Marinos top Asian Champions League as Kobe, Gwangju lose

On Tuesday, Yokohama F Marinos defeated Central Coast Mariners 4-0 to top the Asian Champions League Elite rankings. Vissel Kobe and Gwangju FC missed the chance to advance to the final 16. Kobe, in first place heading into Tuesday’s fixtures, lost 3-1 at Pohang Steelers, while Gwangju FC drew 1-1 after Oscar’s late penalty gave 10-man Shanghai Port a point.

Buriram United and Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) drew 0-0 in Johor. Marinos beat the Australian champions in Gosford after Kento Inoue scored twice in the first half to put John Hutchison’s team in charge. Inoue opened the scoring in the sixth minute after cutting in from the left and bending his shot around Dylan Peraic-Cullen. He doubled the advantage 24 minutes later with a cool finish.

Anderson Lopes’ deflected shot gave the J-League team a third in the 36th minute, and Jun Amano’s curling free kick 20 minutes from time clinched the win. The win puts Marinos 13 points clear of Kobe and Gwangju on goal difference, with no eastern team advancing. The top eight league finishers from east and west Asia advance to the knockout stage, with the round of 16 in March.

In Shanghai, Heo Yool put Gwangju ahead seven minutes before halftime, and Port were reduced to 10 men as Wei Zhen was sent off for a seemingly minor off-the-ball incident with Shin Chang-moo 10 minutes into the second half. The Chinese Super League winners were saved by Kim Jin-ho’s foul on Oscar, who calmly converted in the 76th to give Shanghai Port eight points. Pohang Steelers’ 3-1 win over J-League leaders Vissel Kobe in South Korea gave Park Tae-ha’s fifth-placed team nine points from six games and revived their qualifying ambitions.

Han Chan-hee’s powerful indirect free kick gave the home side a 13th-minute lead, and Kim In-sung’s effort seven minutes later doubled it. After 34 minutes, Daiju Sasaki scored a penalty for Kobe, but Jeong Jae-hee won in injury time. JDT were held scoreless by Buriram United in a heated match in Johor, with both teams sending off players. The hosts’ Murilo Henrique was sent off in the 13th minute, Buriram captain Theerathon Bunmathan in the break, and JDT’s Park Jun-heong in injury time.