Cerezo in top gear for Motors clash

Osaka: Cerezo Osaka head to Korea and the second-leg of their 2011 AFC Champions League quarter-final clash with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors buoyed by a 6-0 win over Montedio Yamagata in their Round 27J.League fixture on Friday.
After the seven-goal first-leg thriller against Jeonbuk, Cerezo put in a tired performance upon their return to domestic duty last Saturday.
But with a place in the final four of Asia's premier club competition at stake, Cerezo gave the 2006 ACL champions a timely reminder of their attacking prowess as six different players got on the score sheet in Friday's romp over Montedio.
Ryuji Bando and Kota Fujimoto gave Levir Culpi's side a two-goal cushion going into the break with goals in the 24^th and 28^th minutes respectively before Noriyuki Sakemoto extended Cerezo's lead a minute after the restart.
Takahiro Ogihara made it 4-0 three minutes later but the goals dried up until final five minutes, with Brazilian midfielder Fabio Lopes grabbing the fifth in the 85^thminute before substitute Yohei Otake sealed the win from the spot sixty seconds later to give Cerezo a massive fillip ahead of Tuesday's meeting with Jeonbuk.

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Taiwan Power win AFC President's Cup

Kaohsiung: Two goals from He Ming-chan and another from Chen Po-liang saw Taiwan Power Company lift the AFC President's Cup 2011 with a dramatic 3-2 victory over Phnom Penh Crown.
He twice put the home side, who also missed a second-half penalty, in front at the National Stadium and Chen netted what proved to be a crucial third goal as they were reduced to 10 men with 13 minutes to go after Chen Yu-lin was dismissed for a professional foul.
There was controversy just before the end, however, as three Phnom Penh players were sent off for shoving the referee.
Taiwan Power got off to the best possible start when Kuo Yin-hung's cross from the right picked out an unmarked He and he headed home from close range.
Crown settled after that early setback and Sun Sovannarith's dangerous low cross was turned behind by Lee Meng-chian at the far post with Kingsley Njoku lurking.
Chan Chaya then overran the ball in the box when clear, allowing keeper Pan Wei-chih to gather, but the Cambodians did level in the 34^th minute.
A long pass forward was collected by Khim Borey in the box and while the midfielder appeared to dally, Njoku nipped in to fire the ball into the back of the net.
A minute later, Chen Po-liang weaved through a couple of challenges but Peng Bunchay beat away his shot before Kuo curled a free-kick towards the top corner that was clawed away by the Crown keeper as the sides went in even at the break.
It took just two minutes of the second-half for Taiwan Power to re-establish their lead, though, as a swift break ended with Chen Po-liang feeding He and he forged into the box before slotting into the bottom corner.
The hosts then missed a great opportunity to extend their lead in the 64^th minute when a defensive error allowed Chen Po-liang to break into the box before he was brought down by Anthony Obadin but Hung Kai-chun skied the penalty over the bar.
It was not to prove costly, however, as Hung advanced down the left two minutes later and his cross slipped through Bunchay's hands, allowing Chen Po-liang to finish into an empty net.
The hosts, though, were reduced to 10 men in the 77^th minute when Chen Yu-lin pulled back Sok Pheng as he chased a through ball but Sun Sopanha drove the free-kick straight at the wall.
Crown gave themselves hope with eight minutes to go when San Narith headed in Sovannrithy's corner at the back post and with time running out, Kouch Sokumpheak latched onto a ball over the top but his weak shot was straight at keeper Pan.
The game ended on a sour note as Sovannrithy, Chaya and Narith were all sent-off for shoving Saudi referee Mohammed Al Awaji after he denied the Cambodians a penalty.

http://www.the-afc.com/en/tournaments/clubs/afc-presidents-cup/36523-phnom-penh-crown-v-taiwan-power-company

2014 FWCQ action: Coachspeak

Malaysia coach K Rajagopal. (AFP)

Kuala Lumpur: After a dramatic day of 2014 FIFA World Cup Round 1 (first leg) qualifying action, www.the-afc.com presents a round-up of the reactions of some coaches.

Malaysia 2-1 Chinese Taipei

Kuala Lumpur:  Malaysia face an uphill task in the second-leg against Chinese Taipei on Sunday after managing only a narrow 2-1 win yesterday at the Bukit Jalil Stadium in front of 45,000 fans.

“We started sloppily and struggled to play to our tempo against a very committed Chinese Taipei side,” Coach K Rajagopal said at the post-match press conference.

“The introduction of substitute striker Abdul Hadi Yahya injected a much-needed boost to our play and it resulted in our opening goal. There was better penetration on the right flank.

“We played with better pace after the break but our defenders dozed off, causing us to concede a goal late into the game.”

Chinese Taipei coach Lo Chih-tsung, meanwhile, was happy with his men’s performance, especially after picking up a vital away goal.

“We came here with the aim of getting an away goal and we did it. This is the first time my men are playing in front of such a big crowd,” said the coach. “They played to instructions and that was to counter Malaysian game. But it will be different at home.”


Sri Lanka 1-1 Philippines

Colombo: Nate Burkey’s equaliser five minutes into the second-half saw the Azkals neutralise Chathura Gunarathna's 43rd minute lead for Sri Lanka at the Sugathdasa Stadium and the Philippines team manager Dan Palama believes they can win the return leg at home on 3 July.  

“There’s work to be done, but I know we can make the job done in Manila,” Palami said, referring to Sunday’s match-up, which is expected to be attended by a record crowd at the Rizal Football Stadium.


Bangladesh 3-0 Pakistan

Dhaka: Bangladesh put one leg in the second round of qualifiers with a thumping 3-0 win over Pakistan on a rain-soaked Wednesday and the losing coach lamented that the weather did his men in.

“We could have played better,” Pakistan coach Tariq Lutfi told The Express Tribune. “But the weather helped Bangladesh.”

The return leg takes place at the Punjab Stadium. 


Nepal 2 -1 Timor Leste

Kathmandu: A 71st minute Ju Manu Rai goal saw Nepal edge their resilient rivals at the Dashrath Stadium after team mate Anil Gurung's opener was cancelled out by Juvito Da Silva. The hosts were reduced to 10 men in second half when Bharat Kawas was red-carded.

Nepal coach Graham Roberts, however, expressed his satisfaction with the team’s performance.

"We dominated the field. We had 16 chances on the goal. I think the decision of sending Bharat off was wrong", Roberts said. 

Nepal captain Sagar Thapa admitted that the match was tough against them. 

"It was a tough match but we did it", Thapa said.

Timor coach Carlos Viera said his men “didn’t play that bad”.

"Well, What do i say. We didn't play that bad. We could have won the match, having numerical advantage. However, the result is good for us as we have one more match to prove what we are,” said Viera. 

“Nepal are no different from us. We played same football.”

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Japan, Uzbekistan's QF appearance expected: Selby

Japan's Takumi Minamino (L) celebrates his goal with Hideki Ishige after scoring against New Zealand in the FIFA U-17 World Cup. Photo by Jeff Mitchell - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images

Kuala Lumpur: AFC’s Director of Coach Education Jim Selby is convinced that Japan, Australia and Uzbekistan’s advancing to the Round of 16 of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Mexico is an expected outcome.

Selby believes that a combination of important factors present consistently over years or decades increases the chances of doing well at youth world tournaments and sets a foundation for future World Cups. 

“In fact the same combination exists in the nations that have gone far in the AFC Asian Cup in Qatar this year which again included Japan, Australia, Uzbekistan and the likes of them,” the Australian told the-afc.com.

Uzbekistan tamed fellow Asians Australia 4-0 while the Samurai Blue juniors thrashed New Zealand 6-0 to punch their tickets to the last eight of the youth tournament whose matches will take place on July 3 and 4. Uzbekistan is set to face Uruguay and Japan will clash with Brazil in the quarterfinal.

The experienced coach educator and team coach has said a long-term and contestant’s success does not happen by chance – in fact countries who regularly perform well on the international stage have several common factors that lead to a better on-field performance:

Selby listed the following combination of factors:  

- Well-Structured and Funded Technical Plan For Football Development Within Their Country (domestic and international programs): Supported by an effective Technical Department and expert staff.

- Talented Player Identification as well as Selection Methods and Criteria: Bench-marked against world standards and future requirements.

- Talented Player Development and Competition Programmes: Again bench-marked against world standards and future requirements.

- Grassroots Football Structure: Development of future stars and their foundation

- High Performance Department focusing on the international stage as well as technical and tactical needs.

- Pathways for the development and exposure of talented players and coaches at the international level. 

Abbosbek Makhstaliev (R) celebrates after scoring against Australia in the FIFA U-17 World Cup. Photo by Ian Walton - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images

 

- Sports science and sports medicine personnel for players’ welfare and health.

- A national commitment to funds, people, resources, time and a strong desire to implement a systematic plan to be successful at international tournaments.

Selby has said that there is no 100-percent guarantee that the above factors will clinch the crown but the chances of doing so are much higher.

“There is no guarantee, but then if AFC member associations structure their technical development framework taking into account these factors, their chances will go much higher and vice versa. 

“I can see that Japan and Australia have such a combination in place while Uzbekistan is developing such a system and has the advantage of a European influence on their football. 

“Many established youth teams such as Spain, France, Germany, Holland and Argentina have had long implementation phases with a combination of these important factors and they have been highly successful,” he said.

Selby has also commended Japan and Uzbekistan in terms of team performance on the group stage.

“Japan and Uzbekistan emerge top in their groups. The Central Asians have humbled powerhouses the USA and Czech Republic while Japan have conquered the big teams, France and Argentina. 

“So, they have produced very good results. These are very significant achievements that will 


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AFC Cup MD3 match officials

Kuala Lumpur: AFC has appointed following match officials for third match day of the 2011 AFC Cup to be played on April 12 and 13. GROUP A Al Tilal (YEM) vs Al Ansar (LIB) Referee: Kadhoum Odah Lazeem Al-Saedi (IRQ) AR1: Luay Subhi Adib Al-Azawi (IRQ) AR2: Ahmed Abdulhussein Saeed Al-Mayali (IRQ) Fourth official: Haitham Mohammed Ali Al-Tameemi (IRQ) Dempo SC (IND) vs Nasaf (UZB) Referee: Mohammad Mousa Khalaf Abu Loum (JOR) AR1: Fawwaz Mohammad Issa Alnaimat (JOR) AR2: Waleed Abdelrahman A. Abuhashish (JOR) Fourth official: Suleiman Salameh Dalgham Jaber (JOR) GROUP B Al Qadsia (KUW) vs Al Saqr (YEM)  Referee:  Ali Sabbagh (LIB) AR1: Adi Ali (LIB) AR2: Hadi El Kassar (LIB) Fourth official: Yasser Naseeb Saleem Al Rawahi (OMA) Shurtan (UZB) vs Al Ittihad (SYR) Referee: Charymurat Kurbanov (TKM) AR1: Begench Allaberdiyev (TKM) AR2: Igor Barabash  (TKM) Fourth official: Ravshan Ishmatov (TJK) GROUP C Al Faisaly (JOR) vs Al Nasr (KUW) Referee: Aonruk Apisit (THA) AR1: Inkaew Thaweep (THA) AR2:  Kangram Preecha (THA) Fourth official: Fahad Adwan Al Mirdasi (KSA) Al Jaish (SYR) vs Duhok (IRQ) Referee: Kim Sang Woo (KOR) AR1: Kang Do Joon (KOR) AR2: Yoon Kwangyeol (KOR) Fourth official: Hamad Ahmed Abdullah H A Bin Alshaikh Hashmi (UAE) GROUP D Al Suwaiq (OMA) vs Al Talaba (IRQ) Referee: Liu Kwok Man (HKG) AR1: Chan Shui Hung (HKG) AR2: Chung Ming Sang (HKG) Fourth official: Abdulshaheed Abdulameer Hasan Abbas Mohamed (BHR) Kuwait SC (KUW) vs Al Wehdat (JOR) Referee: Sato Ryuji (JPN) AR1: Toshiyuki Nagi (JPN) AR2: Mhd Jawdat Nehlawi (SYR) Fourth official: Masoud Tufaylieh (SYR) GROUP E Arbil (IRQ) vs Al Arouba (OMA) Referee: Muokhtar Saleh Ali Al-Yarimi (YEM) AR1: Anaam Ahmed Qiad Saif (YEM) AR2: Shqran Hussein Omer Abdullah (YEM) Fourth official: Ali Gawf Ali Bary (YEM) Al Ahed FC (LIB) vs Al Karamah (SYR) Referee: Mahapab Chaiya (THA) AR1: Saiwaew Sumate (THA) AR2: Manop Pansakorn (THA) Fourth official: Mohammad Salem Abdallah Alrshaidat (JOR) GROUP F Sriwijaya (IDN) vs Song Lam Nghe An (VIE) Referee: Ko Hyung Jin (KOR) AR1: Jang Junmo (KOR) AR2: Kim Youngha (KOR) Fourth official: Abdul Hannan Miron (BAN) V.B. (MDV) vs TSW Pegasus (HKG) Referee: Ali M H M T Shaban (KUW) AR1: Yaser A. M. A. A. Marad (KUW) AR2: Sulaiman S S F Alshammari (KIUW) Fourth official: Mahmoud A H A Blooshi (KUW) GROUP G   Hanoi T&T (VIE) vs Tampines Rovers FC (SIN) Referee: Pratap Singh (IND) AR1: Dinesh Madhavan Nair (IND) AR2: Cheruvathur Kurian Shaji (IND) Fourth official: Rowan Arumughan (IND) Muang Thong United (THA) vs Victory SC (MDV) Referee: Mohd Nafeez Bin Abdul Wahab (MAS) AR1: Azman Bin Ismail (MAS) AR2: Mohammad Hanif Bin Abdul Rahman (MAS) Fourth official: Gamini Nivon Robesh (SRI) GROUP H   Persipura Jayapura (IDN) vs Chonburi Football Club (THA) Referee: Yu Ming Hsun (TPE) AR1: Hsu Min Yu (TPE) AR2: Han Wei (CHN) Fourth official: Ma Ning (CHN) South China (HKG) vs East Bengal (IND) Referee: Sgt Win Cho (MYA) AR1: Myo Win (MYA) AR2: Aung Moe (MYA) Fourth official: Win Htut (MYA) http://www.the-afc.com/

Sepahan, Nagoya go for Fair Play

Sepahan team.

Kuala Lumpur: Iran’s Sepahan and Japanese outfit Nagoya Grampus are jointly on top in the disciplinary stakes with the least number of cautions in the AFC Champions League 2011. 

Sepahan, the 2007 continental runners-up, and Nagoya have received only one caution each.

Sepahan have won all their three matches to top Group A with nine points while Nagoya are languishing at the bottom of Group F with one point from two games. 
They will play their third match on April 12 against UAE’s Al Ain.

Korea Republic’s Jeju United, Al Ain and Japan’s Kashima Antlers are following the leaders with two cautions each while three players each from Melbourne Victory (Australia), FC Seoul (Korea Republic), Hangzhou Greentown (China) and Sydney FC (Australia) picked up yellow cards.

Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr have the most yellow cards with their tally reaching 13 apart from one red card. Chinese side Shandong Luneng have 12 yellow and one red card.


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Pace of professionalisation hailed

AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam making a point during the Workshop for CEOs of Professional Leagues in Bangkok on Saturday. Bangkok: AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam has hailed the pace at which professionalisation was sweeping Asian club football, calling upon the Chief Executives of Asian leagues to keep up the momentum. The AFC President was addressing the Chief Executives of 12 top Asian Leagues here in the capital of Thailand on Saturday at the first Workshop for CEOs of Professional Leagues in Asia. Football Association of Thailand (FAT) President Dato Worawi Makudi, who is also a FIFA Executive Committee member, also attended the workshop. “Two or three years ago a meeting of Chief Executives of Asian leagues like this was unthinkable. But today you are all here and this is proof of the progress we are making,” said Bin Hammam in his opening speech. “The reports of the Special Mission Teams have been very positive and very encouraging and we have moved forward in the last two years. But we need to go further. “Success doesn’t come by coincidence. It comes through planning, hard efforts and patience. We need to gauge our strengths and weaknesses and work on the latter,” said Bin Hammam. “AFC is not less than any confederation. Today Asia has the economy, the potential and the passion for football. We (Asian football) have everything to be No 1 in the world. Don’t underestimate your potential. “You are the architects of your leagues but don’t stop at thinking only about your own leagues. Dream big…of spreading your football and professional practices to other countries.  Only planning can make this happen,” added the AFC chief. FAT President Makudi said the workshop enabled the participants to come together and brainstorm for the good of the game. “You as the CEO are very important for the development of the game in Asia. Today you can meet each other and exchange ideas,” said Makudi, who also praised the AFC President’s initiative in ushering in an era of professionalism in the continent. UAE Football League CEO Carlo Nohra pointed out the vast changes in attitude brought about by the changes on professional lines AFC was insisting upon. “In the UAE the intention is to create a commercial base for clubs so that in the long run they can survive on their own without depending on government grants,” said Nohra.  “The benefits of the professional  leagues project is the formation of the UAE League and an organization that is legally empowered by the FA to run its affairs, and the income that is being generated by the league is going to the clubs.” AFC Tournament Director Tokuaki Suzuki said he was looking forward to more similar workshops in the future. “The key person for us is the league CEO and all the CEOs contributed their ideas in lifting the standards of the game in Asian and taking it outside the continent,” said Suzuki. “There are many more important topics and issues to be discussed and, considering that this was only our first meeting, I think the outcome was quite productive. http://www.the-afc.com/