AFC Champions League Two
Jeon Jin-woo scored twice in the first half for the K-League side to level the overall score following Sydney’s 2-0 win in the first leg, but goals from Alex Grant, Patryk Klimala and Costa ensure the A-League side will face Lion City Sailors in the semi-finals.
It was Costa, the former Bayern Munich and Juventus winger, who was instrumental in all three of Sydney’s goals as Talay’s team launched a remarkable turnaround in the final 31 minutes against a Jeonbuk side that looked increasingly likely to progress.
Sydney had sought to add to their advantage in the early exchanges, with Klimala shooting across goal and Joe Lolley denied by Kim Jeong-hoom before Klimala had an effort ruled out by VAR for a marginal offside.
Jeonbuk, though, steadily exerted their influence on the game. Soon after the half hour mark Park Jae-yong headed narrowly wide from Kim Jin-gyu’s corner and, with 10 minutes left in the half, the Koreans went in front.
Kim Jin-gyu was released behind the defence and, after the 28-year-old astutely pulled the ball back from the byeline, Jeon Jin-woo’s right-foot shot thundered in off the underside of Harrison Devenish-Meares’ crossbar.
Park Jae-yong was denied by the Sydney goalkeeper while Nana Boateng saw his effort pushed onto the post by Devenish-Meares. From the resulting corner, Jeonbuk struck again with Boateng’s initial effort saved only for Jeon to pounce on the rebound.
The Jeonbuk onslaught continued straight from the restart with Jeon denied a third seconds into the second half, Devenish-Meares using his feet to keep out a low strike that was destined for the bottom corner.
Sydney seemed to be in trouble but, as the half wore on, so did Costa’s influence. The Brazilian threatened in the 55th minute, forcing Kim Jeong-hoon to throw himself to his right to keep out a strike that was bending into the bottom corner.
It was Costa who played a major role in Sydney eventually unlocking the Jeonbuk defence, sending over a free kick from the right towards the far post and Rhyan Grant redirected the ball across the face of goal for Alex Grant to push it over the line.
Costa was at the heart of Sydney’s equaliser, too, sliding his pass into Jordan Courtney-Perkins in the penalty area, and he set up Klimala to slam his shot home.
And it was the former Brazil international who stepped up to score the decisive third from the penalty spot with eight minutes remaining, putting the seal on a virtuoso performance in the second 45 minutes after Boateng had upended Adrian Segecic in the area.
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