Kobe's midfielder Andres Iniesta celebrates his goal with teammates during the AFC Champions League round of 16 football match between Japan's Vissel Kobe and China's Shanghai SIPG on December 7, 2020 at the Khalifa International Stadium in the Qatari cap
HONG KONG: Andres Iniesta rolled back the years to take Vissel Kobe into their first Asian Champions League quarter-final as the Spanish World Cup-winner opened the scoring in the Japanese club’s 2-0 victory over Shanghai SIPG in Doha on Monday.
Iniesta won the battle of high profile foreign players as Vissel downed an SIPG side led by former Chelsea and Brazil winger Oscar, with Kobe joining Suwon Bluewings, Ulsan Hyundai and Beijing Guoan in Tuesday’s draw for the next round.
South Korea's Suwon, twice winners of the Asian title almost two decades ago, secured their involvement in the quarter-finals with a 3-2 come-from-behind win over Yokohama F Marinos.
The new coronavirus-delayed competition is being played in a biosecure bubble, with a place in the final on Dec. 19 against Persepolis at stake for clubs from the east of the continent.
The Iranian champions advanced to the decider in October when they emerged from a centralised competition also played in Doha for teams from the western half of the Asian confederation. (Reporting by Michael Church, Editing by Ken Ferris)
