Cometh the hour, cometh the man. When Sydney FC needed a goal, Adrian Segecic stepped up with a stunning display as the Sky Blues and Bangkok United played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in the first leg of their AFC Champions League Two Round-of-16 tie.
Segecic scored twice off the bench in a performance that looked to have given Sydney victory in the club’s first ever Champions League fixture at Allianz Stadium on Wednesday night but Thitiphan Puangchan equalised in the 96th minute to leave the matchup evenly poised.
Trailing 1-0 in the 50th minute, Ufuk Talay introduced Segecic and Brazilian superstar Douglas Costa. Both players wreaked havoc upon their arrival, with the 20-year-old Segecic equalising within five minutes of his substitution.
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Segecic then put the Sky Blues ahead with a sublime goal 12 minutes from the end – his eighth goal as a substitute across all competitions this season, having come off the bench and scored to inspire last week’s wild 3-3 Isuzu UTE A-League draw against rivals Western Sydney Wanderers.
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But Thai outfit Bangkok United, the former home of current Melbourne City boss Aurelio Vidmar, had the final say. Puangchan scored in the sixth minute of stoppage time and while the flag went up for offside, VAR overturned the original decision.
The return leg will be in Bangkok on Wednesday, February 19. The away goal rule is not in play throughout the knockout phase.
There was no downplaying the occasion prior to Wednesday night’s showdown at Allianz Stadium. For head coach Talay, he wanted AFC’s continental club competition to become part of Sydney FC’s “DNA”.
“The support on the weekend against the Wanderers was immense and that last 15 minutes when the crowd was urging our boys to keep pushing, I think that plays a massive role,” Talay said pre-game.
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“This is our own Champions League and Europa League and it needs to become part of our DNA and part of our football culture that there are games midweek and fans do comeout and support the team in this competition.
“The more that this happens the more it becomes part of the culture and with the money on offer, it gives the club the opportunity to reinvest whether that goes into the team, Academy or the facilities.”
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If fans or pundits wanted a glimpse into Sydney’s academy and how the money could be reinvested, look no further than the matchday squad midweek. There were 12 academy graduates involved, such has been the success of the club’s youth program.
On the pitch, it was end-to-end though neither side could find the breakthrough in the opening 45 minutes.
Sydney and Bangkok both had chances. Patryk Klimala twice forced the visiting goalkeeper into saves inside 11 minutes, while Sky Blues teammate Rhyan Grant nearly deflected the ball into his own net in a heart-stopping moment after just two minutes.
The best chance of the half arguably fell to Bangkok’s Oman international Muhsen Al-Ghassani. Unlocked by captain Everton’s defence-splitting pass, Al-Ghassani then found himself in front of goal but he spurned the glorious opportunity as his effort sliced agonisingly wide.
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Sydney were caught on the counter at the start of the second half and it proved costly as Al-Ghassani was brought down by Sky Blues goalkeeper Harrison Devenish-Meares, who escaped a red card after conceding the penalty. The shot-stopper dived the right way but he could not keep out Richairo Zivkovic’s spot-kick.
The goal came against the run of play but Sydney were back on level terms shortly afterwards.
It was Segecic who restored parity on the hour mark before completing the turnaround with a moment of magic 18 minutes later as the rain poured in Sydney, taking his tally to 11 goals in all competitions this term.
Bangkok nearly equalised in the 91st minute but Devenish-Meares stood tall to thwart the visitors.
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Sydney, though, could not hold out as Puangchan beat Devenish-Meares at his near post.
