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Wanderers beat Korean side, top ACL group

Roar Guru
15th April, 2014
30

Second-half goals from Mark Bridge and substitute Brendan Santalab lifted Western Sydney Wanderers to a crucial 2-0 AFC Champions League win over Korean powerhouse Ulsan Hyundai.

The win on Tuesday at the Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium pushes the Wanderers to the top of Group H for the first time in what is the club’s first tilt at the continental competition.

Wanderers coach Tony Popovic elected to start without several key personnel including marquee man Shinji Ono, midfield ace Aaron Mooy and regular goalkeeper Ante Covic, while Socceroo defender Mathew Spiranovic unusually started in midfield.

There was a paucity of gilt-edged chances at either end until Bridge broke the deadlock on the hour mark with a towering header after latching onto a Shannon Cole cross.

Bridge then turned provider in latching onto a defensive error and teeing up Santalab for a close-range finish 10 minutes from fulltime.

The match contrasted markedly with the previous contest between the pair in Sydney two months ago when Ulsan were comfortable 3-1 winners.

Despite the change in personnel, the Wanderers were solid defensively and replacement goalkeeper Jerrad Tyson was rarely called into action.

Ulsan’s hulking 196cm striker Kim Shin-Wook was well shackled throughout by the Wanderers’ central defensive pairing of Nikolai Topor-Stanley and captain Michael Beauchamp.

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