AFC Champions League Elite
Patryk Klimala’s first half strike was cancelled out by Yuya Osako and Yosuke Ideguchi after the break to give the Japanese outfit a 3-1 aggregate win as they advanced to the quarter-finals after having fallen at the Round of 16 hurdle last season.
Going into the match with a narrow advantage and having defeated FC Seoul twice this season, Vissel dominated possession from the starting whistle but the Korea Republic side slowly forced their way into the match.
The visitors’ tenacity paid off in the 20th minute when an unguarded Klimala headed in from close range with keeper Daiya Maekawa caught off-position in trying, and failing, to shut down Song Min-kyu before he could feed the Polish striker from the left.
Stung by the goal, Vissel redoubled their efforts, with FC Seoul custodian Gu Sung-yun sticking a foot out to save from Yoshinori Muto’s strike from outside the six-yard box in the 31st minute while Daiju Sasaki wasted an opportunity minutes later when he drilled in from the left straight into Gu’s arms.
A stubborn FC Seoul defence and poor finishing from Kento Hamasaki and Yuta Goke and deflected efforts by Tetsushi Yamakawa and Rikuto Hirose, however, put paid to any hopes of an equaliser by the home side before the break.
The K League 1 side’s Kim Jin-su started off the second half by forcing Maekawa into a diving save to deny the defender’s excellent 25-yard attempt, with teammate Lee Seung-mo then heading over the bar from the centre of the area shortly after.
FC Seoul continued to apply the pressure, with Maekawa stretching to push away Choi Jun’s looping header in the 68th minute. At the other end, Vissel showed signs of life when substitute Osako’s header bounced off the right post and unfortunately for him, into the arms of Gu.
The close shave signaled Vissel’s fightback, and they drew level in the 78th minute when Osako ghosted in from behind the defence and, connecting to a Muto cross, slid the ball home past a rooted Gu.
Ideguchi put the match beyond FC Seoul’s reach in the last minute of regulation time when he picked up on a poor clearance by Gu and chipped in from outside the area over the out-of-position custodian to propel his side into the quarter-finals for the first time since 2022.
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