Chinese Super League powerhouse Shandong Luneng FC (2-1-1, 7 points) will look to advance in the knockout stage of the 2016 AFC Champions League as it takes on last season's J1 League champions Sanfrecce Hiroshima (2-2-0, 6 points) on April 20th, Wednesday at the Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium in China for a group stage match in the said tournament.

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The first meeting of the two squads resulted in a 2-1 win for Shandong Luneng at the Hiroshima Big Arch in Japan as manager Hajime Moriyasu's side could only manage a goal from striker Kohei Shimizu.

Taishan Dui forwards Yang Xu and Diego Tardelli contributed one goal apiece in the Feb. 23rd fixture that opened the Group F competitions.

Shandong is coming off a goalless draw with K League Classic club FC Seoul on April 5th at the Seoul World Cup Stadium in South Korea, as reported by the AFC's official website.

It was a frustrating outcome for manager Choi Yong-soo as his squad failed to outright advance in the next round because of the share in point in the group table.

"The players and myself too really wanted to book an early passage to the second round. We did our best in a game that was tight. One goal would probably have been enough, but it was a game plan that we executed well. It was just that the result did not go our way," Choi said.

Meanwhile, Sanfrecce Hiroshima officially eliminated Thailand's Buriram United after a 2-0 victory at the New I-Mobile Stadium in Thailand also during the previous matchday, as per the Bangkok Post.

Sanfre striker Takumi Miyayoshi scored the opening goal for the visitors at the stroke of halftime while teammate Kosei Shibasaki sealed the win three minutes before full time to settle at the third spot in the league table, only a point behind Shandong.

The predicted result is a 3-1 victory for Shandong Luneng.

Shandong Luneng starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Wang; Zhao, Gil, Dai, Zheng; Hao, Jucilei; Wu, Montillo, Tardelli; Yang

Sanfrecce Hiroshima starting lineup (3-4-2-1 formation): Hayashi; Shiotani, Chiba, Mizumoto; Kashiwa, Aoyama, Marutani, Shimizu; Miyayoshi, Chajima; Sato

TagsChina Football, China football 2016, AFC Champions League, AFC Champions League 2016, 2016 AFC Champions League, Shandong Luneng Taishan FC, Sanfrecce Hiroshima