TOKYO, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal left Japan with a 2-1 advantage from the first leg of the Asian Super Cup against Shimizu S-Pulse on Sunday.
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Steve Perryman: Said his team committed Hari-Kari
(SBotterill/Allsport) |
Al Hilal, the reigning Asian club champions, beat the Asian
Cup Winners Cup holders thanks to two first-half goals from
Brazilian import Ricardo Tamayo.
His first came in the 35th minute from the penalty spot
after he had been fouled by S- Pulse defender Kazuyuki Toda, who
was shown the red card.
With the home defence still in disarray in first-half injury
time, Ricardo added his second from close range to give 10-man
Shimizu a difficult task in the second half.
But S-Pulse's Brazilian midfielder Carlos Santos pulled one
back just three minutes into the second half, and the home side
came close to equalising on a number of occasions.
But Al Hilal held on and will now fancy their chances of
completing the job back home at the King Fahd Stadium in Riyadh
on December 11.
The winning team will represent Asia in the second FIFA Club
World Championship, to be held in Seville, Spain, next summer.
Japan's Jubilo Iwata have already qualified after winning the
previous year's Super Cup.
S-Pulse's English manager Steve Perryman, who will leave the
club at the end of the year after five seasons at Shimizu, knows
his team now faces an uphill struggle.
'We started well but the game changed with the penalty. We
sort of committed suicide, so there's a lot of disappointment in
the team,' said Perryman.
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