Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Beijing: Beijing Guoan and Brisbane Roar picked up their first points of the 2012 AFC Champions League after sharing a 1-1 draw at Beijing Workers Stadium on Tuesday.
The home side made the ideal start after just eight minutes as Piao Cheng chased down Zhou Ting’s searching ball forward, and after charging into the penalty area, beat Brisbane goalkeeper Michael Theoklitos with an angled strike at his near post.
But Brisbane found a response 13 minutes later as Mitch Nichols rose highest on the edge of the six-yard area to meet Ivan Franjic’s inviting right wing cross to guide his looping header out of the reach of Beijing goalkeeper Hou Sen.
With Matchday One winners FC Tokyo and Ulsan Hyundai sharing a 2-2 draw in Japan, Beijing and Brisbane sit three points off the pace in Group F.
“To be honest, I am not in a good mood. We worked hard to prepare for this match, but we did not get a win,” said Beijing coach Jaime Pacheco, who saw his side beat Shanghai Shenhua 3-2 in the Chinese Super League on Friday.
“We had a chance, but our organisation after the goal was a mess and we gave our opponent too much room to control the ball. We had lots of problems and they were better than us during that time and I was hoping the first half would finish sooner.
“During the break I made some changes. In the second half we made some minor adjustments and we started to control the game and we got our performance back in order. Our defence and attack were well connected and we tried to score, but we were unable to. Sometimes you need a bit of luck to score.
“Experience counts for a lot in big matches like this. It was the first match in the AFC Champions League for lots of our players. The players did not play bad, but we needed some luck to win the game.
“The players put in a lot of effort. They were good and I am satisfied with that.”
After bouncing back from their opening day defeat at home to FC Tokyo, Brisbane now turn their attention to the final match of the regular season in the A-League with Ange Postecoglou’s defending champions guaranteed a place in the play-offs but needing a win against Gold Coast United on Sunday to have a chance of retaining the Premier’s Plate.
“We played well, especially in the first half. We had lots of chances, but not too many goals. The same happened in the second half and it was a pity that we haven't scored more. But one point from an away game is acceptable,” said Postecoglou.
“We did not have much time to prepare as we have been busy with physical recovery near the end of the regular season so tiredness was a big issue for us.
“Even though we drew, it does not mean that this match was easier, although we played better than we did against FC Tokyo. Against FC Tokyo it was our first match in the AFC Champions League and the players couldn’t show what they could do.
“But in the second game, we were more prepared and we put into place what we have been practising which was mostly our strategy of attacking football and that’s why we were better than last time.”