Al Hilal came close to losing their 4-1 advantage from the semi-final, first leg but goals from Salem Al Dawsari and Bafetimbi Gomis secured the Saudi Arabia club a 6-5 aggregate win and a place in the final against either Guangzhou Evergrande or Urawa Red Diamonds.

With the advantage of a three-goal lead from the first leg and a huge crowd behind them, Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal took the game to their opponents from the start, and within five minutes they had created their first big chance.

A 2-0 win for Urawa in the first leg in Saitama, courtesy of long-range strikes from Fabricio and Takahiro Sekine, give the J.League side the advantage going into the tie at Tianhe Stadium, but the hosts impressive record at their home fortress now numbers 21 matches unbeaten in the AFC Champions League.

The seven-time Chinese Super League winners trail the Japanese side 2-0 after the first leg at Saitama Stadium three weeks ago, leaving Cannavaro and his team with a significant challenge to maintain their hopes of becoming the first club to win a third AFC Champions League crown.

Guangzhou first secured the continental title in 2013 before reclaiming it two years later, but the club have failed to reach the final since and the Italian World Cup winner believes confidence in themselves will help Evergrande bridge the gap between themselves and Urawa.

Koroki has found the back of the net on seven occasions in this year’s competition, leaving him two adrift of the tournament’s top scorers Bafetimbi Gomis from Al Hilal and Al Wahda’s former striker Leonardo with Urawa closing in on a third appearance in the competition’s final.

In 2007, Urawa made history as the first J.League club to be crowned Continental kings since Asia's premier club tournament underwent a revamp in 2002-03 to become the AFC Champions League.

A decade later, Urawa repeated their efforts to join Wednesday's opponents Guangzhou, Korea Republic's Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia as the only two-time winners of the AFC Champions League.

Seven times Guangzhou have faced J.League opponents in the AFC Champions League knockout stage, and seven times it has been the southern Chinese side that has emerged victorious.

But at Tianhe Stadium on Wednesday, they face arguably their biggest test yet as they are up against an Urawa side that bring with them a 2-0 lead from the first leg.

A veteran of 12 AFC Champions League tournaments so far, and a winner in 2013 and 2015, Huang Bowen knows full well the challenge his side face.