KOBE, Japan — Spanish legend Andres Iniesta’s Japanese debut ended on a flat note Sunday as Vissel Kobe crashed to an embarrassing 3-0 home defeat by J-League struggler Shonan Bellmare.

The former Barcelona playmaker came off the bench after 58 minutes with Kobe already trailing by two goals and, despite one or two trademark flicks, failed to inspire a comeback in front of a crowd of 26,000.

Meanwhile, Iniesta’s one-time Spain teammate Fernando Torres also tasted defeat in his J-League debut for Sagan Tosu, who flopped 1-0 at home to Vegalta Sendai.

Expectant fans, many of them clutching Spain flags, were disappointed to learn that Iniesta had been named among the substitutes for his first game since joining Kobe in the summer.

The 34-year-old’s first touch was a silky turn on the halfway line, releasing teammate Takuya Yasui, who promptly gave the ball straight to an opponent, underlining the gulf in class between the J-League and La Liga.

“It’s a shame we lost because I don’t like losing,” Iniesta told reporters.

“But this is just the first step of an amazing new adventure. It was a physical game that showed the quality of the J-League.”

Kobe could at least point to the silver lining that Iniesta’s arrival has already proven a commercial success after slipping to sixth in the table.

Analysts have predicted the Spanish maestro has generated over $100 million in tickets sales and merchandising revenue.

Bayern dominate PSG

German champions Bayern Munich hit three second-half goals as they beat French titlists Paris Saint-Germain, 3-1, Saturday in a friendly in Klagenfurt, Austria.

PSG was without its World Cup winners, but it did start Adrien Rabiot, who refused to serve as a reserve for the French squad. Bayern was without its legion of German internationals, despite the national team’s early exit in Russia.

PSG had the best of the first half and took the lead with a 31st minute goal by American Timothy Weah, the 18-year-old son of African legend George Weah.

Bayern dominated the second half and struck three times in 18 minutes.

Spaniard Javier Martinez opened the scoring past Gianluigi Buffon, the Italian veteran who joined PSG this summer.

Portuguese midfielder Renato Sanchez and 17-year-old Dutch striker Joshua Zirkzee added the other two, after Buffon had gone off. — AFP