Beijing: A solitary strike from Brazilian substitute Edu proved the difference as Korea Republic’s Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors secured a 1-0 win over Beijing Guoan of China on Tuesday to earn a return to the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League for the first time since 2011 after completing 2-1 aggregate victory.
After a 1-1 draw in Jeonju last week, the 2006 winners eventually managed to open the scoring with 18 minutes remaining at Workers’ Stadium when Edu finished from inside the area after following a fine flowing move.
Beijing then had captain Zhou Ting sent off in the dying seconds as Jeonbuk held onto their lead to progress to the last eight.
K-League Classic leaders Jeonbuk began the game knowing that failure to score would see them eliminated from the continental competition at the Round of 16 stage for the third successive year, but it was the hosts who started on the ascendency as Beijing produced some neat interchange play without creating any chances of note.
And it was Jeonbuk who should have taken the lead midway through the first half when Kim Hyung-il’s header landed at the feet of the unmarked Lee Dong-gook, but the striker blasted over from the penalty spot despite the lack of challenge from the home defence.
The visitors again came close on the half-hour mark, but this time Brazilian midfielder Eninho saw his free-kick from 25 yards sail just wide of Yang Zhi’s right post.
Beijing goalkeeper Yang was called into action five minutes after the restart, though, when he dived to his left to parry Leonardo’s free-kick from distance to safety.
But Jeonbuk then took a deserved lead in the 72nd minute when midfielder Lee Jae-sung slipped a beautiful ball into Edu, who side-footed home from eight yards.
The Brazilian then had two chances to kill the tie off, first when his bouncing effort from 12 yards following a corner was brilliantly tipped over by Yang, and then when he saw his volley on the turn from almost the identical spot clip the top of the crossbar.
The hosts did have the ball in the back of the net with 10 minutes to play, though, but Korean midfielder Ha Dae-sung was adjudged to have fouled goalkeeper Kwoun Sun-tae before back-heeling into an open goal.
But Jeonbuk continued to push for a second and Leonardo was again denied by Yang, this time when he got a slight touch on the midfielder’s fizzing 20-yard effort that rattled the woodwork in the 82nd minute.
Beijing’s Zhou was then shown a straight red for a foul on defender Choi Chul-soon in injury time before the home side were afforded one more chance but Argentinean midfielder Pablo Batalla’s effort from the edge of the area was well saved by Kwoun as the visitors held on for the victory.
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