Ceres survives Shan U in Champions League

CERES Negros FC edged out Shan United FC in penalty shootout, 4-3, to advance into the second qualifying stage of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League on Tuesday at the Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar.

Following a 1-1 deadlock after 120 minutes of action, the Yellow Busmen proved to be steadier in shootout to arrange a playoff match against Australian powerhouse Brisbane Roar FC on January 23 at the Queensland Sports and Athletics Centre.

“We are still not prepared for this kind of matches. But the team responded good and they gave everything today and after 120 minutes, I think we deserve it,” said Ceres Negros head coach Risto Vidakovic.

“We only had four days of training but every time we wear this jersey, we represent Ceres, we represent the Philippines so we are thinking first of finding solutions and this is what we did,” said Ceres captain Carli De Murga, who was named as Man of the Match.

Both the domestic champion teams got their fair share of scoring chances in the regulation but no one was able to score.

Stephan Shrock struck early in the extra time as the crafty midfielder launched a curling ball that was deflected by William Nyakwe into the net, giving Ceres the upper hand in the 94th minute.

The host squad equalized just four minutes later with Ghanian striker Patrick Asare slicing through the backline before beating Spanish goalkeeper Toni Doblas.

The Filipino side could have finished the game late in the second half of extension period but Manny Ott, OJ Porteria and Shrock muffed their shots, leading to the decisive shootout.

De Murga, Shrock, Mike Ott and Bienvenido Marañon calmly sank their shots from the spot for the visiting Busmen.

Shan United’s Chizoba Iyikwobe and Nyakwe missed the second and final attempts, respectively, allowing Ceres to notch its first win in the top continental club competition.