PHILIPPINES league champion Ceres Negros FC is now Asean’s highest-ranked club after overtaking Thailand’s Buriram United in the latest AFC Club Rankings.

The Busmen surged as Asia’s No. 25 club while Thai League 1 giants fell to Rank 26 following the conclusion of the AFC Champions League 2020 preliminary stage.

The Bacolod-based club now has 40.75 points after gaining 5.50 points in the AFC Club Rankings while Buriram posted 40.67. it was recalled that Ceres FC previously took the ASEAN top spot in May 2019, but Buriram bounced back in the top post.

Ceres FC kicked off its ACL 2020 qualification campaign in Preliminary Round 1 by defeating Myanmar’s Shan United, 3-2; followed by Thailand’s Port FC, 1-0; before losing to Japan’s FC Tokyo, 2-0 last Tuesday.

Following its exit in the ACL, the Busmen will now focus their preparation in the upcoming 2020 AFC Cup.

On the other hand, Buriram defeated Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City FC, 2-1 during the Preliminary Round 2 before yielded to Chinese Super League giants Shanghai SIPG, 3-0 in the play-off. (JSG)