JDT Secure Commanding 3-1 Lead Over Sanfrecce Hiroshima

ISKANDAR PUTERI, Malaysia – Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) took a massive step toward the AFC Champions League Elite quarter-finals on Wednesday night, dismantling Japanese side Sanfrecce Hiroshima 3-1 in a pulsating Round of 16 first-leg encounter at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium.

In front of a sea of blue and red, the Malaysian champions delivered a tactical masterclass, capitalizing on a first-half red card to Sanfrecce's Kim Ju-sung to dismantle one of the J1 League’s most disciplined outfits.

The match began as a cagey affair, but the momentum swung irreversibly in JDT's favor in the 26th minute. Sanfrecce defender Kim Ju-sung, already on a yellow card, was sent off for an elbow on JDT’s Rui Nene. The dismissal forced the visitors into a defensive shell, but they could only hold the fort until the break.

The floodgates finally opened in the 52nd minute. Ager Aketxe, who had come on early to replace the injured Natxo Insa, broke the deadlock with a trademark left-footed rocket from outside the box that left Keisuke Osako helpless.

Buoyed by the lead, JDT doubled their advantage in the 63rd minute. Brazilian talisman Bergson da Silva proved his class once again, clinical in the box after a precise setup from João Figueiredo. The stadium erupted again in the 84th minute when Marcos Guilherme finished a lightning-fast counter-attack, clinical following a cross from Oscar Arribas.

A late own goal by Rui Nene in the 87th minute gave Sanfrecce a slim lifeline, but the night belonged to the Southern Tigers.

JDT now carries a two-goal cushion heading into the second leg at the Edion Peace Wing Stadium on March 11. While the job is far from over, the path to the centralized Final Stage in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, has never looked clearer for Xisco Munoz’s men.

For JDT, the mission in Japan is simple: remain disciplined, manage the lead, and secure their place among Asia’s elite eight.