Two-time runners-up Al Hilal have reached the knockout stages nine times in the past 10 years, but they were eliminated in the group stage last year.

Coach Zoran Mamic’s men fell to a 2-1 defeat to Esteghlal in Doha two weeks ago, after starting their Continental campaign with back-to-back victories over Al Ain and Al Duhail. Meanwhile, Esteghlal’s win came after an opening day 3-0 reversal at Al Duhail and a 1-1 draw with Al Ain.

The two sides met three times in the past 12 months in the competition, and Al Ain are yet to get a win in three attempts. Al Duhail emerged triumphant on both occasions in the 2018 round of 16, brushing aside the Emiratis with a scoreline of 8-3 on aggregate.

Two weeks ago, Al Duhail were unable to defend a two-goal lead in Doha as Jamal Maroof and Marcus Berg clawed back the difference for Al Ain and the tie ended in a 2-2 draw.

Zobahan are yet to lose a game in Group A, and a third consecutive win could take their tally to ten points. Should Al Zawraa defeat Al Nassr in the other Matchday Four fixture, the ten points will be enough for the Iranians to officially progress to the knockout stage.

Coach Alireza Mansourian’s men had come from behind to seal a 3-1 win at the Zabeel Stadium in the reverse fixture two weeks ago.

Al Zawraa still occupy a qualification spot despite their defeat in the reverse fixture. The Iraqis had not lost nor conceded a goal prior to their trip to Riyadh a fortnight ago. Their first home match saw a crowd of over 27,000 fans.

Al Nassr, on the other side, finally kickstarted their Continental campaign with an impressive 4-1 victory over Al Zawraa two weeks ago, but they still find themselves bottom of the group with an inferior head-to-head record against third-placed Al Wasl.

The Emirati side recovered from a 2-0 defeat to PFC Lokomotiv on the opening matchday to go on and win their two subsequent games. A 4-1 hammering of Al Ittihad was followed by a hard-fought 2-1 win against Al Rayyan in Doha.

Standing out for Al Wahda has been Brazilian winger Leonardo, who netted three goals in as many matches so far, including an added time winner in the reverse fixture two weeks ago.

Despite fighting back from two goals down to equalise in the second half, Lokomotiv fell to a 3-2 defeat in the reverse fixture with Fahad Al Muwallad netting the winning goal from the spot in added time.

The result left the Uzbek side bottom of the group with three points, while two-time champions Al Ittihad are level with group leaders Al Wahda on six points each, but are second on head-to-head record.

A high-scoring affair in Tashkent a fortnight ago ended in a 2-2 draw, with Spanish midfielder Xavi bagging a brace for Al Sadd. The result kept Pakhtakor at the top of the group with five points, while Al Sadd trail by a point and a place.

A win against Al Sadd can put Pakhtakor a step closer to qualifying to the AFC Champions League knock-out stage for the first time in nine years, while three points for the Qataris can put them on track to reaching the Round of 16 for the fourth time in the past six years.