AFC Champions League Elite
The win meant Machida surged to 11 points but Kuroda still sent a firm message to his players after seeing them drop their focus after the break.
#ACLElite | FC Machida Zelvia (JPN) 3-1 Ulsan HD FC (KOR)
“We were doing well until just after the start of the second half but once we had the lead, we started to relax and became a bit sloppy in many areas,” said Kuroda. “If it's 3-0, at worst we should win 3-0. I think that's a big factor in becoming a winning team."
Machida had looked in full control early on with Asahi Masuyama deflecting Hokuto Shimoda’s shot home in the sixth minute before Takuma Nishimura swept in the second 15 minutes later, with Oh Se-hun making it 3-0 just after the restart.
However, Ulsan responded through Um Won-sang’s close-range finish eight minutes later, forcing Machida to work hard to protect their lead.
“We'll make that our goal for next year and continue to work on improving. I think we ended up being a little too comfortable. We need to refine our mentality even more.”
However, Ulsan responded through Um Won-sang’s close-range finish eight minutes later, forcing Machida to work hard to protect their lead.
“We'll make that our goal for next year and continue to work on improving. I think we ended up being a little too comfortable. We need to refine our mentality even more.”
Ulsan head coach Roh Sang-rae admitted conceding early made things hard for the Korean side to find their rhythm.
"In the first half, we tried to buy some time with our strength and then try to win through substitutions, but we had a hard time catching up because we conceded an early goal.
"If the plan from the first half had worked, we could have created an environment for a win in the second half, but that's unfortunate,” said Roh.
Defeat left Ulsan with eight points with Melbourne City FC of Australia next on the cards in February, while Machida take on Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua FC.
"In the first half, we tried to buy some time with our strength and then try to win through substitutions, but we had a hard time catching up because we conceded an early goal.
"If the plan from the first half had worked, we could have created an environment for a win in the second half, but that's unfortunate,” said Roh.
Defeat left Ulsan with eight points with Melbourne City FC of Australia next on the cards in February, while Machida take on Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua FC.
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