Guangzhou Evergrande striker Jackson Martinez (L) competes for the ball against Sydney FC's Sebastian Ryall. (Photo : Getty Images)
Reigning Asian champions Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao FC was stunned by last season's A-League runners-up Sydney FC, 2-1, in the second round of Group H competitions in the 2016 AFC Champions League.
The match was held on Wednesday, March 2nd at the Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, Australia where most of the more than 18,000 fans cheered for their home team against the two-time ACL winners, who featured world-renowned footballers such as Colombian striker Jackson Martinez and Brazilian midfielders Paulinho and Ricardo Goulart in their starting lineup.
With the loss, the Southern China Tigers have relegated to the fourth and last spot of the said group, earning only one point in the overall standings as they remained winless in the tournament after two games.
Guangzhou settled for a goalless draw with South Korea's Pohang Steelers on Feb. 24 right at their own home field of Tianhe Stadium.
The Steelers is currently on top of the group as they pulled off a 1-0 win over last season's J. League Division 1 third placers Urawa Red Diamonds at home also on Wednesday.
Goal indicated that "the pre-match coverage had focused on Evergrande's riches but the A-League club showed money means little on a football pitch" after Sky Blues winger Robert Stambolziev blasted the ball into Zeng Cheng's the net at the 18th minute via two head-tennis passes inside the box.
Evergrande winger Huang Bowen, who received a pass from Goulart, was able to level the count seven minutes later to maintain a 1-1 tie during the halftime break.
The score remained tied for most of the second half as Guangzhou seemed to be headed to another draw, but Serbian midfielder Miloš Dimitrijević snatched the three points away from the visitors with a last-minute goal for head coach Graham Arnold's boys.
ABC News noted that the Tigers' "$65 million-man Jackson Martinez" was a disappointment for the third straight match in the eyes of their fans and Guangzhou's World Cup-winning manager Luiz Felipe Scolari as the Colombian "lurked and took a couple of stabs, but could not put a goal away against his less-opulent but grittier Australian counterparts".
The 29-year-old striker has yet to show any fine form in his first three outings with Evergrande, including the team's 2-0 win over Jiangsu Suning in the 2016 Chinese FA Super Cup where Goulart scored both goals for Guangzhou.
