Injury-time penalty sinks Guangzhou Evergrande in AFC Champions League clash
Seongnam FC win 2-1 but the Chinese Super League champions have a lifeline with a vital away goal heading into the return leg of the round-of-16 matchup
A dubious injury-time penalty could end up costing Guangzhou Evergrande as Fabio Cannavaro's side slipped to a 2-1 defeat against Seongnam FC in the first leg of their round-of-16 clash in the AFC Champions League.
Evergrande looked set to hold on for a well-deserved away draw, despite playing the final 25 minutes with 10 men, but Kim Do-heon converted from the spot six minutes into added time to give the South Koreans victory on Wednesday night.
The players are angry because it was a tough match and we had a red card and a penalty, but I trust they will use this anger in the second match when we play at home in Guangzhou
Huang Bowen's stunning long-range strike just before half-time, however, gives Guangzhou a lifeline and a vital away goal, meaning the 2013 champions only need to win 1-0 at Tianhe Stadium next week to advance to the quarter-finals for the fourth year in a row.
But it was the late penalty - awarded after an innocuous entanglement between captain Zheng Zhi and Seongnam's Ricardo Bueno at a free kick - that saw Kim slot the ball into the corner after Iranian referee Mohsen Torki pointed to the spot.
"The players are angry and annoyed," said Cannavaro. "They are angry because it was a tough match and we had a red card and a penalty, but I trust they will use this anger in the second match when we play at home in Guangzhou."
Brazilian Jorginho put Seongnam in front in the 23rd minute against a Guangzhou side missing key central defender Kim Young-gwon and Brazilian striker Elkeson, who remains sidelined with a thigh injury.