It’s fair to say Buriram would now be considered experienced continental campaigners, with 2018 marking their sixth appearance in the group stage of the AFC Champions League.

Along the way they’ve had some memorable moments, like in 2013 when they not only made it out of their group, but then defeated Uzbekistan’s Bunyodkor in the Round of 16 to make it through to the quarter-finals, the best performance by a Thai side since BEC Tero Sasana made the final in 2003.

Buriram spent long spells chasing the ball at Osaka Nagai Stadium, but in the end their greater effectiveness delivered a precious point as Group G heats up.

As the competition takes a three-week break, join the-AFC.com as we take a look at the week in numbers.

The home side had the first good effort on goal when Lee Chang-min struck a powerful shot just wide in the eighth minute.

Guangzhou created an opening when Ricardo Goulart chested the ball into the path of Alan but the Brazilian couldn’t get his shot on target.

The visitors then took the lead with a glorious strike in the 27th minute. After good work on the left, Alan teed up Nemanja Gudelj and the midfielder rifled an unstoppable shot into the top right-hand corner from 20 yards out.

The Chinese side went two ahead 10 minutes later when Alan stole in to head home Yu Hanchao’s deep cross from just inside the six-yard box.

Guangzhou threatened at the start of the second half as Goulart’s 20-yard shot was pushed wide by Lee Chang-geun before the Jeju keeper beat out an effort from Gao Lin.

A minute later Ryu Seung-woo ran onto a long ball but Zeng Cheng came out to block his shot.

Zeng Cheng was called upon again as he made an acrobatic save to keep out Lee Chang-min’s excellent free-kick in the 63rd minute.

Jeju kept pushing but Guangzhou defended well as they moved one step closer to the last 16.

And the match ended on a sour note for Jeju as Kim Won-il received his second yellow card in added time.

The result leaves Guangzhou three points clear of Buriram United and Cerezo Osaka at the top of the group with eight points from their four games, while Jeju remain bottom on three points.

Both teams have away fixtures on Matchday Five, with Jeju at Cerezo Osaka, while Guangzhou travel to Thailand to face Buriram United where they can seal qualification for the last 16 with a win.

"We didn’t just play against 11 opposing players, we played against 90,000 fans."
Al Ain playmaker Omar Abdulrahman on facing a packed Azadi Stadium after his club's 1-1 draw against Esteghlal

The home side looked in control for much of the match, but were left to rue their profligacy as an undermanned Sydney FC fought hard to draw level in the second half.

Mu-gical

While Kashima Antlers may have rested a number of their first team regulars, one player who wasn’t rested was striker Mu Kanazaki, and the 29-year-old showed why with a standout performance.

Scoring his team’s only goal of the night after a defensive mistake from Josh Brillante, he was a constant thorn in the side of Sydney FC’s defence all night. As his heat map (below) shows, he worked tirelessly across the front third all night.

Football history was made at Hong Kong Stadium on Wednesday night in the most dramatic fashion. Deadlocked in a goalless stalemate, Kitchee had failed to break down a Kashiwa side that had been reduced to 10 men since the 15th minute.

Indeed, the Japanese side had gone close to scoring through Brazilian duo Ramon Lopes and Cristiano, while Kitchee's best chances had often come from distance. But there was to be a moment of magic that turned the tie on its head, and write a new chapter for Hong Kong football.