Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Hong Kong: A brace from forward Safee Sali helped 10-man Johor Darul Ta’zim become the first Malaysian side to reach the semi-finals of the AFC Cup after they saw off Hong Kong’s South China 3-1 in the second leg of their AFC Cup quarter-final on Tuesday to complete a 4-2 aggregate win.
The Malaysian champions went in front midway through the first half at Mongkok Stadium through midfielder Mahalli Jasuli, only for Cameroonian forward Mahama Awal to equalise for the hosts shortly after.
Safee then restored the visitors’ advantage on the half-hour mark before Johor’s Luciano Figueroa was red carded for an off-the-ball clash. But Safee then notched his second in first-half stoppage-time to give South China a mountain to climb.
Gomez hails JDT's march to the semi-finals
South China defender Chak Ting Fung struck the post in the final 10 minutes before captain Bojan Malisic skied a penalty with four minutes remaining as Johor held out to ensure coach Mario Gomez enjoyed a successful return to the club he managed last year.
Johor started the brighter and nearly went in front inside 10 minutes after captain Safiq Rahim’s low cross from the left was diverted towards his own goal by Chan Siu Kwan, but goalkeeper Cristian Mora did well to tip over at full stretch.
The visitors then did take the lead in the 25th minute when Leandro Velazquez dispossessed Serbian Malisic 25 yards from goal before playing in Jasuli, who curled the ball past Mora from just inside the box.
