Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: The last eight teams to enter into the group stage of the 2019 AFC Champions League were confirmed on Tuesday after the conclusion of the final play-off round.
The continental competition kicks off in less than two weeks but, before that, join the-AFC.com as we look back on the week in numbers, where comeback wins, a penalty shootout and goals galore all feature.
www.the-afc.com/en/more/photo/sanfrecce_hiroshima_v_chiangrai_united_-_2019_acl_play-off_-_5.html
www.the-afc.com/en/more/photo/liu_junshuai.html
www.the-afc.com/en/club/afc_champions_league/video/play-off_ulsan_hyundai_fc_vs_perak.html
www.the-afc.com/en/club/afc_champions_league/video/play-off_al_nasr_vs_pakhtakor.html
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: Al Ain FC have tasked former Villarreal, Real Betis and Al Ahli boss Juan Carlos Garrido to chart their fortunes in the UAE Pro League and 2019 AFC Champions League.
Garrido, who hails from Spain, replaces Zoran Mamic in the Al Ain hotseat and has been given a contract till the end of the 2018/19 season by Al Ain.
The record 13-time UAE Pro League champions are currently second in the standings on 32 points. They trail leaders Sharjah by five points with 11 matches to play, beginning with Al Nasr on Saturday.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Ibaraki: Having joined AFC Champions League holders Kashima Antlers ahead of the 2019 season, and marked his debut with a goal in the Play-off win over Newcastle Jets, Sho Ito has his sights on Asian glory.
Of the 11 who started Tuesday's AFC Champions League Play-off for defending champions Kashima, only new signing Ito had not been a part of the historic triumph in Tehran last November.
But the former Yokohama F. Marinos forward took little time in adjusting to the continental game, opening the scoring at Kashima Soccer Stadium in the 18th minute with his maiden goal for the club.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
London: Everton defender Tyias Browning joined Chinese Super League (CSL) club Guangzhou Evergrande for an undisclosed fee on Wednesday.
Browning made just nine appearances in all competitions for Everton after emerging from the Premier League team's youth academy.
The 24-year-old played 29 times on loan for Sunderland during the 2017-18 season as the Black Cats were relegated from the Championship.
Browning was unable to break into the Everton line-up under new boss Marco Silva and had spent the current campaign playing for the club's Under-23 side.
"Defender Tyias Browning has joined Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande for an undisclosed fee," a statement on Everton's website announced.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jinan: Shandong Luneng defender Liu Junshuai's equaliser set the Chinese Super League side on their way to their ninth appearance in the AFC Champions League after a 4-1 win over Hanoi FC on Tuesday.
Former quarter-finalists Shandong had kicked off their play-off match against Hanoi, yet to appear at the Group Stage, as favourites but the Vietnamese champions impressed in the first half, taking a deserved lead through captain Nguyen Van Quyet before the break.
Coach Li Xiaopeng responded by bringing on Liu Junshuai for Wu Xinghan after the restart and the 24-year-old made the difference, firing home after Hanoi's defence failed to deal with a Liu Binbin header across goal.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Dubai: Despite coolly tucking the ball into the bottom corner, Dragan Ceran has admitted he felt nervous prior to opening the scoring from the spot in Pakhtakor's 2-1 win over the United Arab Emirates’ Al Nasr that saw them progress to the AFC Champions League group stage.
After beating Iraq’s Air Force Club in Tashkent in last week’s preliminary round, the Uzbek team had to win away at Al Maktoum Stadium in the play-off round on Tuesday to secure a place in the continental competition, but when they conceded an early penalty it looked like they could face an uphill battle.
Spanish striker Alvaro Negredo missed before Serbian Ceran was handed his own chance from the spot, one which he duly accepted by guiding the ball into the bottom left corner to put his team a goal up just after the half hour.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Al Rayyan: Qatari side Al Rayyan will make their ninth appearance in the AFC Champions League following their 3-1 win over Islamic Republic of Iran's Saipa in Tuesday's play-off, and defender Mohammed Al Alawi believes that the 2019 edition could be a special one for The Lions.
So far the record reads: eight AFC Champions League appearances, eight AFC Champions League Group Stage eliminations for Al Rayyan.
But with a comeback win over Iranian side Saipa in the play-offs to confirm a ninth continental campaign, 2019 could be the year that breaks the knockout stage drought according to fullback Al Alawi.