A brilliant second-half display by Pohang Steelers saw them thump 10-man Shanghai Port 3-0 on Tuesday in the AFC Champions League Elite on a great night for South Korean clubs.
Fellow K-League 1 side Gwangju FC went to the top of the East Zone table in the rebranded competition by edging Kawasaki Frontale 1-0 in Japan.
Gwangju, who hammered last season’s beaten finalists Yokohama F. Marinos 7-3 in their opening game, had a tougher time against Japanese opposition this week and edged to victory thanks to Jasir Asani’s 21st-minute penalty.
Thailand’s Buriram United remained unbeaten courtesy of a 2-1 win over Australia’s Central Coast Mariners, who slumped to their second consecutive defeat.
Pohang had lost 4-1 to Shanghai’s city rivals Shenhua in the opening round of matches two weeks ago and they had goalkeeper Yun Pyeong-gook to thank for keeping it scoreless at home as Port dominated the first half.
Yun made three crucial first-half stops, including one from former Chelsea and Brazil star Oscar.
It was a different story after the break as Wanderson’s smart finish on 52 minutes opened the floodgates.
Hong Yun-sang added a second 13 minutes later and Han Chan-hee’s goal on 71 minutes put the result beyond doubt.
There was more woe for Kevin Muscat’s Shanghai side when Matheus Jussa was red-carded on 79 minutes, after a lengthy VAR review, for a needless forearm smash on Shin Kwang-hoon that sparked a mass brawl.
In Gosford, just north of Sydney, Central Coast Mariners were stunned 2-1 by Thailand’s Buriram United and also finished the match with 10 men.
Buriram’s Brazilian striker Guilherme Bissoli opened the scoring in the 30th minute when he poked home Dion Cool’s cross.
Curtis Good, who was once on Newcastle United’s books in the English Premier League, headed home the second after 50 minutes to seal the points.
Seven minutes later Mariners’ goalkeeper Adam Pavlesic was given a straight red card when he raced from his area to scythe down Bissoli, who had beaten the offside trap.
The A-League team did get a consolation in the fifth minute of injury time, Lucas Mauragis firing home a sweet strike from outside the box, but it was too little too late.
The Thai side have four points from two matches after an opening 0-0 at home to Vissel Kobe but Central Coast, who also lost in week one — 3-1 at China’s Shandong Taishan — are bottom of the 12-team East Zone league table.
