Goals from former English Premier League stars Marouane Fellaini and Graziano Pelle handed the Chinese side a 2-0 half-time lead in the Group E clash at Jinan Olympic Sports Centre.

The Malaysian champions rallied after the interval and pulled a goal back through Safawi Rasid’s stunning long-range effort, but defeat leaves them with an uphill challenge to reach the knockout rounds.

The victory takes Shandong second in Group E, two points behind leaders Kashima Antlers, while JDT remain at the bottom of the standings with just one point.

On a cold and rainy night the home side were searching for their first win of the campaign after draws in their previous two Group E encounters with Shandong Luneng and Johor Darul Ta’zim.

It was the visitors who had the first clear shot on goal in the ninth minute when Koki Anzai found space on the edge of the area, but the defender lashed his shot wide of the mark.

Melbourne have endured a disappointing start to their Group F campaign, losing successive games to Korea Republic’s Daegu FC and Japan’s Sanfrecce Hiroshima to leave them propping up the table, three points behind two-time champions Guangzhou and six off top spot.

The Australian side have struggled on the road over the years in the AFC Champions League and have yet to record a victory in 20 attempts, meaning three points at Tianhe Stadium would be regarded as a huge turn up for the books.

With a perfect four wins from four in the Chinese Super League, the Chinese club were looking to bring their domestic form onto the Continental stage and they made the perfect start when Bakambu opened the scoring in just the second minute after turning in a low cross from Li Lei.

The home side looked to respond and had a flurry of chances midway through the first half with Pedro Junior, Supachai Jaided and Supachok Sarachart all seeing their efforts denied by a determined Beijing defence.

The victory not only earned the Korean side three points, but it also saw them leapfrog their opponents in Group G.

Jeonbuk piled on some early pressure and Ricardo Lopes tested Shusaku Nishikawa with a powerful strike from 20 yards in the sixth minute.

Two minutes later, the Brazilian tricked his way past several challenges and played a one-two with Lim Seon-yeong before firing a shot just over.

The 2017 AFC Champions League finalists came from two goals down inside the first half an hour to rescue their second point in the continental campaign.