Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Chengdu: Suphawut Thueanklang scored a brace as defending champions Chonburi Bluewave recorded a first win of the AFC Futsal Club Championship following a 4-0 victory over tournament newcomers Bank of Beirut SC at Shuangliu Sports Centre on Tuesday.
MVP at the 2013 edition, Suphawut scored the first-half's only goal on eight minutes to give the holders a 1-0 lead at the interval over the hard-working but at times over-matched Lebanese side.
After the re-start, goals from Apiwat Chaemcharoen and then a solo effort from Nattavut Madyalan gave Chonburi some breathing room before Ali Tneich's deliberate handball resulted in his dismissal and spot-kick that Suphawut duly dispatched to cement the three points and second place in Group B after Dabiri Tabriz had earlier defeated Al Qadsia 7-2 to maintain top spot.
"It was a very tough game today, tougher than the score suggested. The key point was the second goal, though, I think the Beirut players lose confidence after that," said Chonburi coach Jose Maria Pazos.
"By contrast we started to increase our belief at 2-0 and after that we played better and we had control of the game in the second half.
"Today my players were much more similar to the team of last year. We were a hungry team, that's what we missed on Monday against Al Qadsia. We played in a very concentrated and aggressive style and our defensive play was much better."
Pazos had spoken about his team appearing "lost" in their 4-4 draw against Al Qadsia in Monday's Group B opener and the Spaniard had been expecting a much improved performance from his side.
And the Thai side began the tie positively with Suphawut involved in the action from the start as he hit the underside of the crossbar inside the second minute of the game with a thumping strike but upon doing so the Chonburi star dropped to the floor clutching his ankle and was stretchered from the pitch.
A heavy amount of pain-killing spray and strapping later though, Suphawut was back in the game and it was he who got the breakthrough for Chonburi on eight minutes, drilling low into the bottom right hand corner at the second attempt after Ahmad Kheireldine had charged down his initial shot.
After the initial flurry, though, the action settled into an engrossing, tightly-fought contest with neither side able to make further breakthroughs by the half-time break.
Following the re-start, though, Chonburi raised their game and as Bank of Beirut SC chased the equaliser repeatedly hit the Lebanese club on the break with clinical results.
It seemed merely a matter of time before Chonburi extended their lead, and seven minutes into the second period Sarawut Jaipech burst down the right flank before squaring the ball into the path of an onrushing Apiwat who slipped the ball past Hussein Hamadani.
And Nattavut made the game safe after the midway point in the second half after his lung-busting run switched defence to attack in seconds which he capped with a smart finish across Hamadani into the far corner.
With five minutes remaining things went from bad to worse for Bank of Beirut SC as Monday's goal-scorer Ali Tneich received his marching orders following a deliberate handball inside the penalty area which earned him a second yellow card. Suphawut took full-advantage of the dead-ball situation, slamming the penalty into the bottom left corner for his second of the match and Chonburi's fourth.
"We gave our best today and I think my team will really grow from this experience of playing against the champions of Asia," said Bank of Beirut SC coach Dejan Dedovic.
"Unfortunately, we conceded easy goals – which you can't do against a team like Chonburi.
"We are growing up as a team match-by-match and day-by-day, so tomorrow will be another tough match but also a learning experience."
Photo: WSG