THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
December 11, 2020 at 11:40 JST
Beijing’s Li Lei, left, and Yun Bit-Garam fight for the ball during a quarter final AFC Champions League match in Al Wakrah, Qatar, on Dec 10. (AP Photo)
DOHA, Qatar--Junior Negrao scored both goals as Ulsan Horangi beat Beijing Guoan 2-0 Thursday to reach the semifinals of the Asian Champions League.
The South Korean team will face Vissel Kobe of Japan, which beat 10-man Suwon Bluewings 7-6 in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw.
Junior Negrao opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 21st minute after his initial shot was handled by Beijing’s South Korean defender Kim Min-jae. The Brazilian, who was the leading scorer in the K-League this season, doubled Ulsan’s lead three minutes before the break with a powerful shot from outside the area.
“It was a very important win and I am happy that we got the result and showed our quality throughout the match,” said Ulsan coach Kim Do-hoon. “Now we have to regroup and start preparing for the semi final.”
Beijing had a number of chances to get back into the game but couldn't beat goalkeeper Jo Su-huk.
“Today we created a number of opportunities during the game but we were not able to take them,” said Beijing’s Renato Augusto, the former Brazil captain. “That is why we lost the game but this is life.”
Ulsan, which set a tournament record by scoring at least two goals for a seventh successive game, is looking to add to the Asian title it won in 2012. The semifinal will be played Sunday in Qatar, where the tournament is being staged because of coronavirus restrictions on travel.
Suwon took a seventh-minute lead through Park Sang-hyuk but then had Kim Tae-hwan sent off seven minutes before the break. Kyogo Furuhashi equalized two minutes later.
In the penalty shootout, the teams converted their first six attempts before Jang Ho-ik sent his spot kick over the bar, leaving Noriaki Fujimoto to send big-spending Kobe into the semifinals.
The winner will play Persepolis of Iran in the final on Dec. 19. Persepolis advanced from the West bracket in October.
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