Jubilo, Blue Wings advance to Asian Champions semis
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)