Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Pyongyang: DPR Korea’s 4.25 SC and Turkmenistan’s Altyn Asyr will square off in the first leg of the AFC Cup Inter-Zone final at Kim Il Sung Stadium on Wednesday with the clubs just one round away from October’s final.
The game marks the furthest into the tournament any side from DPR Korea or Turkmenistan have been and both teams have arrived at this stage having yet to taste defeat.
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Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: With the AFC Cup Inter-Zone Play-Off final featuring DPR Korea's 4.25 and Turkmenistan's Altyn Asyr, we roll back the clock to the last time clubs from the two nations met in an AFC competition.
The AFC's third club competition became defunct after the 2014 edition, with clubs from nations that previously participated in the President's Cup now offered the chance to compete in the AFC Cup.
The last-ever AFC President's Cup match brought together Turkmenistan's FC HTTU head-to-head with DPR Korea's Rimyongsu in the 2014 final held in Sri Lanka's biggest city, Colombo. Four years on, teams from the two countries are vying for a place in the AFC Cup final.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: Among the many goalscorers to have grabbed the headlines in the 2018 AFC Cup has been Altyn Asyr’s Altymyrat Annadurdyyev, who has struck eight times in as many games in the Turkmenistan side’s march to the Inter-Zone final.
The pacey forward was one of the main reasons the Ashgabat club advanced to the knockout rounds for the first time, after falling short in both 2016 and 2017, and he will be key if Altyn Asyr are to defeat DPR Korea’s 4.25 SC over two legs.
Annadurdyyev is three goals behind the competition’s top scorer, An Il-bom of 4.25, and should Altyn Asyr overcome the Pyongyang team, then the 25-year-old may find himself in the position to finish as the leading marksman in a campaign that has been dominated by the continent’s strikers.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: Altyn Asyr’s upcoming appearance in the AFC Cup Inter-Zone Semi-finals marks the first time a side from Turkmenistan has reached the competition’s knockout rounds, having also done so with an unbeaten record.
The Ashgabat-based club were crowned Central Asia Zonal champions after Mihail Titow’s 97th-minute goal in May ousted Tajikistan’s FC Istiklol to book a date with India’s JSW Bengaluru, who Istiklol eliminated in last year’s competition en route to their second appearance in the final.
With Central Asian sides having been represented in the AFC Cup in every edition but one since the inaugural tournament in 2004, the-AFC.com looks back at how its sides have performed over the years as Altyn Asyr look to continue the region’s recent upward trajectory.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Amman: Dark horses Al Jazeera welcome reigning champions Air Force Club to Amman International Stadium for the first leg of the 2018 AFC Cup West Asia Zonal Final on Tuesday.
The two sides come face-to-face for the third time in the competition, having been pitted against one another in Group A, where both fixtures ended in draws.
In a match that saw three penalties awarded and scored, Al Jazeera snatched a late equaliser to get a 2-2 draw with Air Force Club on the opening matchday. The scenario was reversed on Matchday Five with an added time Amjed Radhi strike earning the Iraqis a 1-1 draw.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: Al Jazeera and Air Force Club prepare to lock horns for the third time in the 2018 AFC Cup, and this time a place in the final is the prize.
The Jordanian surprise package and the reigning champions from Iraq have already faced-off twice in the group stage, with both fixtures ending in draws. Air Force Club travel to Amman for the first leg of the West Asia Zonal final, hoping to move a step closer to third successive AFC Cup title.
We spoke to journalist Hassanin Mubarak, who covers Middle Eastern football for London-based daily newspaper Arab News and has contributed to the likes of World Soccer and When Saturday Comes magazines.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: As Air Force Club prepare continue their pursuit of a hat-trick of AFC Cup titles, we recall how the Iraqi side won the first-ever West Asia Zonal final 12 months ago.
Following the introduction of a new format last year, Jordan's Al Jazeera are set to lock horns with the reigning champions for a place in the 2018 AFC Cup final, where the West Asia Zonal final winners face the Inter-Zone final winners.
Air Force Club have only lost one tie in the competition since last year, against Syria's Al Wahda in the first leg of the 2017 West Asia Zonal final.