The 66-year-old coach replaces Serbian Vuk Rasovic who recently parted ways with the club following several poor results in the UAE Pro League.

As the kick-off date for the historic 2021 edition approaches, the-AFC.com looks back at the 2020 tournament which turned out to be a thrilling affair despite the challenging circumstances.

We kicked off the series in style with fans voting Persepolis FC's Mehdi Abdi Qara as the winner of the Best Headers of 2020, Ramin Rezaeian of Al Duhail topped the Best Free-kicks of 2020, Al Nassr's Abdulrahman Al Obaid won the Best Long-Range Goals of 2020, while Abderrazak Hamdallah's strike against Qatar's Al Saad on Matchday One was voted as the winner of the Best Team Goals of 2020.

Our next instalment looks at the goals scored right at the very end and invites you, the fan, to tell us which was your favourite.

While the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic ruled nearly all their Asian counterparts out of international action last month, the Central Asian side were in Turkey, competing against two African opponents, as well as the outstanding team in Russian club football, and they emerged with renewed belief in their long-term mission.

Who would you select in an all-time AFC Cup XI? To celebrate the return of the competition in 2021, the-AFC.com is asking the football fans of Asia exactly that.

More than 100,000 football fans from throughout the continent have already selected a goalkeeper and three defenders in our 3-4-3 formation, but who will be tasked with pulling the strings in the centre of the park?

The point gap means Shabab Al Khalil, who last won the league in the 2015-2016 season, cannot be overtaken by outgoing champions Balata Centre due to a superior head-to-head record. There are three rounds left to play.

Muhadov’s first competitive matches in charge will likely come in June, when Turkmenistan continues their bid to top Group H in the current stage of Asian Qualifiers for FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023.

The 59-year-old was appointed by following a decision by the Turkmenistan Football Federation Executive Committee, which met on Friday to confirm a new boss ahead of June’s Asian Qualifiers fixtures.

The 34-year-old midfielder, who spent three-and-a-half years at Italian giants AC Milan, signed for Azerbaijani outfit Neftci until the end of the season on Monday, having been without a club since leaving Brazil's Botafogo in December.

It is quite a change in fortunes for Honda, formerly a mainstay of the national team and the first Japanese player to score at three FIFA World Cups.