Apr 25, 2006
afcchampionsleague.com

A disparate band of high flyers and salvation seekers will battle for valuable points on Matchday Four of the AFC Champions League on Wednesday as the group stage of Asia’s premier club competition nears its climax.

The fixtures from Matchday Three are reversed with Japan’s Gamba Osaka, the top scorers in the tournament and new leaders of the J.League, travelling to China for a vital encounter with Dalian Shide who they beat 3-0 a fortnight ago in Group E.

Uzbekistan powerhouses Pakhtakor, their seventh straight league win safely in the bag, look to do the double in Group A over a Foolad side that failed to defend their league title in Iran.

Also in Group A, Kuwait’s Al Qadisiya, two points adrift of Pakhtakor, must put the disappointment of relinquishing the league trophy behind them when they host Al Ittihad of Syria who they shared the points with two weeks ago.

Group B also sees a champion side looking to regroup after a damaging domestic defeat. Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal lost their league crown to Al Shabab in a championship playoff last Friday and will have to pick themselves up quickly for the tricky trip to meet Mash’al, who they defeated 5-0 in the last round, in Uzbekistan.

A century of goals have been scored so far in the 2006 AFC Champions League and, with all of the groups delicately balanced, that figure should skyrocket on Wednesday with attacking football the overriding strategy on the night.

The top team from each of the seven groups progresses to the quarter-finals where two-time champions Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia join the fray.

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 Pakhtakor (UZB)
Dastgerdi Stadium, Tehran, 17:00 hrs

Al Qadisiya (KUW) v Al Ittihad (SYR)
Friendship & Peace Stadium, Kuwait City, 19:00 hrs

Pakhtakor are far and away the form side in Group A and the two-time ACL semi-finalists could deal a crushing psychological blow to their rivals with an away victory over Foolad.

The Uzbek giants lead the group by two points over Foolad and Al Qadisiya and their tremendous league form, with seven straight wins, is in stark contrast to the faltering efforts of the 2005 league champions of Iran and Kuwait.

A hat-trick from Uzbek international Anvar Soliev, returning to the side after injury, in the 4-0 league win over Soghdiana will have further buoyed Pakhtakor whose coach Valeri Nepomniatchi reckons the side is “improving from game to game.”

That’s bad news for Foolad who ended their failed defence of the Iran Pro League on a low note, going down 5-1 to Abu Moslem in their final game of the season last Friday.

Al Qadisiya, who had the league title ripped from their grasp by Al Kuwait after a 2-0 defeat to their rivals in the final round, know they have to bounce back quickly with a home win over Syria’s Al Ittihad if they are to keep up their challenge.

Group B

Mash'al (UZB) v Al Hilal (KSA)
Nasaf Stadium, Karshi, 16:00 hrs

Al Mina'a (IRQ) v Al Ain (UAE)
Friendship & Peace Stadium, Kuwait City, 21:15 hrs

Neither group leaders Al Ain nor Al Hilal, who trail their UAE rivals by a point, can afford to slip up in away games to opponents they saw off comfortably enough at home a fortnight ago.

Al Ain, their slim hopes of a 10th national title effectively ended after a 2-1 defeat to Al Shabab in Round 19 of the UAE league, have the experience and talent to secure a win against pointless Al Mina’a of Iraq in Kuwait City.

The UAE cracks, whose place in next year’s AFC Champions League is already assured thanks to victory in the President’s Cup, will be looking for another match-winning display from Serbia and Montenegro international Nenad Jestrovic whose two goals sunk Al Mina’a a fortnight ago.

Al Hilal are also assured of another shot at the ACL title in 2007 after winning the Crown Prince Cup but will have to be careful that this season’s campaign is not derailed in Uzbekistan.

Mash’al conceded five goals in Riyadh two weeks ago but they proved themselves a tough nut to crack at home by holding Al Ain to a 1-1 draw last month and won’t be fazed by the two-time Asian Club champions.

Al Hilal’s 3-0 loss to Al Shabab in the Saudi Arabia league play-off will have dented their confidence ahead of a long journey to Uzbekistan and a lot of responsibility lies on the shoulders of the more experienced players in the side to carry them through.

Group C

Al Wahda (UAE) v Saba Battery (IRN)
Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi, 19:40 hrs

Al Karama (SYR) v Al Gharafa (QAT)
Khaled Ibn Al Waleed Stadium, Homs, 20:00 hrs

Al Karama’s headlong charge to the quarter-finals was dramatically slowed a fortnight ago when they were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Al Gharafa in Qatar.

The Syrians, whose earlier wins over UAE champions Al Wahda and Saba Battery of Iran saw them stay in top spot despite the loss to Al Gharafa, have a chance to show that result was an aberration when they host the Qatari side in Homs on Matchday Four.

Al Karama are currently top of the Syria league and they will be out to maintain their two-point advantage in the continental competition with a win.

They will have to keep a close eye on Bahraini striker A'ala Hubail who scored twice for Al Gharafa during the second half goal blitz in Qatar.

Al Wahda, installed as group favourites before a ball was kicked, have made a stuttering start to their campaign and their unconvincing domestic and continental form cost coach Jean Francois Jodar his job.

It took a second half fightback, with two goals in an amazing three-minute spell, for Al Wahda to secure a draw against Saba Battery in Iran on Matchday Three but they have shown decent domestic form since then under caretaker coach Richard Tardi.

The UAE league leaders followed up a 2-0 win over title-chasing Al Ahli with a 5-0 victory against Al Shaab which will have put them right in the mood for the visit of Saba Battery.

The Iranians have endured a bit of a lean spell domestically and were beaten 4-2 by Iran Pro League runners-up Pas on the final day of the 2005/06 season.

They have been heavily reliant on goals from talismanic striker Ali Daei and the veteran was on the scoresheet again with a free kick 10 minutes from the end against Pas.

Daei has scored three goals in the AFC Champions League and Al Wahda will have to be wary of his predatory instincts or their mini revival could be short-lived.

Group D

Al Sadd (QAT) v Al Quwa Al Jawiya (IRQ)
Al Sadd Sports Club, Doha, 18:45 hrs

Al Shabab (KSA) v Al Arabi (KUW)
King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, 20:45 hrs

Impressive Al Sadd enjoy a three-point lead at the head of the group and they will fancy their chances of doing the double over Iraq’s Al Quwa Al Jawiya and maintaining that healthy advantage.

They go into the match in Doha with a collective spring in their step after defeating Qatar Sports Club 2-1 on Saturday to add the Heir Apparent’s Cup to their league trophy.

Ecuador international Carlos Tenorio, top scorer with 21 goals in Al Sadd’s victorious Q-League campaign, will be keen to add to his tally of two strikes in the ACL as the high flyers go for the jugular against Al Quwa Al Jawiya.

Al Shabab put aside the shock resignation of Ahmed Al Ajlani to clinch the Saudi Arabia league title with a 3-0 playoff win over Al Hilal and they will be full of confidence going into their continental clash with Kuwait’s Al Arabi.

It is a must-win game for the Saudis, who are second in the group, and they will not be taking their enigmatic opponents lightly following their 3-0 reversal in Kuwait City on Matchday Three.

That result came as a shock as Al Arabi had gone down 1-0 at home to Al Quwa Al Jawiya and were trounced 4-1 by Al Sadd.

Al Shabab displayed great resolve to overcome the ACL setback and the departure of their coach and put in a grandstand display against Al Hilal.

That spirit will be a key factor against a Kuwaiti outfit who have struggled to find any consistency this season.

Group E

Da Nang (VIE) v Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (KOR)
Chi Lang Stadium, Da Nang, 16:00 hrs

Dalian Shide (CHN) v Gamba Osaka (JPN)
Dalian Jin Zhou Stadium, 19:00 hrs

Gamba Osaka are arguably the hottest side in Asian football at the moment and they can take a step closer to a history-making spot in the ACL quarter-finals with victory over Dalian Shide in China.

The J.League champions have swept everything before them after a slow start in domestic and continental competition and are poised to become the first Japanese side to make it into the knockout stage of the AFC Champions League.

Gamba, Dalian and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors all have six points after three matches but the Japanese side’s record-equalling 15-0 demolition of Vietnam’s Da Nang in March and 3-0 victory over Dalian a fortnight ago means they have a huge advantage if the group is finally decided on goal difference.

Gamba enjoyed the perfect tonic ahead of the trip to China with a 1-0 win over FC Tokyo which took them to first place in the J.League at the weekend.

The winner came from Brazilian striker Magno Alves, who heads the ACL scoring chart with seven goals.

The Japanese side have yet to win an ACL match away from home – Jeonbuk came from 2-1 down to beat them in Korea Republic on Matchday One – and they will have to overcome that mental hurdle and a resolute Dalian Shide who beat Jeonbuk 1-0 in China.

Since losing in Japan on Matchday Three, Dalian have beaten last year’s AFC Champions League semi-finalists Shenzhen Kingway 2-1 and Wuhan Guanggu 2-0, but lost 3-2 last weekend to Shenyang Ginde after conceding two late goals.

Jeonbuk took the precaution of resting several key players in their 1-0 loss to K-League leaders Seongnam Chunma ahead of their trip to Vietnam and they should have too many guns for group minnows Da Nang who they defeated 3-0 in Korea Republic two weeks ago.