Harry Kewell has enjoyed his biggest win yet as manager of Yokohama F Marinos as he watched his new side edge towards the Asian Champions League semi-finals.
The Socceroos legend oversaw a 2-1 win for his Japanese giants at Chinese Super League club Shandong Taishan in the quarter-final first leg on Wednesday.
But a late goal for the home side has kept their hopes alive when the second leg is played in Yokohama next Wednesday.
The victory was a welcome tonic for Kewell, who has suffered mixed fortunes since the start of his reign after taking over from fellow Aussie Kevin Muscat.
First, Kewell steered Yokohama to the quarter-finals of the ACL with a two-legged victory over Bangkok United in his first matches in charge.
But with the club expected to contend for all the big prizes this year, his first domestic campaign got off to a dismal start when Yokohama lost sensationally to Avispa Fukuoka in his first J1 League home match at the weekend.
Neither Muscat nor Ange Postecoglou, who had been in charge at Yokohama before him, had ever got to the last-eight in the Champions League, even though they both led the club to the Japanese title.
So Kewell is in sight of history if he can steer them to the first final in the Champions League era and their only final in Asian football's showpiece game since they lost what was then the Asian Club Championship final with China's Liaoning in 1990.
But this quarter-final tie is still very much alive thanks to Chen Pu's late strike for Shandong just when it seemed the Japanese side were set for a two-goal lead to take back to Yokohama International Stadium.
Marinos had gone ahead through Anderson Lopes after just seven minutes before his fellow Brazilian Yan Matheus looked to have sealed a comfortable cushion for the Japanese side with a 69th minute goal.
But Shandong, who had hit the post through their own Brazilian star Matheus Pato in the second half, pulled one back - deservedly - when Chen cashed in on hesitant defending to volley into the net in the 91st minute.
Yokohama will look back in frustration at Lopes' glaring miss just before the break when he fired Asahi Uenaka's cross over the bar.
The winners will go on to face the winners of an all-South Korean tie between Jeonbuk Motors or Ulsan Hyundai, who drew their first leg 1-1 on Tuesday.
On the western side of the draw, Al Ain, of the United Arab Emirates, hold a 1-0 lead over Al-Nassr from Saudi Arabia, while Al-Hilal defeated fellow Saudis Al-Ittihad 2-0 in the first leg on Tuesday.
With Reuters
