Choi calls for focus as Shenhua eye repeat win over FC Tokyo
SHANGHAI Shenhua head coach Choi Kang-hee has called for focus as his side face FC Tokyo for the second time in three days in Group F of the 2020 AFC Champions League at the Education City Stadium at 4pm on Friday.
The Chinese Super League side managed a narrow win courtesy of a 72nd minute penalty scored by Yu Hanchao, giving Shanghai Shenhua their second win of the campaign and placing them in second place in the group.
“I felt that we were lucky to win the first game,” said Choi.
“We have to treat our opponents seriously. We are still facing difficulties and we need to stay focused. I trust the players to accomplish our target and play well.
“They are quite a tough opponent to fight against and they are really talented especially in attack, so we have to focus on our defence and work hard to stop them.”
With a win, a draw and a loss from the first three group stage games, head coach Kenta Hasegawa’s FC Tokyo side need a result on Friday if they are to stand any chance of progression to the Round of 16.
“This is an opportunity for us to get revenge after losing out to a penalty goal last time,” said Hasegawa. “We cannot give opponents scoring opportunities like this in a high-profile competition like the AFC Champions League. The opponent’s coach is very experienced and has delivered good results. Our player (Hotaka)
Nakamura caused the penalty kick but he is an international player with a lot of experience and does not often make such mistakes.
“We played the first game
and now we know the atmosphere in Doha, the stadiums and our opponents too so now we can play an aggressive Tokyo FC style.”
Friday’s match at the Education City Stadium will be preceded by a moment of silence for Argentina legend Diego Maradona, who passed away on Wednesday.