It’s a new year to remember for Ceres Negros FC as they outmuscled Shan United of Myanmar, 3-2, during a scintillating clash in the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League preliminaries at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium, Jan. 14.
Robert Lopez Mendy and Bienvenido Maranon showed their fired up performance after scoring a goal each in the opening half, while Jose Elmer Porteria converted another conversion for the Busmen in the second half.
The Busmen limited the visiting team after a sticky defense in the early going. Lopez Mendy started a beautiful left-footed strike from a cross by newcomer Hikaru Minegishi to go 1-0 within five minutes of the match.
The Myanmar booters also fought back with series of attempts but Ceres goalkeeper Roland Mullers spoiled the possible goal. Ceres Negros extended their lead just before the half with Marañon’s volley at the 40th minute.
With a sense of urgency, Shan United became aggressive in the second half and cut the deficit with a glancing header from Zin Min Tun at the 73rd minute, but the Busmen upped its lead anew with Porteria converting a cross by Mike Ott from inside the box at the 79th minute.
The Burmese football club made its last push with Djedje Maximin Djawa converting from inside the box at the 88th minute. They even had a chance to tie the game but Nanda Kyaw blew his free kick.
With the victory, Ceres Negros will advance to the second preliminary match against Thailand F.A. Cup Champions Port F.C., which is led by former Busmen Martin Steuble in Bangkok, Thailand on Jan. 21.
If they win, Ceres will again advance to the play-off round and faces J. League’s F.C. Tokyo on Jan. 28, with the winner earning a spot in Group F alongside South Korea’s Ulsan Hyundai, China’s Shanghai Shenhua, and Australia’s Perth Glory. IMT
