Saitama (Japan) (AFP) – Urawa Reds scored three goals in a 15-minute blitz to floor Japanese rivals Kawasaki Frontale 4-1 in a fiery encounter Wednesday and reach the Asian Champions League semi-finals.
Slovenian Zlatan Ljubijankic, Brazilian Rafael Silva and Toshiyuki Takagi all scored late goals against 10-man Kawasaki as the home side overturned a two-goal deficit to win 5-4 on aggregate.
The Reds, who won Asia’s premier club competition in 2007, will face China’s Shanghai SIPG in the last four after a see-saw struggle.
“We kept our heads after going behind,” Reds manager Takafumi Hori told local media.
“Obviously it was a huge factor that they went down to 10 men but we still had to get the job done.”
Brazilian Elsinho put Kawasaki in front after 19 minutes, flicking the ball home after a comic error from goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa to stretch their lead to three goals after winning the first leg 3-1.
But Shinzo Koroki pulled one back for Urawa in the 35th minute before the tie took a dramatic twist moments later when Frontale defender Shintaro Kurumaya was sent off for a high boot that caught Koroki in the face.
At times it appeared that both teams were more interested in fisticuffs and rolling on the ground in mock agony than playing football, while several shots were more of a threat to low-flying aircraft than the goalkeepers.
But when substitute Ljubijankic headed Urawa’s second of the night to make it 4-3 on aggregate, Kawasaki began to look frayed and a Rafael Silva bullet levelled the tie on 83 minutes.
As Kawasaki wilted in the humid conditions, Takagi’s shin connected with an attempted left-foot volley two minutes later and the ball looped over goalkeeper Jung Sung-Ryong for a dramatic winner.
“To be honest, that goal wasn’t 100 percent how I planned to hit it but it went in so I’ll take it,” said Takagi sheepishly. “We’ve come this far so we have to make sure we reach the final now.”
Kawasaki striker Yu Kobayashi said: “We thought we were in control after scoring first but we just weren’t good enough. We have to put this behind us and focus on chasing other titles now.”
Urawa, currently eighth in the J-League table, face Andre Villas-Boas’s Shanghai side away on September 27 in the first leg of their semi-final.
The return fixture will be played on October 18.
Japanese sides have struggled in the Asian Champions League since Urawa’s victory in 2007 and Gamba Osaka’s triumph a year later, and Shanghai SIPG will go into the semi-final as firm favourites.
