Shanghai SIPG were heavy favorites in their opening Asian Champions League clash against Melbourne Victory on Wednesday, but Sven Goran Eriksson's men went down 2 - 1 in a thrilling match that had more than its fair share of controversies.

With the score leveled at 1-1 in the 62nd minute, Shanghai's Brazilian striker Elkeson shot the ball past goal keeper Danny Vukovic and scored the probable winner, but goal was immediately disallowed by the referee.

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The curious presence of a second ball within Victory's penalty area promoted the referee to blow his whistle just before Danny Vukovic took his shot. But Danny Vukovic did not stop, scoring the disallowed goal.

Enraged Shanghai players rushed to the referee as soon as their goal was disallowed. But the referee remained adamant and refused to reverse his decision, leaving Shanghai players frustrated.

Things got worse for Shanghai SIPG as a few minutes later, Victory was awarded a penalty after substitute player Lu Wenjun brought down Kosta Barbarouses on edge of the penalty box. Victory's Besart Berisha calmly converted the penalty spot and the home team romped up the match 2 - 1.                                                     

Shanghai SIPG Started Strong, but Melbourne Victory Took the Lead    

The early chances in the game fell to Shanghai SIPG as the visitors started the match on a very impressive note. In 12^th minute, Shanghai's international signing Elkeson's long-range shot fell short of Victroy's goal post. Shortly after, Yu Hai struck a powerful volley that went pretty wide.

But it was Melbourne Victory that drew the first blood after Oliver Bozanic's ball found Jai Ingham, whose fantastic shot spilt through Shanghai's defense to crash inside the net.       

Shanghai SIPG found the equalizer seven minutes into the second half as Elkeson delivered a fine cross to Wu Lei, who successfully netted the ball into Victory's goal.                

Sven Goran Eriksson Criticizes Referee

After the match, Eriksson was quick to voice his displeasure over referee's decision to disallow his team's goal in the second half. He said that the referee should have blown the whistle before his players created the goal scoring opportunity.

The Shanghai SIPG's manager also argued that referee and his assistant should have spotted the ball earlier.

TagsShanghai SIPG, Melbourne Victory, sven goran eriksson