SKIEN, Norway (Kyodo) Japan midfielder Shinji Ono came off the substitutes bench to fire Feyenoord to a 1-0 win over Norwegian club Odd Grenland in their UEFA Cup first-round, first-leg tie on Thursday.
Ono gave Feyenoord more bite going forward after coming on for Ebi Smolarek after the interval and he sealed the win with an excellent 20-meter free-kick 16 minutes from time at Odd Stadion.
Feyenoord manager Ruud Gullit was delighted with Ono's contribution although the midfielder was typically modest about his performance.
"Ono understood exactly what I wanted him to do and was absolutely outstanding tonight," Gullit gushed.