South Korean outfit FC Seoul clinched a knockout berth as the Group F winner at the Asian Football Confederation Champions League Wednesday with a 2-1 win over Buriram United at home.
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, another South Korean club in action Wednesday, aren't quite there yet, but they did take a major step toward the knockout stage with a 3-0 win over FC Tokyo in the Japanese capital.
At Seoul World Cup Stadium the hosts received goals from forward Dejan Damjanovic and midfielder Park Yong-woo. The victory secured Seoul the top spot in Group F regardless of their last match at Sanfrecce Hiroshima on May 4.
Seoul now have 13 points, with four wins and a draw, while Buriram remains winless in Group F.
The victory also lifted Seoul, the 2013 AFC Champions League runner-up, to their fourth straight ACL knockout stage. They will face the runner-up from Group H, which would be either Sydney FC or the Urawa Red Diamonds, in the round of 16.
Seoul, which trounced Buriram 6-0 in their first meeting in February, had been using the same starting lineup in their first four ACL matches, but they were forced to make changes Wednesday. Midfielder Ju Se-jong was suspended for yellow card accumulation in the group stage, while Sin Jin-ho started his mandatory military service Monday.
Against Buriram, Seoul head coach Choi Yong-soo fielded midfielders Park Yong-woo and Lee Seok-hyun to fill their void. He also started goalkeeper Yu Sang-hun for the first time in group play, resting veteran Yoo Hyun.
In rainy conditions, Seoul were aggressive from the start, with Carlos Adriano and his tournament-leading nine goals leading the way.
The Brazilian striker swayed the match in Seoul's favor with a bicycle kick from Damjanovic's header in the fourth minute, though his effort was tipped off by Thai goalkeeper Siwarak Tedsungnoen.
Buriram attacked through South Korean midfielder Ko Seul-ki, but the visitors were busy defending against the Seoul onslaught throughout.
Damjanovic finally gave the hosts a 1-0 lead in the 24th as he headed down Japanese midfielder Takahagi Yojiro's fine cross from the right flank.
Seoul nearly allowed an equalizer in the 41st when forward Supachok Sarachart came close to scoring with his header. But the hosts quashed the visitor's rally two minutes later after Park Yong-woo doubled the lead by converting Takahagi's free kick.
Seoul's attack didn't cool off in the second half as Damjanovic and Adriano continued taking shots in the box.
Seoul tried to have more control of the game as they replaced Damjanovic with Park Chu-young in the 65th and put defender Kim Chi-woo in for Ko Kwang-min a minute later.
However, Seoul's lead was cut to one after Takahagi fouled Buriram forward Sittichok Kannoo in the box.
Buriram captain Andres Tunez then sent his spot kick into the right side of the net in the 67th. It was also Buriram's first goal of the tournament.
Seoul almost got a bigger cushion when Lee Seok-hyun's strike came close in the 79th, but failed to make any extra goals.
Meanwhile, another South Korean club, the Pohang Steelers, have been eliminated in Group H along with defending champions Guangzhou Evergrande after the Urawa Red Diamonds managed to get a point against Sydney FC. The Japanese club had a 0-0 draw against Sydney on the road.
Urawa now have eight points, while Sydney have 10 points. Both Urawa and Sydney will progress to the knockout stage, though their final standings are not determined.
Pohang lost to Guangzhou 2-0 on Tuesday and were dropped to last place in their group with four points. The three-time ACL champions could only have joined the last 16 if Sydney had beaten Urawa and avoided a loss to Guangzhou in their final match, while they beat Urawa in the group finale on May 3.
In Group E action at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo, Jeonbuk moved to first place with nine points as midfielder Kim Bo-kyung scored a goal and set up another. Jeonbuk enjoyed their second straight win over FC Tokyo. The South Korean side beat the Japanese club 2-1 at home in February.
Jeonbuk can join FC Seoul in the round of 16 with at least a draw against Jiangsu Suning in the Group E finale at home on May 4.
It had been a quiet match until Kim's goal, with neither side recording a shot in the opening 25 minutes. FC Tokyo's Kota Mizunuma had the match's first shot in the 30th, an effort that traveled wide of the post.
Kim breathed some life into the contest in the 35th with the shot from the center of the box that beat goalkeeper Kentaro Kakoi.
Leonardo sought to double Jeonbuk's lead in the 44th, as his mid-range strike sailed just above the crossbar.
FC Tokyo tried to mount an attack in the opening moments of the second half, with Yuichi Komano and Takuma Abe knocking on the door.
At the hour mark, though, Jeonbuk midfielder Lee Jae-sung took the wind out of Tokyo's sails, heading in the visitors' second goal after a fine feed by Kim Bo-kyung.
Tokyo's offense was stagnant the rest of the match, with the attackers unable to get decent shots off deep in the opposing zone.
In the 81st, Abe tried to convert a cross from the left but misfired it wide.
Go Moo-yul then put on the finishing touch with a goal in the added time. (Yonhap)
