Philippines Football League side Ceres Negros FC advanced to second round of the AFC Champions League Preliminary Stage following a tight 3-2 win over Shan United of Myanmar last Tuesday 14 January 2019 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Goals from Robert Lopez-Mendy (5’), Bienvenido Marañon (40’), and OJ Porteria (79’) sealed the Negros-based club to the next round of the competition.
The three-time PFL champions will face Thai FA Cup winners Port FC next week for a spot in the play-off stage, the final match to determine which team will advance to the AFC group stage proper.
This is the third straight year the club is participating in the AFC Champions League Preliminary Stage. In 2018, Ceres Negros came close to qualifying for the AFC Champions League Group Stages only to yield against Chinese side Tianjin Quanjian.
Should Ceres Negros fail to qualify for the AFC Champions League 2020, they will join Kaya FC-Iloilo as the Philippines’ representatives to the AFC Cup 2020.
Photo from Ceres Negros FC