Late equaliser in Asian Champions League

FC Tokyo’s coach left disappointed by draw with Ulsan Hyundia while Brisbane Roar also split points with Beijing Guoan.

Thomas Broich (C) of the Brisbane Roar
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South Korea’s Kim Seung-Yong (L) and Maranhao (R) were both on scoresheet for Ulsan Hyundai [AFP]

Brazilian striker Maranhao scored in the last minute on Tuesday to give South Korean club Ulsan Hyundai a 2-2 draw against FC Tokyo in the Asian Champions League.

Yohei Kajiyama put the hosts ahead 2-1 with seven minutes remaining but Maranhao scored before the final whistle to give Ulsan a point in the Group F match at the National Stadium in Tokyo.

“We have ourselves to blame for this defeat,” FC Tokyo coach Ranko Popovic said.

“Yes, I said defeat because I feel that we lost the game today.”

Maranhao, who joined the K-League side from Japanese club Ventforet Kofu on a yearlong deal, came off the bench to set up Kim Seung-Yong’s equaliser in the 81st minute.

“We have ourselves to blame for this defeat… Yes, I said defeat because I feel that we lost the game today”

FC Tokyo coach Ranko Popovic

Yuhei Tokunaga opened the scoring for Tokyo in the 37th minute. The two teams share the Group F lead with four points after two matches.

In China, Beijing Guoan and Australian club Brisbane Roar played to a 1-1 draw to earn their first points in Group F.

Cheng Piao scored for the hosts in the eighth minute at Beijing Workers Stadium but Matthew Mitchell Nicolas equalised for Brisbane 13 minutes later.

In Australia, Adelaide United moved to the top of the Group E standings with six points after beating Japanese club Gamba Osaka 2-0 in a rematch of the 2008 final.

The hosts went ahead on an own-goal by Lee Seung-yeoul in the 17th minute and doubled the lead seven minutes later when Daniel Mullen scored.

In South Korea, Lutfulla Turaev scored in the first half and Murzoev Kamoliddin added a goal after the break as Uzbek club Bunyodkor beat Pohang Steelers 2-0, a result that left both teams with three points.

In Tashkent, Bani Yas of the United Arab Emirates came back to draw 1-1 with Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan and remain undefeated in the competition.

Midfielder Dilshod Sharofetdinov scored in the 29th minute, but Bani Yas levelled when midfielder Mohamed Fawzi scored in the 60th minute.

In a Group A match, Nasaf Qarshi of Uzbekistan drew 0-0 with Esteghlal of Iran.

The top two teams in each group advance to the round of 16.

Source: AP