Ahead to the two match-ups, the-AFC.com has selected four players who have the potential to light up the ties and help guide their sides into the Inter-Zone Final.

The games see Vietnam’s Hanoi FC up against Turkmenistan’s Altyn Asyr and Abahani Limited Dhaka of Bangladesh face DPR Korea’s 4.25 SC as the Zonal champions from the ASEAN, Central, South and East square off. 

With this Inter-Zone format only in its third year since the AFC Cup was remodelled, the-AFC.com looks back at the four previous match-ups from this stage of the Continental competition.

The clashes see ASEAN kings Hanoi FC of Vietnam take on Central Zonal champions Altyn Asyr of Turkmenistan and South Zonal champions Abahani Limited Dhaka go up against their East Zone counterparts 4.25 SC of DPR Korea over two legs.

The reward for the winners is a place in the Inter-Zone Final, meaning the stakes are high ahead of the first legs on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The trophy, a play-off bringing together the country’s defending league and cup champions from the previous season, has now been won five successive times by Altyn Asyr, who are chasing a sixth successive Yokary Liga title this season.

Sitting alongside Masih Saighani, who scored a stoppage-time goal to help the side seal a 1-0 result, the Portuguese labeled the win as massive for Bangladesh football.

Questioned about emotions in the dugout after Saighani’s goal, Lemos said “It was big because Chennaiyin were winning and if we had drawn this game, we would be out. So, it’s massive for the club as well as the country to qualify for the first time.”

The capital city side went into the all-Vietnamese clash at Hang Day Stadium with a 1-0 advantage following last week’s first leg and, after a tight first half which Hanoi shaded, the hosts broke the deadlock just after the hour when top scorer Pape Omar Faye notched his eighth goal of the campaign.

With Binh Duong needing to score twice, Hanoi could breath a little easier and they could have added to their tally, with Nguyen Quang Hai, Ngan Van Dai and Pape Kebe all missing chances as the home side comfortably saw out the closing stages.

But while a league win sandwiched in between the two Continental games made it three victories in eight days over Binh Duong and suggests a comfortable passage to the next round, the capital city side did not have it all their own way.