While opponents Al Hilal sit top of the Saudi Pro League in its early stages, Urawa are dangerously near the J.League’s drop zone with just two games to play and, should domestic results go against them on Saturday, the Saitama side could go into the second leg looking worryingly over their shoulders.

With just over two weeks left of the Reds' season, the-AFC.com looks at what will be a crucial few games in the history of one of Japan’s biggest clubs.

While some have been away on international duty, others have remained with their club sides and have enjoyed some free time, with trips abroad, music gigs and pet play all featuring in the-AFC.com's latest social wrap.

In 16 previous finals, history shows that the team that loses the first leg tends not to be crowned champions. Only Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad have managed the feat and that was back in 2004.

That does not, however, mean there haven’t been some classic encounters over the years and the-AFC.com has picked out five to whet your appetite ahead of Sunday’s game at Saitama Stadium.

In a repeat of the 2017 final which Urawa won 2-1 on aggregate after drawing the first leg 1-1 in the Saudi capital, it was Al Hilal who controlled the vast majority of the game, recording 22 shots to the J.League club’s two.

But Al Hilal only have one goal to show for their dominance, with Andre Carrillo’s 60th-minute header the only time the visiting defence was breached as the 1-0 scoreline leaves the contest intriguingly balanced ahead of the return meeting at Saitama Stadium on November 24.

Al Hilal were good value for the win and could have won by a bigger margin but the fact that, said Otsuki, the Saudi Arabia side didn't gives Urawa a fighting chance in the November 24 return leg in Saitama.

With the international break to take centre stage over the next week before the return meeting at Saitama Stadium on November 24, the-AFC.com looks back at the facts and figures that caught the eye at Riyadh's King Saud University Stadium.

Photos: Al Hilal, Urawa Red Diamonds

A 1-0 first-leg win, and importantly no away goals conceded, can be seen as a positive for Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal, who in their previous final appearances drew (2017) and lost (2014) the first legs.

However, Urawa, too, may see the result as somewhat satisfactory. Missing their first choice goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa through a one-match suspension, and on the back foot for most of the tie, a single goal deficit with a trip to their home fortress to come may be deemed acceptable.