Preview - Group A: Sharjah (UAE) v Al Hilal SFC (KSA)

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Preview - Group A: Sharjah (UAE) v Al Hilal SFC (KSA)

Riyadh: Head coach Cosmin Olăroiu is hoping Sharjah upset Group A leaders Al Hilal SFC when the clubs meet in the AFC Champions League™ 2022 at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium on Saturday.

Al Hilal have sealed their passage into the knockout stage after scoring three unanswered goals against Tajikistan’s Istiklol on Matchday Four. For Sharjah, their quest for qualification hangs in the balance following their 3-1 defeat to Al Rayyan of Qatar.

Sharjah are third in the standings behind Al Rayyan and victory against Al Hilal may seem like a tall order for the Emirati side but Olăroiu was optimistic of their chances against the defending champions.

www.the-afc.com/en/club/afc_champions_league/video/acl2022_-_group_a_|_al_rayyan_sc_qat_3_-_1_sharjah_uae.html

www.the-afc.com/en/club/afc_champions_league/video/acl2022_-_group_a_|_fc_istiklol_tjk__0_-_3_al_hilal_sfc_ksa.html

Preview - Group A: Al Rayyan SC (QAT) v FC Istiklol (TJK)

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Preview - Group A: Al Rayyan SC (QAT) v FC Istiklol (TJK)

Riyadh:  Head coach Nicolas Cordova is confident his Al Rayyan side can cement second place in Group A of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 with victory over Tajikistan’s FC Istiklol on Saturday.

Al Rayyan have seven points from four matches and trail group leaders Al Hilal SFC by five, while Istiklol are bottom with no points to show.

The Qatari side came back from a goal down to defeat a plucky Istiklol 3-2 on Matchday One and another victory against the Tajikistan outfit will put Cordova’s men in the driver’s seat to claim a top two finish in Group A.

Preview - Group E: Al Faisaly FC (KSA) v Al Wehdat (JOR)

Sun, 24 Apr, 2022

Preview - Group E: Al Faisaly FC (KSA) v Al Wehdat (JOR)

Dammam: Al Faisaly FC head coach Marinos Ouzounidis and his Al Wehdat counterpart Raed Assaf exchanged praise for each other’s teams ahead of their do-or-die encounter on Matchday Five of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 Group E on Saturday.

The teams had played out a 1-1 draw in their campaign opener a fortnight ago when Dutch midfielder Hicham Faik curled in a free-kick within 12 minutes for his side’s first-ever goal in the competition, before Ahmed Samir found the bottom corner five minutes after the restart to bring the game level and help his side collect their first point.

Preview - Group E: FC Nasaf (UZB) v Al Sadd SC (QAT)

Sun, 24 Apr, 2022

Preview - Group E: FC Nasaf (UZB) v Al Sadd SC (QAT)

Dammam: Qatar’s Al Sadd are set to throw everything they have at FC Nasaf when the two sides face on Saturday with only the three points keeping the winning side in the race to progress from Group E of the AFC Champions League™ 2022, according to head coach Javi Gracia.

There was drama aplenty when the two sides locked horns at the start of the campaign, with Al Sadd seeing full-backs Abdelkarim Hassan and Pedro Miguel sent off after the latter’s evening was already on a downward slope, having scored an own goal half an hour in. 

Despite the calamities, the Qataris equalised in the second half through Boualem Khoukhi and held out to a 1-1 draw.

Group H: Late goal seals Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors win over Hoang Anh Gia Lai

Sat, 23 Apr, 2022

Group H: Late goal seals Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors win over Hoang Anh Gia Lai

Ho Chi Minh: Substitute Moon Seon-min scored three minutes into injury time to claim a 1-0 victory for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors on Friday as the two-time winners maintained their unbeaten start to Group H of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 in dramatic fashion.

Moon struck with time ticking down to move Jeonbuk onto seven points from their first three games and into pole position in the standings as the group phase reaches the halfway stage.

HAGL, meanwhile, remain bottom of the table after being denied a second draw of the campaign and the Vietnamese side’s hopes of a place in the knockout rounds suffered a major blow due to Moon’s late strike.

Marcinho determined to lead Kawasaki’s revival

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Marcinho determined to lead Kawasaki’s revival

Johor Bahru: Kawasaki Frontale Brazilian winger Marcinho believes his side were unfortunate not to have snatched a victory in their stalemate against AFC Champions League™ 2022 Group I leaders Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) on Thursday. 

The impasse meant the Japanese side remained in second place, two points adrift of their Malaysian rivals in a gritty affair that saw Marcinho emerge as a constant thorn in the JDT defence, with most of Kawasaki’s offensive launches being orchestrated from the Brazilian’s left wing.

Hong urges for greater self-belief in Ulsan turnaround

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Hong urges for greater self-belief in Ulsan turnaround

Johor Bahru: Ulsan Hyundai head coach Hong Myung-bo acknowledged that his charges would need to be more clinical and incisive if there are to emerge as serious contenders to advance to the Round of 16 of this year’s AFC Champions League™.

After securing just the solitary point in their opening two fixtures, the Horangi were able to salvage a lifeline when they defeated bottom side Guangzhou FC in their AFC Champions League™ 2022 Group I Matchday Three contest on Thursday to register their first victory of the campaign.

But while Hong’s men were able to notch a 3-0 triumph over Guangzhou, their dominance was still inferior to their more clinical Group I rivals – leaders Johor Darul Ta’zim and second-placed Kawasaki Frontale – both of whom managed to secure resounding 5-0 and 8-0 victories respectively against the youthful Chinese side. 

Uphill battle ahead, concedes Jeonnam Dragons boss Jeon

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Uphill battle ahead, concedes Jeonnam Dragons boss Jeon

Pathum Thani: Jeonnam Dragons head Jeon Kyeong-joon admitted his side have almost no margin for error in their bid to reach the AFC Champions League™ knockout stage following Thursday’s 2-1 defeat to Melbourne City FC.

The K League 2 side fought valiantly against the champions of Australia, but a first-half strike from left-back Lee Kyu-hyuk wasn’t enough to cancel out the goals from Carl Jenkinson and Andrew Nabbout which came either side of it in a frantic first half.
 
The result is a serious blow to Jeonnam’s hopes of reaching the Round of 16, with back-to-back defeats to BG Pathum United and Melbourne City putting them four points behind the top two and making last Friday’s 1-0 win over United City seem like a distant memory.

Score line didn’t reflect United City’s performance, says Withe

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Score line didn’t reflect United City’s performance, says Withe

Pathum Thani: United City FC head coach Jason Withe threw his support behind his defeated players, saying their performance deserved more than the 5-0 loss they were eventually handed by AFC Champions League™ Group G leaders BG Pathum United on Thursday.

The Filipino outfit showed signs of improvement from their earlier defeat against Melbourne City, and at times tested their in-form hosts, but a late avalanche of goals ensured BG Pathum walked away with their biggest ever win in the competition.
 
With the hosts holding a 1-0 lead for most of the second half, it was a 76th-minute error by goalkeeper Anthony Pinthus which provided the turning point, with Worachit Kanitsribumphen scoring the first of four goals in what became a horror 12-minute spell for United City.

Gama hails Daegu players for perfectly executing game plan

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Gama hails Daegu players for perfectly executing game plan

Buriram: Head coach Alexandre Gama was proud of how hard his Daegu FC players worked to follow the game plan, which led to them picking up their second win in Group F of the AFC Champions League™ 2022 on Thursday. 

Zeca scored eight minutes into the second half to end Urawa Red Diamonds’ winning streak, overtaking the J.League club in pole position and placing them firmly back in contention to win the group. 

Yu pleased with Shandong Taishan’s improvement, expensive lesson for Lion City Sailors

Fri, 22 Apr, 2022

Yu pleased with Shandong Taishan’s improvement, expensive lesson for Lion City Sailors

Buriram: Head coach Yu Yuanwei was more than satisfied with the improvement of his Shandong Taishan FC side after they earned their first point in Group F of the AFC Champions League™ on Thursday. 

Shandong, having picked up valuable lessons from their heavy defeats to Daegu FC and Urawa Red Diamonds, held Singapore's Lion City Sailors FC to a goalless draw at the Buriram City Stadium.