Asian Champions League 2010

Victory eludes tired Melbourne
by Chris Dunkerley

Group E - Round 3 - 1st Leg
7:00pm, Tuesday 23 March, 2009
at Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium, Japan


Kawasaki Frontale FC 4
(Jong Tae-se 3', Matsaru Kurotsu 11, 'Renatinho' 21, Hiroyuki Taniguchi 89')
defeated
Melbourne Victory FC 0


(Photo linked from AFC site)

In front of a rain drenched crowd of 9,728 (including a small band of Victory fans) Kawasaki Frontale resucitated their chances in the Group table with a whirlwind start at the Todoroki Stadium tonight. Melbourne Victory lost their third game of the ACL in this AFC Champions League Group E match and are now probably out of contention. Kawasaki raced to a 3-0 lead after 22 minutes, but and improved performance by Melbourne in the second half and the home team being reduced for that half to 10 men saw the final scoreline 4-0.

Kawasaki were desperate for a win having lost their previous two matches in the group and started well, creating chances with fast-pace attacks down both flanks and they were rewarded, for their attacking flair against a tired Melbourne outfit, after just three minutes.

Renatinho got the ball and surged down the right slowing before delivering a perfectly weighted ball for Jong Tae-se and the North Korea striker made no mistake after slipping into the area to meet the pass, and slotting home under an advancing Glen Moss. 1-0

Yusuke Tasaka shot just wide from a Masaru Kurotsu pass in the 9th minute, but two minutes later Masaru Kurotsu back-headed home over the defence and Moss from a soft free-kick which Tasaka had pin-pointed onto Kurotsu, to put the home side well in control. 2-0

Kawasaki added a third in the 22nd minute when the unencumbered Renatinho received 30m out and dribbled towards goal before striking a shot into the right side of the Melbourne goal from just outside the area. 3-0

The send-off of Jong Tae-se in stoppage time of the first half for kicking out at Nick Ward (after the Victory player pulled him to his feet after going down), gave the game a balancing impact. Certainly Victory gained some composure and structure after the break but with the buffer Kawasaki could afford to take their foot off the pedal a little and concentrate more on defence after the frenetic early pace.

Costa Rica midfielder Carlos Hernandez sent a shot wide in the 56th minute while Nik Mrdja also fired wide from the edge of the box, and the latter didn't connect with a ball whilst free right in front. Melbourne's fresh legs also added to their possesion and attacking options but they could not penetrate.

The final nail was driven in to Victory's 'ACL coffin' - oddly after a solid period of Victory possession - when a ball was played in from the right by Kawasaki, and Roddy vargas could only hang a tired leg out in an attempt to clear. The ball fell to Hiroyuki Taniguchi to slot inside the left upright. 4-0

The two sides now face each other again in the return leg in Melbourne at 7:30pm next Wednesday 31 March, 2010.

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