BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Marouane Fellaini's late header sealed a come-from-behind 2-1 victory for Shandong Luneng over Gyeongnam FC on Wednesday, awarding the Chinese Super League side a last-16 berth in the 2019 AFC Champions League.
Fellaini headed down the winner three minutes from time, moving his team to lead Group E with 11 points and a ticket in the knockout stage with one group match left.
Lunneg who topped the group before the game, knew that either a defeat or a draw for Gyeongnam would eliminate the South Korean side. However, the absence of former Italy international Graziano Pelle blunted Luneng's attack in the first half.
The home side didn't have any corner while the visitors registered several ones, but Gyeongnam rarely looked capable of capitalising on their opponents' lack of bite up front.
After a few shots, Kim Seung-jun scored from close range for a 1-0 lead in the 43rd minute. Hao Junmin's freekick in the 64th minute earned Luneng an equalizer.
In Group F, Sanfrecce Hiroshima handed two-time champions Guangzhou Evergrande a 1-0 defeat to secure one of the group's two last-16 berths.
