The Malaysian club qualified for the first time in the group stage of the AFC Champions League

Falling into a group with defending champion Japan and the top team South Korea, but Johor still finished with the top spot. The Malaysian club won four, drew one and lost only one match, earning 13 points. And Kawasaki Frontale and Ulsan Hyundai are behind with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Both Kawasaki and Ulsan were eliminated, only Johor continued in Group I. The remaining team Guangzhou lost all six matches, failed to score any goals and finished last.

Johor wins the champion AFC Champions League 2020 Ulsan Hyundai both matches this season. In the final round on the evening of April 30 at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, Johor won 2-1 against Ulsan thanks to a goal in the penalty kick. It was this table that helped Johor overcome Kawasaki to climb to the top and win the only place to continue in Group I.

Johor opened the scoring thanks to Leandro Velazquez in the fifth minute, but Jun Amano equalized for Ulsan just a minute later. If the tie remains the same, both teams will be disqualified. The team that wins will advance to the next round. But in the fourth minute, from Arif Aiman’s cross, midfielder Park Yong-woo kicked his own goal. Ulsan fell and Johor made history for Malaysian football.

Johor Darul Ta’zim, nicknamed “The Tigers of the South”, has won the Malaysian championship for eight years in a row. This is the fourth time in a row that Johor has reached the group stage of the AFC Champions League, but it is the first time they have reached the round of 16.

Group I AFC Champions League 2022 takes place in Johor Bahru city, Johor state, Malaysia. In addition to Johor, another Southeast Asian club that has a chance to qualify for the group stage is Pathum United (Thailand). Pathum is top of Group G, with three points ahead of second-place Melbourne City. Melbourne must win against United City (Philippines) by five goals or more to take the top of Pathum’s table.

Hoang An