SEOUL: Goals from Alex Teixeira and Jo couldn’t save Jiangsu Suning as the Chinese big-spenders crashed out of the AFC Champions League with a 2-2 draw against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors on Wednesday.
In their final Group E game, Jiangsu’s Asian-record signing Teixeira canceled out Leonardo’s opener, and ex-Manchester City striker Jo made it 2-1 to the visitors after half-time.
But Lim Jong-Eun equalized coolly for Jeonbuk on 68 minutes and it proved vital for the 2006 Asian champions from South Korea, who grabbed the point they needed to reach the last 16.
It was heartbreak for Dan Petrescu’s Jiangsu, who splurged 50 million euros ($57.5 million) on Teixeira and also splashed out on Jo and Chelsea’s Ramires in their bid for glory.
They join reigning champions Guangzhou Evergrande in departing what has been a mixed campaign for Chinese teams, despite a world-leading spending spree on players earlier this year.
However, Shandong Luneng will fly the Chinese flag alongside Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Shanghai SIPG in the last 16 after they rounded off Group F with a 0-0 draw against Buriram United.
FC Tokyo pipped Jiangsu to second spot in Group E and go through with Jeonbuk after Ryoichi Maeda scored twice to hand them a 2-1 win over Vietnam’s Binh Duong.
After a quiet start in Jeonju, Leonardo drilled Jeonbuk ahead from the penalty spot in the 19th minute after Choi Chul-Soon was clumsily fouled by Yang Xiaotian.
But Teixeira equalized for Jiangsu just five minutes later when he volleyed a ricocheting free kick into the roof of the Jeonbuk net.
After a foul on Ramires, Jo converted the game’s second penalty nine minutes after half-time to make it 2-1 to Jiangsu, but Jeonbuk were level again in the 68th minute.
In a well-worked corner move, a flick-on found Lim lurking at the back post and he neatly cushion-volleyed what transpired as a vital goal for Jeonbuk in front of their home fans.
Elsewhere Adriano struck his 10th goal of the competition as FC Seoul lost 2-1 away to Sanfrecce Hiroshima for their only defeat of Group F, but still finished top regardless.
Philippines extends Dooley’s contract
American Thomas Dooley will lead the Philippines’ football team for another two years after maintaining their top ranking in Southeast Asia, the national federation said.
The deal means Dooley, a former captain of the US national team, will lead the Philippines as they target success in the AFF Suzuki Cup, which they are co-hosting with Myanmar in November and December.
Dooley, 54, who took charge in 2014, will now stay at the helm until at least March 18, 2018, the national federation said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
“I’ve always said that I wanted to stay so that’s why it was easy to come together and talk,” Dooley was quoted as saying to Philippines media by the AFC website.
Under Dooley, the Azkals — local slang for feral dogs — climbed 11 places in the FIFA world rankings to 116, and held on to their status as the best team in Southeast Asia.
The contract extension also means Dooley will lead the Azkals in the next stage of qualifying for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
In his two years, Dooley led the Azkals to the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup semifinals and the finals of the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup in the Maldives, where they eventually lost to Palestine.
In their final Group E game, Jiangsu’s Asian-record signing Teixeira canceled out Leonardo’s opener, and ex-Manchester City striker Jo made it 2-1 to the visitors after half-time.
But Lim Jong-Eun equalized coolly for Jeonbuk on 68 minutes and it proved vital for the 2006 Asian champions from South Korea, who grabbed the point they needed to reach the last 16.
It was heartbreak for Dan Petrescu’s Jiangsu, who splurged 50 million euros ($57.5 million) on Teixeira and also splashed out on Jo and Chelsea’s Ramires in their bid for glory.
They join reigning champions Guangzhou Evergrande in departing what has been a mixed campaign for Chinese teams, despite a world-leading spending spree on players earlier this year.
However, Shandong Luneng will fly the Chinese flag alongside Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Shanghai SIPG in the last 16 after they rounded off Group F with a 0-0 draw against Buriram United.
FC Tokyo pipped Jiangsu to second spot in Group E and go through with Jeonbuk after Ryoichi Maeda scored twice to hand them a 2-1 win over Vietnam’s Binh Duong.
After a quiet start in Jeonju, Leonardo drilled Jeonbuk ahead from the penalty spot in the 19th minute after Choi Chul-Soon was clumsily fouled by Yang Xiaotian.
But Teixeira equalized for Jiangsu just five minutes later when he volleyed a ricocheting free kick into the roof of the Jeonbuk net.
After a foul on Ramires, Jo converted the game’s second penalty nine minutes after half-time to make it 2-1 to Jiangsu, but Jeonbuk were level again in the 68th minute.
In a well-worked corner move, a flick-on found Lim lurking at the back post and he neatly cushion-volleyed what transpired as a vital goal for Jeonbuk in front of their home fans.
Elsewhere Adriano struck his 10th goal of the competition as FC Seoul lost 2-1 away to Sanfrecce Hiroshima for their only defeat of Group F, but still finished top regardless.
Philippines extends Dooley’s contract
American Thomas Dooley will lead the Philippines’ football team for another two years after maintaining their top ranking in Southeast Asia, the national federation said.
The deal means Dooley, a former captain of the US national team, will lead the Philippines as they target success in the AFF Suzuki Cup, which they are co-hosting with Myanmar in November and December.
Dooley, 54, who took charge in 2014, will now stay at the helm until at least March 18, 2018, the national federation said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
“I’ve always said that I wanted to stay so that’s why it was easy to come together and talk,” Dooley was quoted as saying to Philippines media by the AFC website.
Under Dooley, the Azkals — local slang for feral dogs — climbed 11 places in the FIFA world rankings to 116, and held on to their status as the best team in Southeast Asia.
The contract extension also means Dooley will lead the Azkals in the next stage of qualifying for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
In his two years, Dooley led the Azkals to the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup semifinals and the finals of the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup in the Maldives, where they eventually lost to Palestine.
