It was a memorable night for Australian clubs in the AFC Champions League as Sydney FC stunned defending champions Guangzhou Evergrande at home after Melbourne Victory earned a well-deserved draw away to Gamba Osaka in Japan.
Midfielder Milos Dimitrijevic came off the bench to score an 88th minute winner for Sydney FC in their 2-1 triumph over big-spending Chinese giants Guangzhou before more than 18,000 fans at Allianz Stadium.
A-League champions Melbourne Victory led for almost an hour at the home of 2008 winners Gamba after Nick Ansell forced Shu Karata to deflect the ball into his own goal in the third minute.
But the match ended in a 1-1 after a diving header from veteran midfielder Yasuhito Endo levelled the scores in the 57th minute.
Game over. We came to win but will settle for a draw after a gallant effort against @GAMBA_OFFICIAL #GAMvMEL #MVFC pic.twitter.com/Y9gCgZdHuY
- Melbourne Victory (@gomvfc) March 2, 2016
Sydney FC's unlikely win came despite the difference in budgets between the two clubs. Because of the salary cap, the Sky Blues' entire squad costs just AU$4 million, compared to the AU$100 million Guangzhou spent on their imports alone.
Centre-back Matt Jurman was named Man of the Match after keeping former Atletico Madrid striker Jackson Martinez quiet while goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic saved a penalty from Ricardo Goulart.
Sydney took an early lead through Robert Stambolziev in the 18th minute before Huang Bowen equalised midway through the first half, after Goulart had already missed his spot kick.
"It's a wonderful night for Sydney FC, our performance tonight was outstanding," said Sky Blues coach Graham Arnold.
"I thought we were good for the three points tonight and we have to build momentum off the back of this.
"Guangzhou were at full strength and we did better than them tonight. It's a fantastic result to beat the Asian Champions."
Wednesday's results mean that Sydney FC are level on points with second-placed Urawa Reds in Group H while Melbourne Victory are top of Group G on four points, one above Shanghai SIPG.
Both clubs are enduring winless streaks in the A-League with Victory fifth on the 10-team table and Sydney FC in sixth.