Beetles proud despite ACL exit
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Melbourne’s Jacob Butterfield, left, vies with Chiang Rai’s Somkid Chamnarnsilp during their AFC Champions League match in Qatar. (AFP photo)
Chiang Rai United coach Alongkorn Thongaum said he was very proud of his players although the Thai League 1 champions were eliminated from the AFC Champions League on Monday.
A second-half revival saw the Beetles earn a 2-2 draw with Melbourne Victory as Siwakorn Tiatrakul’s free-kick and Gionata Verzura’s late strike cancelled out Jake Brimmer’s spot-kick and Ben Folami’s lob for the Australians in the first half.
But the result in their penultimate Group E game was not enough to keep alive the Thai champions’ hope of advancing to the next round in their ACL debut.
“We had to fight hard today, and we did just that. Unfortunately, we conceded goals too early,” said Alongkorn.
“Looking back at this campaign, we might have been eliminated, but the most important thing for us is that we tried our best and played as a team.
“The players, the staff and the coach, we all had the same target. Even though we could not qualify, we are proud of how we presented ourselves and we hope to come back in the AFC Champions League and play even better next time.”
Chiang Rai will next meet Beijing FC, who have already booked a ticket to the knockout stage, tomorrow.
For Melbourne Victory, the result means that they have to beat FC Seoul in the final match to reach the last 16 round.
Melbourne coach Steve Kean said: “It feels like a defeat, but then when we sleep on it, we will realise in the morning that we still have a second chance.”
All matches are being played in a ‘bubble’ in Qatar.
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