Wanderers pack off champ Guangzhou
Print Edition
WESTERN Sydney Wanderers delivered a seismic shock yesterday when they sent title-holder and tournament favorite Guangzhou Evergrande crashing out of the AFC Champions League.
The Australians lost the quarterfinal’s second leg 1-2 but went through on away goals following last week’s 1-0 upset in Sydney.
The surprise victory means Tony Popovic’s side becomes only the second Australian team to reach the AFC Champions League semifinals, after Adelaide United in 2008.
Guangzhou’s World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi, banished to the stands after angrily confronting last week’s referee, sat with a lit cigar as his title defense went up in smoke.
The Wanderers will next face last year’s runner-up FC Seoul, whose goalkeeper Yu Sang-hun saved three penalties in a dramatic shootout to deny fellow Korean rivals Pohang Steelers.
Guangzhou was a weakened side, missing three players through suspension as well as Italian maestro Lippi, who was punished for his reaction after two late red cards in Sydney.
Striker Tom Juric, who scored Western Sydney’s goal yesterday on a penalty in the 59th minute, was named man of the match.
Brazilian midfielder Elkeson’s goal two minutes into injury time made for an anxious final few minutes for the Wanderers after Italian striker Alessandro Diamanti had leveled the match five minutes after Juric’s goal.
In the other semifinal, Saudi Arabia’s al-Hilal meets 2003 AFC Champions League winner al-Ain of the United Arab Emirates.
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