The contest to secure a foreign player berth for South China's AFC Cup campaign heated up on Saturday after Yuto Nakamura and Evan Kostopoulos both scored in their BOCG Life Hong Kong Premier League game. Nakamura hit a brace in the first half to provide a two-goal cushion, while Kostopoulos also found the target after the break to help the Caroliners secure a 5-2 victory over I-Sky Yuen Long at Hong Kong Stadium. I would support Kostopoulos because he has the experience in the Asian Champions League Yuto Nakamura South China teammates Chan Siu-ki and Lo Kong-wai also scored, giving the Caroliners three points to put them second in the standings, just one behind table leaders Sun Pegasus, who have 16 points. Yu Ho-pong and Gustavo da Silva found the net for Yuen Long in the second half. South China will be allowed four foreign players in the AFC Cup and one of them has to be from Asia or Australia. Goalkeeper Cristian Mora, centre half Bojan Malisic and midfielder Sean Tse Ka-keung (from England) are almost certain to occupy three of the slots. Nakamura and Kostopoulos, formerly with Adelaide United of Australia and who has scored three goals in less than a month after recovering from a knee operation, will compete for the remaining berth. Japanese forward Nakamura, the top scorer for South China with six goals, said the healthy competition with Kostopoulos was pushing them both to work harder and was lifting the standard of the entire team. "It doesn't matter who will go in the end," said Nakamura. "I would support Kostopoulos because he has the experience in the Asian Champions League, but, at club level, I am very comfortable playing alongside him and hopefully our rivalry can help the team." Meanwhile, New City Cosmos, who play in the second-tier North American Soccer League, and Russia Premier League leaders Zenit St Petersburg have been targeted for the Lunar New Year Cup, hosted by South China in February. Club convenor Wallace Cheung Kwong-yung said they would like to confirm the teams as soon as possible.