AFC Champions League

Nine games were played in the group stage of the AFC Champions League on Wednesday.

GROUP A:

At Dubai, United Arab Emirates:

Temurkhuja Abdulkholiqov's equalizer in the 43rd minute carried Lokomotiv Tashkent to a 1-1 road draw with Al-Nasr.  Jires Ekoko scored for the hosts in the 31st minute.

At Doha, Qatar:

Abdulrahman Al-Ghamdi scored twice (45'+2, 86') as Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia demolished Iran's Sepahan 4-0.  The match was moved from Saudi Arabia due to the deteriorating relations between that country and Iran.  The defeat knocked the Iranian club out of the tournament.

Group A Standings:

1.    Lokomotiv Tashkent (GP: 5; GD: +3; PTS: 9)
2.    Al-Nasr (GP: 5; GD: +1; PTS: 8)
3.    Al-Ittihad (GP: 5; GD: +3; PTS: 6)
4. z-Sepahan FC (GP: 5; GD: -7; PTS: 3)

z-Eliminated from tournament



GROUP B:

At Tashkent, Uzbekistan:

Karim Boudiaf (65') and Mohammed Muntari (79') each scored once as Lekhwiya blanked FC Bunyodkor 2-0 on the road, eliminating the hosts from the tournament while the Qatari club will play in the Round of 16.

At Muscat, Oman:

In another contest that was transferred (this time from Iran) due to deteriorating relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, Ehsan Pahlavan scored twice (27', 83') as Iran's Zob Ahan dominated Saudi Arabia's Al-Nassr 3-0 and locked up a berth in the knockout stage. 

Group B Standings:

1. x-Zob Ahan (GP: 5; GD: +7; PTS: 11)
2. x-Lekhwiya SC (GP: 5; GD: +5; PTS: 8)
3. z-Al-Nassr (GP: 5; GD: -6; PTS: 5)
4. z-Bunyodkor (GP: 5; GD: -6; PTS: 2)

x-Clinched berth in knockout stage

z-Eliminated from tournament



GROUP E:

At Tokyo:

Kim Bo-kyung (35'), Lee Jae-sung (60'), and Ko Moo-yeol (90'+1) each scored once as Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors dominated FC Tokyo 3-0 on the road.

At Nanjing, China:

Wu Xi (6'), Jo (8'), and Ji Xiang (81') each scored a goal as Jiangsu Suning dominated Becamex Binh Duong 3-0 and ousted the Vietnamese club from the tournament.

Group E Standings:

1.    Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (GP: 5; GD: +4; PTS: 9)
2.    Jiangsu Suning (GP: 5; GD: +3; PTS: 8)
3.    FC Tokyo (GP: 5; GD: -1; PTS: 7)
4. z-Becamex Bihn Duong (GP: 5; GD: -6; PTS: 4)

z-Eliminated from tournament



GROUP F:

At Seoul, South Korea:

Park Yong-woo scored the winning goal in the 43rd minute as FC Seoul defeated visiting Buriram United 2-1 and locked up a berth in the knockout stage.

At Jinan, China:

Diego Tardelli scored the only goal of the match in the 10th minute as Shandong Luneng clinched a knockout-stage berth following their 1-0 home win over Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

Group F Standings:

1. x-FC Seoul (GP: 5; GD: +13; PTS; 13)
2. x-Shandong Luneng (GP: 5; GD: +2; PTS: 10)
3. z-Sanfrecce Hiroshima (GP: 5; GD: 0; PTS: 6)
4. z-Buriram United (GP: 5; GD: -15; PTS: 0)

x-Clinched berth in knockout stage

z-Eliminated from tournament



GROUP H:

At Sydney, Australia:

Sydney FC and visiting Urawa Red Diamonds battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

Group H Standings:

1. x-Sydney FC (GP: 5; GD: +1; PTS: 10)
2. x-Urawa Red Diamonds (GP: 5; GD: +2; PTS: 8)
3. z-Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC (GP: 5; GD: 0; PTS: 5)
4. z-Pohang Steelers (GP: 5; GD: -3; PTS: 4)

x-Clinched berth in knockout stage

z-Eliminated from tournament