Shandong defended the honor of Chinese football, says Magath

Felix Magath lauded his Shandong Luneng team who he says 'defended the honor of Chinese football' in Wednesday's 1-1 draw with FC Seoul in the second leg of the AFC Champions League quarterfinal. The draw does, however, see the Super League side eliminated 4-2 on aggregate.

Having lost 3-1 at Seoul World Cup Stadium three weeks ago, Shandong came into the tie in eastern China with a mountain to climb, but a much-improved performance by Magath's team saw the hosts dominate for long spells.

Walter Montillo's goal on the hour gave hopes to the massed ranks of home supporters but, ultimately, FC Seoul substitute Yun Ju-tae's 83rd minute leveller that restored the two-goal deficit proved too much of an obstacle to overcome.

"Congratulations to FC Seoul. If they can eventually win the title at last, it will be very comforting to us, because we lost only to the best team," said former Bayern Munich and Wolfsburg coach Magath.

"Our team was facing a team that is an expert in counterattacking football and it was extremely difficult for us to keep balance at both ends," he added.

Magath also says he is satisfied that his side kept the heat on their opponents.

"We kept pressure on our opponents which I am quite satisfied about. Regardless of what kind of players we sent on the field, defenders or attackers, we were the superior side in terms of attacking," he said.

Magath will now turn his attention once again to the Chinese Super League, where his side travel to Henan Jiaye on Sunday.

Wednesday's victors FC Seoul, meanwhile, will now look forward to an all-South Korean semifinal against K League Classic leaders Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, who on Tuesday also eliminated their Chinese opposition Shanghai SIPG on their way to the final four of the AFC Champions League. Endit