A?trademark freekick by Yasuhito Endo delivered Gamba Osaka a 2-0 win over Tianjin Teda and a place in the knockout stages of the Asian Champions League yesterday. Tianjin had already advanced to the next round.

Frustrated by a sodden pitch and an opponent that defended in numbers, Gamba looked like making a shock early exit until Japan playmaker Endo curled a freekick around the wall and into the top right corner in the 73rd minute to make it 1-0.

Tianjin had been intent on securing a draw that would have delivered home advantage in the one-leg round of 16. The win moved Gamba to the top of Group E.