5/16/2006
afcchampionsleague.com

It’s D-day in the Group Stage of the AFC Champions League on Wednesday with 11 teams still in the hunt for the remaining five spots in the quarter-finals of Asia’s premier club competition.

Three of the groups will be decided by head-to-head battles while the matches in cliffhanger pools B and D will now kick off at the same time so none of the contending teams has an unfair advantage.

Twice semi-finalists Pakhtakor and Kuwait’s Al Qadisiya, looking to enter the knockout stage for the first time, face off in ‘Fortress Tashkent’ on Matchday Six to decide the outcome of Group A.

Syria’s Al Karama host Saba Battery of Iran in a winner-takes-all showdown in Group C and Dalian Shide travel to Korea where a draw with Jeonbuk Motors will be good enough to see the China Super League champions advance from Group E.

It’s still all to play for in Group B with 2003 ACL winners Al Ain, two-time Asian Club Championship winners Al Hilal and Uzbek shock troops Mash’al in with a chance of reaching the last eight.

The final matches in Group D promise to be keenly contested affairs with Saudi Arabia’s Al Shabab and Al Sadd of Qatar locked together at the top on 10 points.

They play Al Quwa Al Jawiya of Iraq and Kuwait’s Al Arabi, both out of the running for a last eight spot, respectively with Al Shabab holding an advantage as they have better results in head-to-head meetings with Al Sadd.

Korean champions Ulsan Horang-i and Shanghai Shenhua of China joined defending champions Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia in the knockout stage with victories in their two-team groups on Matchday Five.

The eventual winners will be rewarded with the top prize of US$600,000 and a spot in the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan in December.

Group A

Foolad (IRN) v Al Ittihad (SYR)
Dastgerdi Stadium, Tehran, 17:00 hrs
Pakhtakor (UZB) v Al Qadisiya (KUW)
Pakhtakor Stadium, Tashkent, 18:00 hrs

Pakhtakor have a great home record in domestic and continental competition and will be confident of collecting the three points required to reach the knockout stage for the third time in four years.

Coach Valeri Nepomniatchi was naturally disappointed with the 2-1 away loss to Qatar’s Al Ittihad a fortnight ago which sees them go into the final game a point adrift of in-form Al Qadisiya of Kuwait and requiring a win to advance.

But Nepomniatchi is a great motivator and he will impress on his side that home advantage should be worth at least a goal of a start.

Pakhtakor did recently concede their first league goal at home in the Uzbek league since October 2005 but went on to beat Shortan 2-1, Nigerian striker Uche Iherruome grabbing the winner two minutes from the final whistle to make it eight wins in a row for the defending champions.

Nepomniatchi will be looking for big performances from skipper Server Djeperov and fellow Uzbek international Anvarjon Soliev in a match that will require cool heads and a patient approach.

Al Qadisiya go into the encounter with a spring in their step after they went some way to avenging the loss of their league title to Al Kuwait on the last day of the season by defeating the 2005/06 champions 3-2 on penalties to win the Crown Prince Cup.

The match had finished 2-2 after extra time with Khalaf Salama and Oman international Sultan Al Touqi, deep in second half stoppage time, on target for Al Qadisiya.

Kuwait international striker Bader Al Mutwa has scored five goals in the ACL campaign so far and Al Qadisiya will be hoping he can squeeze home number six in Tashkent.

Group B

Al Mina'a (IRQ) v Al Hilal (KSA)
Sabah Al Salem Stadium, Kuwait City, KUW, 18:45 hrs
Al Ain (UAE) v Mash'al (UZB)
Tahnon Bin Mohammed Stadium, Al Ain, 19:45 hrs

There have been a few hiccups along the way but Al Ain will take their now customary place in the knockout stage with a home win over Mash’al, who go into the match under a new manager.

Al Ain, the 2003 champions and runners up last year, head the group by a point from Al Hilal despite going down to the Saudi Arabia powerhouses a fortnight ago.

Al Ain’s confidence was give a massive boost last week when they defeated 2005 UAE champions Al Wahda 1-0 in the domestic league.

Subait Khater scored the only goal of the game direct from a free kick and Al Ain will be looking for more of the same from the set-piece specialist on Wednesday.

In a surprise move, Mash’al sacked head coach Viktor Djalilov last week and replaced him with Viktor Kumykov.

The Uzbek side have had an impressive enough run in their first ACL campaign but their 2-2 draw with Al Mina’a a fortnight ago followed by a 1-0 domestic loss to Neftchi resulted in Djalilov being shown the door.

Mash’al drew 0-0 with Traktor in Kumykov’s first game in charge and he has a big task on his hands to lift the side for the trip to the UAE.

Mash’al can still qualify if they beat Al Ain and Al Hilal fall to bottom side Al Mina’a in Kuwait.

Al Hilal relied heavily on their Saudi internationals in the win over Al Ain and a lot will depend on the availability of goalkeeper Mohammed Al Daeyea, veteran striker Sami Al Jaber and midfielder Nawaf Al Temyat who are in the World Cup frame.

The Asian Football Confederation have ordered that both games kick off simultaneously.

Group C

Al Gharafa (QAT) v Al Wahda (UAE)
Al Gharafa Stadium, Doha, 18:30 hrs
Al Karama (SYR) v Saba Battery (IRN)
Khaled Ibn Al Waleed Stadium, Homs, 20:00 hrs

Al Karama have home advantage in the group decider but that could count for nought in the face of Saba Battery goal machine Ali Daei.

The veteran striker just keeps banging in the goals – he scored twice in the 4-1 win over Al Gharafa two weeks ago to bring his ACL tally to five – and Al Karama know that he must be stopped if they are to take their place in the quarter-finals.

His talismanic presence has been behind the super-charged Iranians surge to top spot in the group and they are within a point of qualification.

Playing for a draw in Syria could be a dangerous tactic and with Daei leading the line, it is more likely that Saba Battery will try and grab an early goal.

Saba Battery have not enjoyed a good season at home and they failed to defend the Hazfi Cup, losing 3-1 to Sepahan at the semi-final stage.

Al Karama have a 100 per cent home record in the ACL this season, with wins over Al Wahda and Al Gharafa, and their confidence will have been further buoyed by good recent results in cup and league matches.

They are almost certain to be in next year’s ACL as Syrian champions after a 4-1 win over Al Jihad in the penultimate round of matches and the high-flyers hammered Al Majd 4-1 in the first leg of their Syria FA Cup quarter-final clash.

Ahmad Turkmani scored twice in that game to bring his total to four in two matches and the veteran striker will be a key figure for Al Karama as they go in search of the victory that will take them to the last eight.

Group D

Al Shabab (KSA) v Al Quwa Al Jawiya (IRQ)
King Fahd International, Riyadh, 21:15 hrs
Al Arabi (KUW) v Al Sadd (QAT)
Sabah Al Salem Stadium, Kuwait City, 21:15 hrs

A home win for Al Shabab over Iraq’s Al Quwa Al Jawiya will be enough to see them through to the last eight for the first time.

The defining moment of their campaign was the 3-2 away victory over Al Sadd a fortnight ago. That brought them level on 10 points with the Qataris but, following a goalless draw between the sides in Riyadh on Matchday One, Al Shabab will progress by dint of better head-to-head results if both teams win their matches on Wednesday.

Al Sadd coach Jorge Fossati has admitted that “something exceptional” will have to happen for them to go through but he will still throw everything into attack against Al Arabi in Kuwait.

“We will give it a good shot,” he said. “This is football, anything can happen.”

The Asian Football Confederation have ordered that both games kick off simultaneously.

Group E

Da Nang (VIE) v Gamba Osaka (JAP)
Chi Lang Stadium, Da Nang, 16:00 hrs
Jeonbuk Motors (KOR) v Dalian Shide (KOR)
Jeonju World Cup Stadium, 19:00 hrs

Dalian Shide can join fellow China representatives Shanghai Shenhua in the quarter-finals with a draw in Korea but, if anything, it is Jeonbuk Motors who are the form side going into the group decider.

The China Super League champions lead Jeonbuk Motors by two points but their league results have been hugely disappointing since their narrow 1-0 victory over Vietnam’s Da Nang a fortnight ago and they might struggle to find their rhythm in what is sure to be a hostile environment.

Dalian have failed to win in their last three domestic matches, a goalless draw with current league leaders Shandong Luneng during the weekend being the latest setback.

In contrast, Jeonbuk Motors have beaten FC Gyeongnam 2-0 and drawn 2-2 against Suwon Samsung Bluewings since their 1-1 draw with Gamba Osaka finished off the J.League champions ACL challenge two weeks ago.

Dalian Shide captain Ji Mingyi is hopeful that the Chinese can qualify and go on and lift the trophy.

“We are going to put in our best effort in the AFC Champions League and I am confident that we will get the best result,” said the 25-year-old China international defender, who played in the Dalian sides that narrowly lost out to eventual champions Al Ain in the 2003 semi-finals and Al Ittihad in the 2004 quarter-finals,

“It will not be easy. In order to achieve our goal of winning the AFC Champions League, the team must put in its best effort, be diligent and work together. However, we will certainly do our best to make history for the club.

“The experience that we have gained from our previous appearances in the AFC Champions League is certainly a great benefit to us for this year’s competition.”

Both teams have never failed to make it past the group stage in their previous AFC Champions League campaigns. Dalian reached the semi-finals in 2003 and quarter-finals in 2004, losing out each time to the eventual champions, while Jeonbuk made it to the semi-finals two years ago.