AFC Champions League: Daegu and Guangzhou Evergrande win Group F openers

Daegu are sitting pretty at the top of AFC Champions League Group F after cruising to a 3-1 win over Melbourne Victory.

The A-League side took a 29th-minute lead through Ola Toivonen but the visitors pulled level just two minutes later through Cesinha. Hwang Soon-min and Edgar got in on the act in the second half to complete a memorable away win for Andre’s side.

Elsewhere in Group F, Guangzhou Evergrande strolled to a 2-0 win over Sanfrecce Hiroshima thanks to first-half goals from Anderson Talisca and former Barcelona midfielder Paulinho – their only two shots on target in the entire game.

In Group E, Kashima Antlers edged past Johor Darul Ta’zim 2-1 thanks to goals from Taiki Hirato and Serginho, while Gyeongnam played out an entertaining 2-2 draw with Shandong Luneng.

FULL-TIME | Melbourne Victory (AUS) 1-3 Daegu FC (KOR)

No goals for @kskgroup2017 in his #ACL2019 debut for @gomvfc as @daegufc2002 registered an encouraging first  points away from home in Group F! #MELvDAE #ACL2019 pic.twitter.com/KbpA48nFc3

— AFC Champions League (@TheAFCCL) March 5, 2019

Graziano Pelle opened the scoring for Shandong but the hosts bounced back through Woo Ju-sung and Kim Seung-jun. Italy international Pelle had the final say, however, curling into the far corner to ensure a share of the spoils.

Goals from Medhi Benatia, Youssef El-Arabi and Ali Afif handed Al Duhail a routine 3-0 win over Esteghlal in Group C, while in the group’s other game Al-Hilal edged past Al Ain 1-0 thanks to Mohammad Al-Shalhoub’s 65th-minute goal.

In Group D, an Omar Al Soma double helped Al-Ahli beat Al Sadd 2-0, while Mario Budimir’s equaliser secured a 1-1 draw for Persepolis against Pakhtakor, who had taken an early lead through Marat Bikmaev.