Saitama: Urawa Red Diamonds coach Mihailo Petrovic is gunning for top spot ahead of Tuesday's Group H stage climax against already eliminated Pohang Steelers of Korea Republic as they aim to advance in style to the Round of 16.
Having secured their place in the knockout stage for the first time since 2008 a fortnight ago after a goalless draw with group leaders Sydney FC, the J.League side could take advantage of any dropped points by the Australians who travel to Guangzhou Evergrande with a win at home to Pohang.
Despite being two points behind Sydney, should Petrovic's side better the A-League's side result in Southern China they would go into the last 16 as group winners due to their superior head-to-head record.
"Tomorrow’s game will be very important for us. In our last game we have achieved our initial objective of qualifying for the next round, but we still have the objective of winning the group. Tomorrow, we will fight for that." said Petrovic, whose side crushed Nagoya Grampus 4-1 on Friday in the J.League.
"It won’t be an easy game. For our opponents, it’s a game just to play after they failed to qualify for the next round. However, a game between clubs from Japan and Korea Republic always turns out to be a tough and hard one. We play at our home while representing Japan.
"We want to play alongside our supporters, having a strong determination that we cannot afford to lose against a Korean side. In order to achieve our objective and win the group, we’ll fight it out with all our might."
Opposite number Choi Jin-cheul, meanwhile, takes his side into the encounter on the back of a 2-0 defeat to Guangzhou a fortnight ago that ended any hopes of the three-time champions progressing into the Round of 16.
Pohang did, though, end a seven match winless run in all competitions on Saturday after a 1-0 victory in the K-League Classic over Jeju United.
"We lost many games last month but beat Jeju in our last match. I hope we can keep that momentum and good atmosphere to play the game tomorrow," said Choi.
"We have already been out of the qualification for the next stage but we would like to play our best in our last game tomorrow.
"I’d like to test new tactics and new players. It is not easy for our players motivation-wise as we failed to get through the group stage, but we’d like to play our best."
Photo: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com