Kawasaki, who wrote club history and kept his East Asian pride, ···He won 3-2 over Alsad to advance to the semifinals for the first time in history
Kawasaki, who wrote club history and kept his East Asian pride, ···He won 3-2 over Alsad to advance to the semifinals for the first time in history
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Japan's J Leaguer Kawasaki Frontale has advanced to the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League Elite (ACLE). The East Asian team lost in the quarterfinals one after another, and Kawasaki kept the pride of the East Asian club by making history of advancing to the semifinals for the first time in the team's history.
Kawasaki defeated Al Saad (Qatar) 3-2 in the 2024-25 ACLE quarterfinals at the Prince Abdullah al-Faisal Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on the 28th after a close tie in overtime.
Kawasaki became the only East Asian team that advanced to the semifinals. Gwangju FC (0-7 against Al-Hilal), Yokohama F. Marinos (1-4 loss against Al-Nasr), and Thailand's Buriram (0-3 loss) all lost to Saudi Arabian teams in West Asia.
Kawasaki will play Cristiano Ronaldo's team Alnasr, who defeated Yokohama earlier, in the semifinals on May 1.
Kawasaki took 34 percent of the ball possession rate on the day, far behind Al-Sad (66 percent). However, he garnered seven shots on target and displayed more well-organized attack strength than Al-Sad (four), securing the victory.
When Kawasaki took the lead with Erison's first goal in the fourth minute of the first half, Al-Sad brought the game to square one with a goal scored by Paulo Otavio five minutes later. When the score was tying at 1-1 in the 21st minute of the first half, Kawasaki took the lead again with a goal scored by Marcinho. Al-Sad, which fought back, led the game to extra time with an equalizer by Clausinho in the 26th minute of the second half. Kawasaki led again with a goal scored by Yasto Wakizaka, who was assisted by God Yamada in the eighth minute of the first half. Kawasaki then defended al-Sad's attack well and secured a one-goal victory.
Kawasaki made it to the semifinals for the first time in the club's history. Kawasaki's best performance was in the past tournaments, reaching the quarterfinals in 2007, 2009 and 2017, respectively. 먹튀검증
Japanese media Sports Hochi said, "Earlier, East Asian teams gave in to Saudi teams in Western Asia, which have abundant funds, and Kawasaki defended East Asian pride and created a new history of the club even in the Middle East's unfavorable environment."