC 1-4 at home and Kawasaki Frontale draw an away game against Eastern SC 1-1 and miss the chance of securing their first win in the competition on Wednesday 1 March.

Gamba Osaka started the first match of their Asian campaign in an emphatic manner claiming a comprehensive victory 3-0 against Adelaide United of Australia. As coach HASEGAWA Kenta later commented: “We wanted to focus on defence first, and then display our brand of football,” the Osaka club altered their system to a three-back, but this adjustment did not function as expected forcing the wing-backs to defend deep in their own end and creating space in the middle, where Jeju exploited this open area to fashion several early chances.

A bit of fortune fell to Jeju United as they found their place in the Asian competition due to a bribery allegation of club rival Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors who were disqualified to participate in the tournament. Despite clinching a spot as a reserve team, Jeju have certainly shown their attacking power by tying the highest number of goals scored in their domestic K-League last season. Looking to secure their first victory of the international championship, the Korean powerhouse came out aggressively with both wingers taking higher positions alongside forwards Marcelo TOSCANO and Magno CRUZ, almost resembling a four-top formation, while LEE Changmin dictated and created chances by stringing passes in midfield.

Allowing the Korean counterparts to dominate the match, the Osaka club had to spend most of their time defending on their end, but still managed to keep them off the scoreboard until the 44th minute. An opener for the K-League club came in as ENDO Yasuhito headed an own-goal as the Japanese midfielder attempted to clear a direct free kick taken by defender CHUNG Woon. Furthermore, Lee found the second for the Korean side in added time of the first half as the Jeju’s playmaker netted the loose ball coming off a long feed.

Seeking to level the match, Gamba replaced midfielder IDEGUCHI Yosuke with forward NAGASAWA Shun to bring additional attacking arsenal onto the pitch. However, the Osaka team could not change the momentum of the match as Jeju came out with similar attacking mentality as in the first half and scored their third in the 51st minute. From a corner, OH Ban-suk fired a shot at goal and, although the first effort was denied by the Japanese side, Toscano got to the deflected ball first and slotted into the back of the net. Nothing seemed to stop the confident Korean club as they hit on the quick counter after 54 minutes threatening further the Gamba’s goal with Toscano’s finish hitting the crossbar.

Soon after, Gamba subbed in midfielder HATSUSE Ryo for defender FUJIHARU Hiroki to create better chances by adding a player in midfield. However, the Osaka club saw their attacking efforts run into defensive block by the solidly-defending Korean side forcing errors and denying any opportunities to find the net. Then, in the 72nd minute, Lee found his second and fourth for the team from long-range, taking the game out of reach for the Japanese counterparts.

Last change for Gamba came in the 76th minute as midfielder IZUMISAWA Jin came off the bench to replace Endo. Then, the J. League club threatened the Korean goal off a corner where the delivery found defender KIM Jungya in front of their goal, but was unable to direct the ball into the net,

At last, the home team opened their scoring by converting a penalty in the 90th minute as ADEMILSON successfully slotted the spot kick earned himself. However, it came a bit too late for the Osaka side and they lost the match bitterly and comprehensively at home 1-4.

Match Details (Japanese version only)

Showing a sense of urgency after a poor performance match, midfielder KURATA Shu commented: “We were simply outplayed. I feel gutted. This kind of performance is beyond the pale.”

The other match in Group H saw Jiangsu Suning Football Club (China) beat Adelaide United (Australia) 2-1 and clinch the top spot by winning two consecutive games. Jeju became second tying Gamba in points, but moving above the Osaka club as they came on top of today’s head-to-head encounter. Gamba is now third, followed by Adelaide at the bottom of the group.

Kawasaki Frontale struggle after a send-off

Drawing the first group stage of the Asian competition at home, Frontale travelled to Hong Kong to face Eastern SC who were looking for their first win as well. Changing 10 starting members from the J. League season opener on the 25th with forward KOBAYASHI Yu and midfielder TASAKA Yusuke on the bench and MVP midfielder NAKAMURA Kengo not being a part of an away squad, the Kawasaki club struggled to compete against the Chinese side with NARA Tatsuki being send off in the 13th minute and conceding a penalty which the Hong Kong Premier League champions successfully converted to take an early lead.

In attempt to level the match, Frontale brought in Tasaka after the break and an awaited equaliser came in the 52nd as defender ITAKURA Ko opened the scoring for the Japanese side. Furthermore, Kobayashi was subbed in the 68th minute and midfielder Eduardo NETO came off the bench after 82 minutes, but with one-man down the second-half substitutes did little to impact the match and failed to find the go-ahead goal for the J. League club. Further to aggravate the situation, forward RHAYNER was sent off after being booked for the second time in added time. In the midst of turmoil, the match ended in a 1-1 draw.

Match Details (Japanese version only)

In the other match of Group G, Guangzhou Evergrande (China) drew against Suwon Samsung Bluewings (Korea) taking the Chinese club to the top of the group with four points. While Kawasaki and Samsung are level sharing two points each, the Korean team sit in second place on aggregate goals scored. Frontale fell to third, while Eastern SC, sharing the spoils with the Japanese counterparts, earned a single point, but remain at the bottom of the group.

Asian Champions League will resume their group-stage matches on Tuesday 14 and Wednesday 15 March.

Coaches' and Players' Comments

HASEGAWA Kenta, Coach (Gamba Osaka)
First of all, my players did their best given the tight schedule of having only two-day rest. I have to take the full responsibility of the loss today as I altered the system and attempted to nullify the attacking power of the Korean powerhouse to display our brand of football. However, the result was that we conceded two crucial goals from set plays. Second goal was regrettable as it came soon after we conceded the first, giving us no time to regroup ourselves. Their third goal came off a corner right after the break, as we lacked the concentration and allowed the opponents to get to the loose ball first to fire a shot into our net. The difference might be minimal. But small difference can make a huge difference in the game. Only positive takeaway might be the last-ditch effort we showed to score a goal in added time, and we have to take this positive and further improve the team. We are surely looking to avenge today’s loss when we encounter Jeju for the second time in the group stage. But before anything, we need to get back our focus and work on improving the team.

MF KURATA Shu (Gamba Osaka)
Too many frivolous errors. Not good enough in one-on-one battles as the opponents showed much more spirit in winning the ball. Tight schedule wasn’t really the issue here. The only positive thing might be that we hit the rock bottom in this game. We need to communicate with each other and work on issues at hand.

MF ENDO Yasuhito (Gamba Osaka)
The main problem was that we regained possession deep in our end. We put too much emphasis on defending in the backline that we lost the balance between the defensive and offensive lines. I believe if we make the necessary changes in the positioning of the players, then we can perform much better as a team. Still we were not able to cope against the opponents who came out aggressively and threatened our goal. Without having the same vision on the pitch, we are unable to compete effectively against any opponents. We need to work on them in training.

CHO Sung Hwan, Coach (Jeju United)
I have to praise the efforts put forth by my players to capture a comprehensive victory today. I haven’t done anything special from the bench. Attaining superb results, Gamba are always title contenders in the J. League, but given the tight schedule, they might not have performed to the best of their ability in this match.

Tournament Information：24 January 2017 (Tue.) ～ 25 November 2017 (Sat.)

Group E
14 March 2017 (Tue.) Kick-off 19:00 (TBC)
Kashima Soccer Stadium
Kashima Antlers (Japan) vs Brisbane Roar (Australia)

Group F
15 March 2017 (Wed.) Kick-off 19:30 (TBC) ＜Local Time＞
Shanghai Stadium
Shanghai SIPG (China) vs Urawa Reds (Japan)

Group G
14 March 2017 (Tue.) Kick-off 20:00 (TBC) ＜Local Time＞
Tianhe Stadium
Guangzhou Evergrande (China) vs Kawasaki Frontale (Japan)

Group H
15 March 2017 (Wed.) Kick-off 19:00 (TBC)
Suita City Football Stadium
Gamba Osaka (Japan) vs Jiangsu Suning (China)

Tournament Information