BEIJING SET TO BREAK BRISBANE IN ASIAN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Dejan Damjanovic warms up alongside Batalla for Beijing

Beijing Guoan go into their clash with Brisbane Roar as virtually qualified for the Asian Champions League Knockout Stage, but that won't stop them taking three points against the Aussie club. 

The home team will as always be cheered on by around 40,000 Beijing-ites, and though they are currently experiencing a mini funk (drawn last 3 matches), they're still undefeated in their last 21 matches. 

Meanwhile, Brisbane will be fighting for their Asian Champions League lives. Of most concern for the Australians is their casualty list. Influential centre back Luke Devere is out, Shane Stefanutto is out, and along with that, Jade North will be nursing a dodgy groin, if he makes the field. Had it not been for this, I would have said Brisbane were good value. 

The Roar have definitely placed some importance on this fixture, evidenced by their decision to rest a throng of players for last Saturday's Melbourne Victory clash. Those missing in action included: Broich, McKay, Brattan, Borello and 'the slippery fish' Henrique. 

Young defender Daniel Bowles who recently returned from injury described the dressing room, "All the boys are buzzing and we will be going out there and giving it our all." Brisbane certainly have plenty of motivation, as their previous appearances in the competition have yielded little, but no one wants to go into a big match with an understrength back four. 

A patched up Brisbane did a commendable job against Muscat's Melbourne on Saturday, but being tested against unfamiliar opponents should prove too much. Not only will Brisbane face some of China's best in Yu, Dabao and Song, Boxuan, they'll also face off against classy Montenegrin Dejan Damjanovic and midfielder Pablo Batalla.

On a freezing cold night in Saitama two weeks ago Beijing Guoan looked anything but champions, still they managed to grind out a draw against Urawa. On Tuesday night, at home, at the Workers Stadium, Beijing will be up for it.

The green team have been looking on jealously for the last four years as Chinese rivals, Guangzhou Evergrande have taken all before them. This year could be the year that Beijing stamps their mark on continental football.

J-LEAGUE VS CHINESE SUPER LEAGUE IN THE ASIAN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

This week in the Asian Champions League it's Japan versus China. On Tuesday April 7th, it's Kashima Antlers vs Guangzhou Evergrande. On Wednesday April 8th, it's Urawa Reds vs Beijing Guoan and Shandong Luneng vs Kashiwa Reysol. Never has the Chinese Super League had a better opportunity to stamp it's authority over their rival than this, and particularly in the fixtures based in Japan.

First, China's inimitable Guangzhou Evergrande line up against Kashima Antlers, just two weeks after the J-League club went close to ambushing them in Canton. Kashima overturned Ricardo Goulart's classy 10th minute header when youngster Shoma Doi made it 2-1. Of course the Chinese club equalised and went ahead when new acquisition Goulart struck again. The Brazilian dashed from the centre circle after a clumsy Kashima turnover and headed straight for the box, barely veering from his path before unleashing. At 3-2 Kashima had claims for a penalty turned down in the 83rd minute (watch video and decide for yourself), but there were still more goals.

Finishing 4-3, Guangzhou Evergrande were lucky to escape in a fixture that painted a brighter picture for the struggling J-League. Kashima put on a bold show, unlike that of many a J-League side before them (in recent years). With their knockout stage hopes on death row, a desperate Antlers will surely provide another daring display on Tuesday night, worthy of the 'Champions League' tag.

Twenty four hours after Kashima fights for their Asian Champions League survival, Urawa Reds face up to a confident Beijing Guoan. The team in green from the Chinese capital are unbeaten in their last 18 matches. If you scan back to August 13th, 2014 you'll eye Beijing Guoan's loss to Guangzhou R&F. Most recently they put on a second half schooling of Tim Cahill's Shanghai Shenhua.

Urawa themselves are undefeated in four domestic outings, but the continental competition has proven a bridge too far. The J-League's leading club has been beaten in all three ACL outings. Though dispatched 2-0 by Beijing at the Worker's Stadium two weeks ago, the Japanese club had their share of opportunities. Also worth noting is that it was a goalkeeping blunder from Nishikawa in the 78th minute that allowed Beijing Guoan to go ahead.

Shandong will host the surprising Kashiwa Reysol, who have defied the trend of J-League clubs failing on the ACL stage - remaining undefeated after three matches. The Sun Kings looked a level above Shandong two weeks ago, but the Chinese club will be at home and they'll be desperate.

However, East Asia's focus will be on the clash of the heavyweights. Kashima, the J-League's most successful club faces the ignominy of being booted out of the Asian Champions League while on zero and by none other than Guangzhou Evergrande, the symbol of China's rising soccer status. Meanwhile, it will be no less shameful for Urawa. Skulking alone at the bottom of Group G with zero points, the club whose fans are undoubtedly the best in the J-League, faces the likelihood of being swept aside by the resurgent Beijing Guoan.

In Tuesday's match at Kashima the home team has the flying Mu Kanazaki (if he's recovered from a boot to the face on last Friday) lining up against ACL top goalscorer Ricardo Goulart and Elkeson. While on Wednesday at Saitama the home team will have their work cut out for them containing big Dejan Damjanovic and Chinese products Song, Boxuan and Chen, Zhizhao. Enjoy!

J-LEAGUE REPUTATION DAMAGED IN ASIAN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Batalla of Beijing Guoan turning the Reds inside out.

J-League clubs are once again struggling in the Asian Champions League. Though the domestic competition is arguably the most popular across East Asia, the quality of the competition is in dispute as repeated failings against CSL, K-League and A-League clubs provide the evidence, the J-League is not all it's cracked up to be.

In this year's installation, J-League clubs have taken eight of 36 points available to them in the first three rounds of the ACL. Treble winners Gamba Osaka have been far and away the most disappointing. 

In their three fixtures they've gone down to China's Guangzhou R&F, Korea's Seongnam, and drawn with Buriram United of Thailand. After the failure in Korea (a match in which large numbers of Gamba fans attended) manager Kenta Hasegawa was typically apologetic, but sounded like the proverbial broken record, ". . . we will do our best in the next few games and try to qualify to the next round," he said.

Urawa Reds manager Mihailo Petrovic was still managing to find positives after his team's tepid display against Brisbane Roar on ACL Matchday 2. The manager spoke of promising signs on the training pitch, before his eerily similar, " . . . we are still in the race and will do our best to qualify for the next stage." Since the loss to Brisbane, Urawa went on to be soundly beaten by Beijing Guoan.

With Japan's best youngsters heading off to Europe at the first sign of interest it's not surprising the league is struggling to match the national team's success (in Asia). Add to that the fact Japan cannot compete with neighbouring China when it comes to luring quality imports, and you have a recipe for disaster.

Further compounding problems for the J-League's status is this year's bizarre end of season finals series puzzle. The heads of Japanese football decided with none - to little consultation of fans that the league should return to a two stage system. The explanation of the system on the J-League Official website, seems to indicate the finals series could involve three or four teams, depending on whether a stage winner also has the most points across the total 34 regular season matches. For more detail click the link provided above.

Before season kick off J-League boss Mitsuru Murai was interviewed by AFP and it was there that he stated, "I hope to see the J-League become tougher, quicker and more aggressive to help raise the level of the Japan national team." Though this would improve the league, a larger issue is the quality of imports in Japan as compared with those in China. Murai alluded to this in the interview, "The financial rewards are a little higher there so we need to do more to bring in star players." 

Unfortunately for Japan their ability to attract superstar imports will not exceed that of China's, unless there is some kind of economic upheaval in one of the two countries. So the J-League will have to rely on a new found, 'old fashioned' toughness to improve performances in ACL competition. 

ASIAN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMI-FINAL, SEOULED OUT

We're now into the second leg of the Asian Champions League semi-final. On the west side of the draw, Al Hilal have secured their final berth (4-2 agg.), but on the east side it's all to play for. Last season's beaten finalists FC Seoul face Western Sydney Wanderers in Parramatta, after a scoreless draw in the first leg in Seoul.

Cha Du-ri challenged by Labinot Haliti

Undefeated in their last 13 matches FC Seoul sit 5th in the K-League Classic, and are eager to return to the Asian Champions League Final. The team from the capital have some interesting stats heading into tonight's semi-final. In their last 13 matches (including all competitions) they have conceded just 6 goals and scored 18 goals. Impressive. But it's important to note that FC Seoul scored 5 goals in one match against Incheon back on the 16th August. So apart from a rare day when it all came together, FC Seoul are averaging around one goal a game. That said, manager Choi, Yong Soo was adamant the first goal would be vital and assured Korean fans saying, "We have a lot of strategies to deal with them so we are prepared."

With the Wanderers still 9 days from the kick off of the domestic season, it's hard to get a line of form for them. In the lead up to their shock two-leg victory over Guangzhou Evergrande, Wanderers had stumbled over non league Canberra 1-0 in a friendly, before being knocked out of Australia's FFA Cup by second tier club Adelaide City.

Somehow, three weeks after their giant killing effort against Guangzhou, Wanderers slogged out a 0-0 draw in Seoul, minus Tomi Juric, Brendan Santalab, Shannon Cole and Matthew Spiranovic. They'll be without Spiranovic again in the semi, but importantly goalscorers Juric and Santalab are back. This should give Wests the edge.

In addition to that FC Seoul made their incredible run to the ACL Final last year with the aid of Dejan Damjanovic. But big Dejan is no longer in Korea, he is now plying his trade alongside his former FC Seoul teammate Ha, Dae-sung at Beijing Guoan.

So on the basis that FC Seoul are unlikely to spring new tactics in a foreign land, I see Wanderers coming away victors. The home team has the cutting edge of rookie Socceroo Tomi Juric, and at some stage his influence should prove the difference. Though midfielder FC Seoul's Molina proved hard to handle in his 45 minutes in the first leg, he is no Dejan Damjanovic, and the player has received limited game time all season. Wanderers are a happy, hard working and cohesive unit. FC Seoul are not.

CAN GUANGZHOU BE THE BEST FOREVER AGAIN?

Guangzhou celebrate Asian Champions League glory 2013.

Guangzhou Evergrande have won the last three Chinese Super League titles, along with a Chinese FA Cup in 2012, and last year's Asian Champions League crown. In his first full season as manager Marcello Lippi steered the team to the league title by a mere 18 points. But with a number of regular starters leaving the club this season, and the capture of Dejan Damjanovic by Beijing Guoan, suddenly the tigers of the south have some competition.

Beijing Guoan now trail the champions by just four points and importantly the team from the capital have a game in hand. Since returning from the summer break Beijing have captured seven of a possible twelve points. Not exactly a competition winning statistic, but the points surrendered were away from home and early in the Damjanovic era. And while Beijing's 3-0 win over Shanghai last weekend was a little flattering the green team have only one competition to focus on, unlike Guangzhou Evergrande.

With new co owners Alibaba (50% stake), Guangzhou have no problems when it comes to player recruitment, however, player retention is a problem. In 2014 Asia's number one team has had to deal with the exit of Dario Conca (off season), and club record goal scorer Muriqui (summer break). To expect Guangzhou to be as good a team as they were last year when the aforementioned were at their peak, is asking a lot. Yes, the tigers have splashed out on Alessandro Diamanti, and added another Italian Alberto Gilardino, but for all their experience it's rare that players arrive and blend with their new teammates immediately. Former Dalian Aerbin defender Li, Xuepeng is one who hasn't blended seamlessly with his new teammates. His recent arrival has coincided with the club conceding five goals in their last two matches.

For Guangzhou Evergrande to continue their dominance they'll be expected to win the Chinese Super League and the Asian Champions League. Their next assignment in the ACL (20th August) is Western Sydney Wanderers. Along with the nine hour flight, Wanderers should prove to be a stubborn opponent. Domestically Guangzhou's opponents can benefit no matter what the outcome of the two legged ACL quarter final. If they win, Guangzhou will be caught up in continental travel and a busy playing schedule. If they lose, the bubble around the team/club may finally burst.

These are interesting times for Guangzhou and if they're to 'be the best forever' in 2014, as their slogan says, it will take some quick adapting from their most recent arrivals.

MARINERS SINKING IN ASIAN FUNK

Leandro Domingues in action for Kashiwa in the ACL

They may be a regular visitor to the Asian Champions League but it doesn't equate with any form of Asian success. The Central Coast Mariners have once again failed to deliver on the Asian stage and their demise is painfully of their own doing.

The Mariners have now had 14 matches in ACL competition for a measly one win. In their third visit into Asian soccer's flagship club competition, the team from serene Gosford (an hour and a bit north of Sydney) are once again experiencing failure. The first round clash with Suwon Bluewings of Korea saw the Mariners dominate but fail to rack up the three points even with the assistance of a penalty in the 88th minute. On that night in February manager Graham Arnold rested regulars Patrick Zwaanswijk (defender) and  John Hutchinson (midfielder).

Wednesday night's visit to Kashiwa saw Graham Arnold resting four regulars from the Central Coast's first eleven. Top scorer Daniel McBreen, non stop midfielder Pedj Bojic, fullback Joshua Rose and former Socceroo Mile Sterjovski. It's fair to say that they got what they deserved. The Mariners were thrashed 3-1 by a Leandro Domingues inspired Kashiwa. The Brazilian striker made a mockery of the Mariners defence with the second of his goals, a volley from the edge of the box after earlier involvement in the same movement.

Midfielder John Hutchinson was quick to sight financial differences between the clubs in a post match interview but these matters aren't usually mentioned unless you've come off a bad result. The Mariners had led 1-nil but immediately fell into the trap of sitting back and waiting for their opponent. It's obvious the Central Coast have afforded their opponents too much respect, as Hutchinson's comments illustrate, "They've obviously got a big budget and umm it's a good league, the Japanese league." Unfortunately nobody paid much attention to the fact Kashiwa were roundly thumped by FC Tokyo on the Saturday prior to this ACL clash. Manager Graham Arnold was also heard praising his opponents, ". . . When you look at the foreigners, the two they had out there tonight in Cleo as well as Domingues, they're probably a totally different level to anyone in the A-League."

It's true manager Graham Arnold is stuck between a rock and a hard place. He has to juggle ACL group matches with the pointy end of the A League. Resting players is justified but crying poor won't make things any better or easier to deal with. Champion teams overcome hurdles such as these. Unfortunately the Central Coast Mariners are still yet to take home Australian soccer's biggest prize and this year will be no different if Arnie and the yellow team continue to play the underdog, little battler card. Finding comfort in losing as the underdog is not what champion teams do.

Meanwhile in other significant results from the eastern side of the draw, Urawa Reds gave Muangthong United an absolute hiding after the Thai team went a man down early in the piece. Beijing Guoan defeated J League champs Hiroshima 2-1 and Guangzhou Evergrande also kept Chinese hearts fluttering with their 1-1 result at Jeonbuk in Korea. 

Del Piero Hits Four as Sydney Begin to Click

Del Piero celebrates another goal against Wellington

Alessandro Del Piero has blitzed the Wellington Phoenix, and in the process dragged Sydney FC into the A League top six temporarily. The Italian maestro was unstoppable as he inspired his teammates via a first half treble which had Wellington Phoenix resigned to defeat before half time.

Sydney FC are now back into end of season reckoning with today's remarkable victory. Coinciding with today's win was the Sydney FC debut of Australian international Joel Griffiths, who has spent the past three seasons in China with Beijing Guoan and Shanghai Shenhua. For the record the final score was 7-1, a scoreline which condemned Wellington to the bottom of the A League table. The win was also Sydney FC's biggest ever win.

For Del Piero the goals came in the 20th, 23rd, 39th and 70th minutes. The best of the goals came in the 39th minute when midfielder Jason Culina found Del Piero with a pin point switch of play which gave the Italian enough space to bamboozle Wellington's Leo Bertos, and smash home a ripper. Wellington keeper Paston was left flailing as the strike punched the corner of the goal to his left.

The win sounds a warning to Sydney's opponents and even Del Piero was buying into the new found momentum in a post match interview. Asked whether he thought today's win was the turning point for the season he replied, "I hope . . . I hope" before adding that last week's match was even more significant when against Melbourne Heart they turned around a 1-nil deficit with 5 minutes remaining.

Although trailing competition leaders Central Coast Mariners by 14 points with 10 matches left to play Sydney can still take away the A League's major prize as the season ends with a final series. Unlike most professional soccer leagues around the world the A League uses a final six format which virtually turns the final weeks of the season into a knockout competition.