Kuala Lumpur: The 2016 AFC Champions League group stage has just reached its halfway point and, already, FC Seoul’s Adriano has caused quite a stir with his lethal ways in front of goal.
In only three games, the 28-year-old has netted nine times and his brilliant displays are one of the reasons why the K League Classic outfit are currently top in Group F with a 100 per cent record so far.
He has already struck more times than last season’s top scorer did in the entire campaign, with Ricardo Goulart notching eight goals to propel Guangzhou Evergrande to their second Champions League crown.
Furthermore, Adriano has also matched the tallies of Jose Mota (Suwon Bluewings) and Lee Dong-gook (Jeonbuk Motors), who topped the scoring charts in 2010 and 2011 respectively.
Here, the-afc.com takes a look back at each of the Brazilian’s nine strikes so far in 2016.
1) Buriram United 0-6 FC Seoul – February 23 (28th minute, 0-1)
Seoul began their campaign with a tricky trip to Buriram United looking to start on a positive note and, inside the opening half-hour, Adriano sent them on their way. Getting in behind the opposition defence and latching onto Dejan Damjanovic’s visionary through-pass, he advanced from the left into the box before rifling into the bottom corner.
2) Buriram United 0-6 FC Seoul – February 23 (40th minute, 0-2)
Five minutes before the break, Adriano’s movement was once again too good for the Thai champions as he again beat the offside trap to find himself one-on-one with Siwarak Tedsungnoen following an incisive ball by Ju Se-jong. There was still some work to be done but the Brazilian showed nerves of steel, deftly lifting the ball over the onrushing keeper before wheeling away in celebration.
3) Buriram United 0-6 FC Seoul – February 23 (50th minute, 0-3)
As he did five minutes before the interval, the former Daejeon Citizen man repeated the feat five minutes after half-time to complete his hat-trick. Again, the Buriram defence appeared to have no idea where Adriano was, allowing him to receive possession from Yojiro Takahagi and rifle a sumptuous left-footed strike into the back of the net.
4) Buriram United 0-6 FC Seoul – February 23 (60th minute, 0-4)
The match ball was already his to keep but it was not enough for him as he added a fourth on the hour mark, pouncing on a loose ball 12 yards from goal before lashing one past a hapless Siwarak. Adriano also weighed in with an assist seven minutes later with a neat cross to leave Damjanovic with the simplest of tap-ins, helping Seoul open their campaign with an emphatic triumph.
5) FC Seoul 4-1 Sanfrecce Hiroshima – March 1 (49th minute, 2-1)
After strolling past Buriram, it was apparent that Seoul were up for a tougher test at home to Sanfrecce Hiroshima, who took a 25th-minute lead at the Seoul World Cup Stadium before Kim Won-sik equalised for the hosts six minutes later. Then, in the 49th minute, Adriano carried on where he left off as he showed ingenious improvisation to swivel and meet Sin Jin-ho’s freekick, hooking it past Takuto Hayashi’s despairing dive.
6) FC Seoul 4-1 Sanfrecce Hiroshima – March 1 (56th minute, 3-1)
Just six minutes after putting his side in front, Adriano was on hand to extend their lead. Displaying a real striker’s instinct, he made a darting run into the six-yard box the moment he saw Ko Kwang-min break free down the left, and was on hand to stab his team-mate’s low cross into the back of the net.
7) FC Seoul 4-1 Sanfrecce Hiroshima – March 1 (69th minute, 4-1)
Another day at the office, another hat-trick for the Valenca native, as he completed the rout for Seoul with his third goal in the 69th minute. Damjanovic and Osmar Barba linked up well to find Sin, whose clever flick over the defence was met by Adriano with a ferocious drive past Hayashi.
8) Shandong Luneng 1-4 FC Seoul – March 16 (27th minute, 0-1)
Seoul’s next match took them to the Jinan Olympic Sports Centre on Wednesday and Adriano’s uncanny ability to elude his opponents once again came to the fore as he opened the scoring three minutes before the half-hour mark. Remarkably for someone who already had seven goals to his name, he was somehow left completely unattended inside the box to meet Takahagi’s looping delivery and force the ball into the goal, despite opposition keeper Wang Dalei getting a foot onto the shot.
9) Shandong Luneng 1-4 FC Seoul – March 16 (71st minute, 1-4)
To their credit, Shandong offered some resistance and Jucilei fired them level in the 62nd minute, only for the visitors to hit back with two goals in three minutes from Go Yo-han and Damjanovic. And any hopes the Chinese outfit had of mounting a remarkable comeback were ended in the 71st minute, when Damjanovic – finding himself one-on-one with Wang – unselfishly reversed a pass into the path of Adriano for him to slot into the unguarded net for his ninth goal of his campaign.
Source: the-afc.com