Even better was the fact that for the third game running, Kawasaki denied the normally free-scoring Malaysian champions from breaching their defence that was well marshalled by Shintaro Kurumaya and Takuma Ominami as they handed them their first defeat of the season. 

“I’m very happy for this team to win because we had to play against the atmosphere here and it was important for us to repay our fans who travelled to this game,” said Oniki.

“It was my instruction (to drop deep for the last part of the match). Actually I wanted to continue attacking but this sometimes happens when playing difficult away matches and we have to dig deep.

“This was a very intense away game and defensively we also managed to shut out JDT, so it’s a very big win for us.” 

For JDT, it wasn’t the start they wanted in their bid to return to the knockout stage, having done so for the first time in 2022.  

Having reinforced their squad with Heberty and Juan Muniz and dominating the Malaysian domestic scene, head coach Esteban Solari knew the pressure was on his side.

“It’s a tough game for us because we had a lot of expectations,” explained Solari. 

“In the end, we cannot be happy with the result but we can be convinced of the idea that we can compete and for me, this is the positive.”

Matchday Two will see Kawasaki Frontale hosting Korea Republic’s Ulsan Hyundai on October 3 while Johor Darul Ta’zim travel to Bangkok to meet BG Bathum United.