SHANGHAI, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Jonathan Viera's late goal in the stoppage time helped Beijing Guoan equalize the aggregate score 3-3 and advance into the semifinals of Chinese Football Association (CFA) Cup on penalty shootout as Elkeson, Shanghai Shanggang's star forward, missed his shot.
Guoan Tuesday began the second leg of the CFA quarterfinal with a 2-1 advantage thanks to their home victory in the first encounter. Sunday's league win against Tianjin Quanjian which sent Guoan atop of the league standings, also boosted their confidence.
Playing at home, Shanghai dominated the match in most of the time. In the 18th minute, Yu Hai slotted home a powerful goal to put Shanggang ahead. Twenty minutes later, Cai Huikang's header after receiving a perfect freekick from Oscar secured a 2-0 lead for Shanggang.
After a gruelling second half, Guoan were at the brisk of elimination when their newly signed Spanish midfielder Viera launched a spectacular freekick that curved into the net in the 92th minute and dragged the match into extra time.
A goalless 30 minutes saw the match going into shootout. Shanggang's Brazilian forward Elkeson was the first to the spot and the only one missing the shot as the ball hit the crossbar and bounced off. Guoan players nailed all the penalties and triumphed 5-4.
This is Guoan's first shootout win in their four attempts in the CFA Cup. Their rivals in the semifinals will be Guangzhou R&F, who knocked out Jiangsu Suning in a 3-2 thriller with Iranian ace Eran Zahavi scoring a VAR-awarded penalty in the stoppage time.
