Al Faisaly's Ouzounidis remains grounded after historic result against Al Sadd

Tue, 12 Apr, 2022

Al Faisaly's Ouzounidis remains grounded after historic result against Al Sadd

Dammam: Head coach Marinos Ouzounidis insisted his Al Faisaly side’s objective in the AFC Champions League™ 2022 remains to enjoy the experience, despite a historic 2-1 win against two-time champions Al Sadd on Monday.

The Saudi side, appearing in continental competition for the first time in their history, had picked-up their first point on the opening matchday against Al Wehdat, but on Monday they went one further and defeated Qatari powerhouse Al Sadd despite falling behind within four minutes of kick-off.

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'It was a game of two halves', says Nasaf's Berdiev after late triumph over Al Wehdat

Tue, 12 Apr, 2022

'It was a game of two halves', says Nasaf's Berdiev after late triumph over Al Wehdat

Dammam: FC Nasaf head coach Ruzikul Berdiev believes his side showed two different faces during their 2-0 win against Jordan’s Al Wehdat in Group E of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 on Monday.

In what was the third match between the two sides, who had faced-off in the 2011 AFC Cup semi-finals, Al Wehdat were the better team in the opening period, dominating possession and coming closer to opening the scoring on multiple occasions.

Berdiev’s men, however, produced a stellar second-half display that culminated in two late goals from Serbian playmaker Marko Stanojevic who placed the opener from the edge of the area in the 71st minute then adding his second from the spot with a ‘Panenka’ five minutes from time.

Al Hilal’s best is yet to come, warns Michael

Tue, 12 Apr, 2022

Al Hilal’s best is yet to come, warns Michael

Riyadh: Al Hilal SFC’s Michael claims the defending champions are only just warming up following their 3-0 win over Qatar’s Al Rayyan in Group A of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 on Monday.

Al Hilal took a first half lead through Abdullah Al Hamdan before goals from Mohammed Kanno and Nasser Aldawsari completed the comfortable win at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium.

Buckingham revels in milestone win for Mumbai City

Tue, 12 Apr, 2022

Buckingham revels in milestone win for Mumbai City

Riyadh: Des Buckingham took pride in Mumbai City’s historical victory at the King Fahd International Stadium after edging Iraq’s Air Force Club 2-1 in Group B of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 on Monday.

Air Force Club took the lead in the second half through substitute Hammadi Ahmad before Mumbai City came back fighting with Diego Maurício slotting home from the penalty spot and Rahul Bheke scoring the winning header 15 minutes from the end.

AFC Champions League™ 2022 (EAST) – The Host Cities

Tue, 12 Apr, 2022

AFC Champions League™ 2022 (EAST) – The Host Cities

Kuala Lumpur: Between April 15 and May 1, four cities across three countries in Southeast Asia will be the venues for the East Zone of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 (EAST) group stage with Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam hosting the 19 teams.

In an effort to ensure continuity of Asia’s premier club competition despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, the AFC held the 2020 edition in a centralised format in Qatar, with the cities of Doha and Al Wakrah hosting the games.

Last year, hosting rights for group stage matches were divided between Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and India for the West, while Uzbekistan and Thailand hosted games in the East. 

Ahead of kick-off of the 2022 (East) edition, the-AFC.com profiles the four host cities.