Jubilo, Blue Wings advance to Asian Champions semis

MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi (JP): Jubilo Iwata of Japan and Samsung Suwon Blue Wings of South Korea advanced to the semifinals of the Asian Champions Cup, representing the East Asian Zone, after the quarterfinals final match at Mattoangin Stadium on Sunday.

The semifinals will take place in May in Lebanon. Jubilo will face Pirouzi of Iran while Blue Wings will meet Yrtihs Pavlodar of Kazakhstan.

Jubilo ousted host team PSM Makassar 3-0 while Blue Wings defeated Shandong Luneng of China 6-0.

J-league three-time winner Jubilo scored its first goal thanks to Naoki Nareao at the 36th minute, then further goals by Toaki Seirno at the 55th minute and Takahiro Yamanishi at the 72nd minute.

PSM could not produce any goals even though Jubilo was fielding its substitute players and resting top player Masashi Nakayama.

Jubilo scored a full nine points after winning two previous matches. It beat Blue Wings 3-0 and crushed Shandong Luneng 6-2.

Earlier, Blue Wings dominated its match against Shandong Luneng and netted its first goal just eight minutes after the initial whistle thanks to Ko Jong-su.

The lead was extended when Dennis Laktionov scored at the 29th minute and Ko scored his second goal before the end of the first half.

Entering the second half, Shandong Luneng tried to fight back but its sole striker Wilberto Del Valle Ruiz failed to break through Blue Wings' solid man-to-man marking.

Blue Wings added three other goals through Seo Dong-won at the 49th and 59th minutes and Soltan Zabo at the 82nd minute.

The Koreans finished second in the list after thrashing PSM 8- 1 but being beaten by Jubilo 3-0.

Shandong finished third with only one 3-1 victory over the host team who never won.

Jubilo's Nakayama and Blue Wings' Ko were named top scorers while Ko was twice named as man of the match, against PSM and Shandong.

Meanwhile, the general coordinator of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Alex Soosay, praised local organizers and supporters for good behavior during the quarterfinals round. (27)