July 24 (Reuters) – Talking points from the week in Asian football:

KOBE MOVE POINT CLEAR IN JAPAN AS OSAKO DOUBLE SECURES DRAW

Yuya Osako scored twice in three second-half minutes as Vissel Kobe fought back to salvage a 2-2 draw with Kawasaki Frontale on Saturday and move a point clear at the top of the J.League standings.

Kobe pulled ahead of defending champions Yokohama F Marinos at the summit as Takayuki Yoshida’s side completed a fixture that had been postponed on June 3 due to a typhoon.

Yasuto Wakizaka capitalised on a poor attempted clearance by the Kobe defence to put Kawasaki in front in the 23rd minute, and Taisei Miyashiro doubled his side’s lead seven minutes later with a close-range header.

But a 59th minute penalty from Osako kick-started the Kobe comeback, with the former Japan international heading in Koya Yuruki’s corner three minutes later as Vissel moved onto 44 points from 21 games.

ULSAN RETURN TO WINNING WAYS IN KOREA WITH VICTORY OVER JEJU

Ulsan Hyundai won for the first time in three games on Friday as a 2-1 victory over Jeju United maintained the defending champions’ 12-point K-League lead over Pohang Steelers.

Kim Min-hyeok’s close-range volley after Lee Dong-gyeong floated his free kick towards goal put Ulsan in front on the half-hour, and Lee doubled the advantage five minutes later with a left-foot strike from distance.

Kim Ju-gong smashed his shot into the roof of the five minutes after the restart to pull a goal back for Jeju, but Ulsan held on to take all three points.

Pohang downed Jeonbuk Motors as Lee Ho-jae’s 89th minute goal earned a 2-1 win over the team in fourth, while third placed FC Seoul slipped further off the pace with a 1-0 defeat against Incheon United.

PORT INCREASE CHINESE SUPER LEAGUE LEAD AFTER CANGZHOU WIN

Shanghai Port extended their lead in the Chinese Super League to eight points with a comfortable 3-0 win over Cangzhou Mighty Lions as nearest-rivals Shanghai Shenhua were held to a 1-1 draw by Changchun Yatai.

Lu Wenjun slid in to score from close range inside the first minute for hosts Port while Wu Lei stabbed home the second three into the second half. Issa Kallon completed the win nine minutes from time when he capitalised on a defensive mix-up.

The victory took Port to 43 points and well clear of cross-city rivals Shenhua, who fought back to claim a point against Changchun when Jiang Shenglong cancelled out Cheng Changcheng’s eighth-minute opener.

Chengdu Ronghceng handed bottom side Dalian Pro a 4-1 thrashing, with Brazilian striker Felipe hitting a hat-trick as Seo Jung-won’s side remain in third.

JAPAN, AUSTRALIA LEAD WAY FOR ASIA AT WOMEN’S WORLD CUP

Japan handed Zambia a 5-0 thrashing and co-hosts Australia secured an opening day 1-0 win over Ireland despite the absence of key striker Sam Kerr in a mixed start to the Women’s World Cup for Asian teams.

The Japanese, champions in 2011 and finalists again four years later, signalled their intentions in Group C as Hinata Miyazawa scored twice against the African debutants.

Steph Cately’s penalty earned Australia their win in front of more than 75,000 fans at Stadium Australia in Group B, with Kerr sidelined due to a calf injury that will keep her out for at least the opening two games.

Asian champions China suffered a last-minute loss against Denmark in their Group D opener, when Amalie Vangsgaard headed in a 90th minute winner, while Vietnam lost 3-0 to defending champions the United States in Group E.

A-LEAGUE OUTFIT PERTH GLORY PLACED IN RECEIVERSHIP

Perth Glory have been placed into receivership because of financial difficulties, ending businessman Tony Sage’s 15-year sole ownership of the club, governing body Australian Professional Leagues (APL) said on Saturday.

APL said advisory firm KordaMentha has been appointed to oversee the transition of the club’s licence to new owners, adding that it expected the process to be concluded “within the next 10 weeks”.

Sage ceased his ownership of the club with immediate effect, APL said.

Perth’s men’s team won the A-League Premiership in 2019 and reached two Grand Finals, while the women’s team secured the 2019 Premiership and competed in three Grand Finals.

Reporting by Michael Church; Editing by Jamie Freed

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