Football
Gabriel Tan 2y

Johor Darul Ta'zim see off Guangzhou to move level with Ulsan Hyundai at the summit

Johor Darul Ta'zim's quest to reach the AFC Champions League knockout stage for the first time ever continued to gather pace on Wednesday, even if they were far from convincing in a 2-0 victory over Guangzhou.

Bergson da Silva fired JDT ahead with a 16th-minute penalty after he had been dragged down inside the area by Feng Yifan from a corner, before adding another right at the death with another spot-kick -- following a foul on Ramadhan Saifullah in the box.

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The result was enough to see the Southern Tigers move top of Group I on ten points, level with Ulsan Hyundai after their own 3-2 triumph over Kawasaki Frontale.

In a thrilling contest, Ulsan raced to a two-goal lead inside the opening 20 minutes courtesy of goals from Leo Souza and Um Won-sang, only for Leandro Damiao to pull one back in the 40th minute.

Any hopes of a Frontale comeback were effectively ended two minutes after the restart when Valeri Qazaishvili restored Ulsan's cushion, although Damiao did reduce the deficit again with his second goal of the evening in injury-time.

Having beaten Ulsan in their previous encounter, JDT currently boast a better head-to-head record but must beat the South Korean outfit to be certain of their place in the last-16, as there is still a chance Frontale could come into the picture and force a three-way tie.

Over in Group F, Urawa Red Diamonds ended a two-game winless run in style as they thrashed Lion City Sailors 6-0.

In a potentially pivotal clash that strangely saw Sailors coach Kim Do-hoon rest a host of key players, the Reds were firmly in control of proceedings at the break after first-half strikes by Kazuaki Mawatari and Alex Schalk.

Refusing to take their foot off the pedal, David Moberg Karlsson and Yoshio Koizumi would double the Japanese side's advantage by the 7th-minute mark of the second half before Yusuke Matsuo rounded things off by coming off the bench and grabbing a brace.

Nonetheless, Urawa only find themselves second in the group given their inferior head-to-head record with Daegu, who also find themselves on ten points as their resurgence continued with a 4-0 rout of Shandong Taishan.

BG Pathum United continue to lead the way in Group G following a 0-0 draw with Melbourne City in a tense encounter that threatened to boil over on occasion.

BGPU can now secure a second consecutive knockout round appearance as long as they avoid defeat in their final game, while Melbourne City still stand a chance of advancing.

Jeonnam Dragons are still in contention to finish second in Group G as they moved two points behind Melbourne City with a 2-0 win over bottom side United City.

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