Công An Hà Nội FC lead the way in Group B of the inaugural ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™ after Wednesday’s second round of matches as Mano Polking’s side handed Lion City Sailors FC a 5-0 defeat to pick up their second win in a row.
Léo Artur scored a hat trick at Hang Day Stadium in Hanoi with Nguyen Dinh Bac and Le Van Do also on target to keep the Vietnamese side perfect and on track for a place in April’s Shopee Cup™ semi-finals.
Kuala Lumpur City FC kept pace at the summit with a 1-0 win over Borneo FC Samarinda with Brendan Gan scoring 13 minutes from time at Stadium Bola Sepak Kuala Lumpur to also move the Malaysians onto six points from the opening two games.
Buriram United, who lost their opening game against Công An Hà Nội last month, bounced back to thrash Kaya FC-Iloilo from the Philippines 7-0, with Lucas Crispim scoring a hat trick.
It was Artur who gave the Vietnamese side the lead in the 29th minute when he stroked home from close range after Vu Van Thanh’s centre from the right, but it was a three-goal salvo in nine second half minutes that broke Lion City Sailors’ resistance.
Nguyen Dinh Bac scored on the hour mark from close range to double the lead while Le Van Do capitalised on a mistake by goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud to net the third and Artur crashed in the fourth from distance with 21 minutes remaining.
The Brazilian then completed his hat trick with four minutes remaining, scoring with a low shot from distance that squirmed under Izwan’s body.
“We trained for this, this is what we wanted,” said Artur. “We worked hard during the week and we believed in this way to play. The team are together, all on the same page and trying to do the best for the team.”
Kuala Lumpur City, meanwhile, had to wait until the 77th minute for Gan to score the only goal of a tight game against Borneo FC, the Malaysia international firing high into the net after Zhafri Yahya danced past two defenders to set up the winner.
That win sees Kuala Lumpur City sit in second place in Group B of the Shopee Cup™, trailing Công An Hà Nội on goal difference and ahead of both Borneo FC and Buriram United by three points. Kaya FC-Iloilo and Lion City Sailors have yet to score a point.
In Buriram, Crispim gave the home side the lead with a deflected shot in the ninth minute and Supachai Chaided doubled that advantage six minutes later with a close-range header.
Crispim added the third five minutes into the second half when he headed Sasalak Haiprakhon’s cross into the top corner and the same pair combined again three minutes later as the Brazilian scored in his third of the night.
Athit Berg tapped in Buriram’s fifth in the 77th minute while Seksan Ratree hit the sixth with six minutes remaining and Chrigor scored from the penalty spot in injury time.
Vietnam’s Đông Á Thanh Hóa FC lead Group A on goal difference from PSM Makassar of Indonesia and BG Pathum United FC from Thailand after Tuesday’s matches with all three teams on four points from two games.
The Shopee Cup™ will return for the third round of group matches on January 8th as the battle for April’s semi-finals intensifies, with the final to be played on a two-legged basis on May 14th and 21st.
Winners of today’s Shopee Star of the Match are:
Lucas Crispim, Buriram United FC
Léo Artur, Công An Hà Nội FC
Brendan Gan, Kuala Lumpur City FC
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