Ceres Negros blanks rivals from Cambodia

MANILA, Philippines — Living up to its billing as the top-ranked squad in Southeast Asia, fancied Ceres Negros FC toppled debuting Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng FC of Cambodia, 4-0, in an auspicious start in the AFC Cup group stage Tuesday night at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.

Spanish striker Bienvenido Marañon fired a second-half brace, OJ Porteria dished out two assists and Roland Muller came through with a world-class penalty save as the Busmen romped off with the comprehensive victory to the delight of a  4,146-strong home crowd.

Ceres took the Group G lead with three points and plus-4 goal difference, ahead of Bali United of Indonesia, which also had three points but with plus-3 GD following a 4-1 win over Vietnam’s Than Quang Ninth over in Bali.

The Busmen got the lion’s share of possession against Svay Rieng, enabling them to launch 18 shots with only seven on target.

Coach Risto Vidakovic was happy with the scoreline.

“I’m not about scoring goals. You know you can play very good football and the game would go 0-0. But I’m happy because we followed the plan. We played how we wanted to play,” said Vidakovic.

The reigning Philippine Football League three-peat champs set the tone for the rout with two quickfire goals from Takashi Odawara and Josh Grommen early on.

Meanwhile, Arnel Amita provided the spark off the bench as new-look Kaya FC-Iloilo kicked off its AFC Cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Myanmar champ Shan United yesterday at the Thuwanna Stadium in Yangon.

Amita, who came on at the 65th to relieve injured starter Marwin Angeles, cleared the path for the marginal goals of skipper Joven Bedic (74’) and fellow sub Eric Giganto (85’) to ensure three points for the visitors and the early lead in Group H.

The 25-year-old Amita drew a foul from Shan’s Djedje Djawa inside the box, earning a penalty kick that Iloilo skipper Bedic calmly converted for a 1-nil cushion.