NEWS

Sanfrecce Hiroshima failed to celebrate their AFC Champions League debut with a win on Wednesday, falling 1-0 to Chinese club Shandong Luneng at home.

Meanwhile, former Asian champions Gamba Osaka battled to a 0-0 draw away at Suwon Bluewings in Korea Republic.
Sanfrecce attempted to play aggressive passing football, but without the injured Toshihiro Aoyama, Mihael Mikic and Masato Yamazaki, they struggled to get their game together.
Shandong, making their fourth appearance in the ACL and guided by new manager Branko Ivankovic, were solid in defense and quick up front, with forward Lu Zheng the focal point of the Chinese Super League side’s attack.
But the Hiroshima players responded well and stuck to their task.
Sanfrecce came close in the 12th minute when midfielder Yojiro Takahagi had a shot after receiving a fine ball from Tadanari Lee, and in the 29th minute, Hiroshima midfielder Satoru Yamagishi had a good effort saved by Shandong’s former China goalkeeper Li Leilei.
After the break, the hosts continued to look for a breakthrough, and they had attempts on goal by midfielder Kota Hattori and Yamagishi, but they couldn’t find the target.
Instead, it was Shandon who went ahead. In the 77th minute, forward Han Peng rose high at the far post to head home a Ma Long corner.
Hiroshima, spurred on by the 11,955 home fans, fought hard to level the scores, and defender Tomoaki Makino came close with a mid-range attempt in the 85th minute, but Sanfrecce couldn’t get the ball into the net.
“It is a pity that we lost today,” said Sanfrecce boss Mihailo Petrovic. “The game was tough, as I had expected, but our players showed strong determination and good discipline as well as good running throughout the game, and we hardly gave away any chances to our opponents.”
“But we did give away a goal that we shouldn’t have. Our players also lacked precision in crossing and couldn’t combine well around the box.”
The Austrian manager continued, “Football is like working with an orchestra, and Hiroshima can play a good tune when we have 13 to 14 different types of musical instruments. But today, we were missing two or three, and were limited to the same types.”
Shandong manager Ivankovic said, “Playing away against Sanfrecce, who are a good team with lots of talent, we wouldn’t have complained if we had drawn. But we were able to score and win the game, so it couldn’t have been better.
“All our players did their best, followed my tactics and didn’t give away any chances to our opponents. I’m happy with my first win with Shandong, and this win will give me good encouragement to move on to our next game.”
In Suwon, Gamba’s away winning streak in the ACL ended at 10 as the Emperor’s Cup holders were held to a 0-0 draw by hosts Suwon Bluewings in their opening Group G game.
Gamba, playing without a number of regular players, including defender Satoshi Yamaguchi and forward Pedro Junior, faced aggressive play from the Korean League side.
Gamba boss Akira Nishino was given an added problem when defender Sota Nakazawa was forced to leave the pitch after hurting his back. But the visitors held firm and goalkeeper Yosuke Fujigaya made some fine saves to protect his goal.
The north Osaka team also created chances in the second half with efforts from Hideo Hashimoto, Shoki Hirai and substitute forward Takashi Usami, but they weren’t able to produce a goal.
Nishino commented, “It was a tough game, as I had expected, but our players were strong mentally and were able to control the game. I think we had more chances than our opponents in the second half.”
In the next group matches, Kawasaki Frontale will host Chinese side Beijing Guoan on March 9, Gamba will meet Henan Jianye of China at home on March 10, Kashima Antlers will play at Jeonbuk Motors in Korea on March 9 and Sanfrecce will visit Pohang Steelers in Korea on March 10.