Gwangju, chasing a two-goal deficit from the first leg, endured a nervy start as they were forced to defend an early threat from Taisei Miyashiro inside the box.

Daiya Maekawa was called into action in the sixth minute when the Kobe keeper raced off his line to punch away a dangerous cross before getting into position to pull off a fine save to deny Oh Hu-seong’s volleyed attempt.

Gwangju kicked into gear a minute later and nearly took the lead when Park Tae-jun delivered a delightful cross into the box for Reis but Maekawa pulled off another stunning save to deny the Brazilian.

Kobe’s resilience was finally broken in the 18th minute when Park Jeong-in rose highest to meet Park Tae-Jun’s free-kick, sending a looping header over Maekawa and into the back of the net.

Gwangju almost drew level on aggregate in the 34th minute when Oh Hu-seong and Reis combined well to open up space inside the box, but the Brazilian’s shot was blocked by a lunging Tetsushi Yamakawa.

The K League 1 side held their breath in the 40th minute when Yuya Osako pounced on a loose ball at the top of the box and set up Daiju Sasaki, whose drilled shot from inside the area was saved by Kim Kyeong-min.

Asani, who had a quiet first leg in Kobe, threatened two minutes into the restart when the Albanian weaved his way through, only to miscue his long-range effort from above the box.

Gwangju piled the pressure on Kobe but Maekawa produced two brilliant saves, first denying Reis’ long range effort in the 65th minute before stopping Cho Seong-gwon’s header from close range.

However, with five minutes left on the clock, Gwangju were given a lifeline after Takuya Iwanami conceded a penalty following a handball after a VAR decision leaving Asani to strike home from the spot in the 85th minute to draw the Korean side level on aggregate.

Neither side was able to find the winner, despite six minutes of time added on as the tie went into extra time. 

Kobe almost broke through the Gwangju defence six minutes into the first half of extra time when a poor clearance from Kim Jinho allowed Yosuke Ideguchi space just inside the box but the midfielder pulled his effort high.

Maekawa kept his side in the game when he tipped over Park In-hyeok’s header in the closing stages of the half.

Gwangju came close to finding the breakthrough three minutes into the second half of extra time after Lee Min-gi’s cutback found Asani within shooting range, but the forward’s goal-bound shot was blocked by Takahiro Ohgihara.

Asani, however, had the final say in the 118th minute when he collected Choi Kyoung-rok’s pass before unleashing a spectacular long range strike which looped over Maekawa and into the top left corner, his ninth goal of the campaign taking debutants Gwangju into the quarter-finals.