Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Guangzhou: Guangzhou R&F will take on Australia’s Central Coast Mariners to determine who advances to the Group Stage of the 2015 AFC Champions League next week after the Chinese Super League side handed Warriors FC from Singapore a 3-0 defeat on Tuesday.
Chinese international Jiang Zhipeng opened the scoring seven minutes into the second half for Cosmin Contra’s side before goals from Jang Hyun-soo and Zhang Shuo in the 60th and 73rd minutes respectively ensured Guangzhou advanced to the next phase of qualifying in Gosford next Tuesday.
“This match is just one of the two games to qualify to the AFC Champions League Group Stage,” said Guangzhou’s Romanian coach, pictured coaching former club Getafe last season.
“And, to be honest, our opponent was not a strong one. A win was within our ability.
“Of course, every journey is always difficult at its beginning, so I would like to congratulate my team on winning and tonight we will have a small party. Tomorrow, we will begin the preparation for the next game.”
Guangzhou managed the win without the services of striker Abderrazak Hamdallah, who scored 22 times during the Chinese Super League last season, and Contra lamented the Moroccan forward’s absence.
“I’m very happy with the result tonight,” said Contra. “Our three goals were beautiful. The only pity was when Abderrazak Hamdallah was absent, it was difficult to find a good replacement.
“It’s undeniable that all of our players are good. Many of them are versatile. However, from this match, we could tell that when Hamdallah is unavailable it is hard to find a substitute from our AFC Champions League roster. I think a big part of our upcoming work will be to focus on looking for this kind of player.”
Warriors were attempting to qualify for the Group Stages of the AFC Champions League for the first time since 2010 – when they were known as Singapore Armed Forces FC – but the defeat came as little surprise to coach Alex Weaver.
“I’m not surprised by the result,” he said. “Considering where both sides are from and their football qualities, I am quite happy with our performance tonight.
“I think the three goals from Guangzhou were quality goals. We expected their football level prior to the game. They were in charge of the game and their defence was good too. They are very experienced and that’s why I’m not shocked by the result at all.”
Photo: AFP