Joao Schmidt scored the winner as J-League champions Kawasaki Frontale came from behind to beat Daegu FC of South Korea 3-2 in their Asian Champions League Group I opener on Saturday.

Leandro Damiao twice pulled Kawasaki level, first with a spectacular 40th-minute overhead kick followed by a close-range effort in the 51st minute, before Schmidt slotted home a loose ball from a corner four minutes later at Lokomotiv Stadium in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Kawasaki Frontale's Leandro Damiao celebrates after scoring in the second half of an Asian Champions League game against Daegu FC on June 26, 2021 in Tashkent. (Kyodo)

Daegu, ahead through Hwang Soon Min's eighth-minute opener, had Edgar's penalty saved in the 29th minute by Kawasaki keeper Jung Sung Ryong. Cesinha's 47th-minute header restored their lead, but only for four minutes.

Kawasaki were without Dusseldorf-bound Ao Tanaka in midfield but his fellow Tokyo Olympic teammates Reo Hatate and Kaoru Mitoma combined for their second, with Mitoma also having a shot from inside the box denied in the first half.