Ito double takes Kashima into knockout rounds

Kashima Antlers’ Sho Ito scored a rapid-fire double to salvage their Asian Champions League title defence as the JLeague side fought back to beat Shandong Luneng 2-1 on Wednesday and book their place in the last 16.

Five minutes after coming off the bench, Ito cancelled out Marouane Fellaini’s early header and the 30-year-old striker put his side’s qualification beyond doubt less than two minutes later when he showed composure to score the winner.

Kashima, who finished second in the group behind Shandong, had needed to avoid defeat to qualify for the next phase of the competition, ahead of Group E rivals Gyeongnam FC, of South Korea, and Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) from Malaysia.

The victory set up a round of 16 meeting with fellow J-League side Sanfrecce Hiroshima next month.

Hiroshima had already secured first place in Group F and claimed a fifth straight victory with a comfortable 3-1 win over Melbourne Victory in what was Kevin Muscat’s final game in charge of the Australian side.

Shandong will take on fellow Chinese Super League side Guangzhou Evergrande in the next phase of the competition after Fabio Cannavaro’s side edged past Daegu FC from South Korea with a 1-0 win to take second place in Group F.

In the west of the continent, Al Wahda of the United Arab Emirates secured top spot in Group B despite being held to a 11 draw by Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad, who also advanced to the next round by finishing in second.

Neither side, however, knows who they will face in the round 16 after the top-of-the-table clash in Group A between Iran’s Zobahan and Al Nassr from Saudi Arabia — due to be played in a neutral venue in Karbala in Iraq — was postponed.

Both teams have booked their places in the round of 16, with Zobahan needing only a draw to finish in first place.

The Asian Football Confederation is yet to announce a date for the rescheduled fixture, with the round of 16 matches in the west to be played in August.

Games between teams in the east will be played on June 18 and 25.

AFP PIC Kashima Antlers’ Sho Ito (second from left) is congratulated by teammates after scoring during their Asian Champions League match against Shandong Luneng on Wednesday.