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Gwangju draw 1-1 with Shanghai Port in Champions League

Published: 04 Dec. 2024, 13:32 Updated: 04 Dec. 2024, 16:59

PAIK JI-HWAN
[email protected]

Gwangju FC draw 1-1 with Shanghai Port FC in the AFC Champions League Elite at SAIC Pudong Football Stadium in Shanghai, China on Tuesday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Gwangju FC drew 1-1 with Shanghai Port FC in the AFC Champions League Elite (ACLE) at SAIC Pudong Football Stadium in Shanghai, China on Tuesday, failing to secure a win despite the home side going one man down in the second half.

Shanghai were aggressive in the early minutes, with multiple defenders marking Gwangju at the same time and allowing little room for the Korean side to do anything.

But Gwangju still found a crack in the 38th minute when Heo Yool tucked the ball in after Shanghai failed to clear it in the penalty box.

Shanghai continued to pose heavy physical challenges, but that cost Zhen Wei a red card in the 55th minute. Shanghai still found an equalizer despite the disadvantage, with Oscar converting a penalty in the 76th.

Gwangju, meanwhile, failed to push back, ending the game with their first draw in this year’s ACLE.

The club has recorded four wins, one draw and one loss in the league stage so far, sitting in second place on the 12-team table. It has been the best run by any K League 1 team this year.

The Pohang Steelers sit in fifth place, while K League 1 champions Ulsan HD sit at the bottom of the table as of press time with zero wins. Ulsan are one of the only two teams without a win in the league stage alongside the Central Coast Mariners.

The league stage will run through February, followed by the round of 16 in which top eight teams from the East and West Asia league stages compete.

Gwangju will play their penultimate ACLE league stage match against Shandong Taishan on Feb. 11 next year.

Gwangju can solely focus on the league stage as the 2024 K League 1 regular season ended last month. The 2024-25 ACLE knockout stage will continue through May next year.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [[email protected]]