POHANG, South Korea — Guangzhou Evergrande kept its stumbling AFC Champions League title defense alive with a deserved 2-0 win over Pohang Steelers Tuesday — their first victory of the competition.
Chinese international striker Gao Lin set up the first goal and scored the second as Luiz Felipe Scolari’s side finally got a win at the fifth attempt in Group H.
But the well-heeled Chinese domestic champion is still relying on Sydney FC beating Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds Wednesday if it is to stay in the competition.
The win for Evergrande, the leading light of cashed-up China’s football revolution, was its first in the Asian tournament since it won its second title in three years last November.
Evergrande was on top but wasteful in the early exchanges as ex-Spurs midfielder Paulinho passed up a string of chances, including a scuffed shot from just outside the six-yard box.
The champions’ opener came in the 33rd minute, when Gao fired a raking ball to Ricardo Goulart and the Brazilian gobbled up the chance from a tight angle at the back post.
Pohang managed little in reply and Gao doubled Evergrande’s advantage two minutes after half-time when he arrowed a diagonal shot past home goalkeeper Kim Jin-Young.
Evergrande should have had a third nine minutes later when substitute Li Yuanyi met a cross from Yu Hanchao sweetly on the half-volley. But his shot crept just wide.
Xu Xin was off-target when he ran through one-on-one with the keeper, and Pohang’s Yang Dong-hyun nearly scored in the dying minutes but put his close-range chance over the bar.
Elsewhere a double from Brazilian striker Santos kept Suwon Samsung Bluewings’s last-16 hopes alive as it beat Gamba Osaka 2-1 away in Group G.
Santos scored twice in eight minutes shortly after half time before a consolation strike from Yasuyuki Konno in the 89th minute.
With the win, Suwon drew level on points with Melbourne Victory after its 3-1 loss to Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Shanghai SIPG, which rubber-stamped its progression as Group G winner.
Goals from Yu Hai and former Guangzhou Evergrande players Elkeson and Dario Conca made it a straightforward night for SIPG, which has enjoyed four wins in five games.
It set up a nail-biting final round of matches as Suwon and Melbourne compete for the second spot in the group and a place in the knockout stage.
Loew admits to Euro injury concerns
Germany coach Joachim Loew has admitted he is worried about the world champion’s lengthy injury list.
Just eight weeks from the start of the Euro 2016 tournament in France, Loew said he hopes to recover some crucial players.
“With Bastian Schweinsteiger, Julian Draxler, Emre Can, Jerome Boateng and Benedikt Hoewedes, that’s five players capable of playing an important role that are injured. I admit a certain concern,” Loew told Sky during the Laureas World Sports awards in Berlin.
“You always get such problems ahead of every tournament. In 2014, Sami Khedira and Bastian Schweinsteiger were injured but we managed it. But of course now I hope they’ll all stay fit and their injuries won’t return.”
