MD1: Melbourne City FC (AUS) 0-2 Sanfrecce Hiroshima (JPN)

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

MD1: Melbourne City FC (AUS) 0-2 Sanfrecce Hiroshima (JPN)

Melbourne: Second half goals from Marcos Junior and Yotaro Nakajima earned Sanfrecce Hiroshima a winning start to the eastern league phase in the AFC Champions League Elite™ 2025/26 on Tuesday as Michael Skibbe’s side sealed a 2-0 victory over hosts Melbourne City.

Marcos Junior struck from the penalty spot in the 52nd minute and Nakajima confirmed the J1 League side would take the points back to Japan with a brave header nine minutes from time.

 

Hiroshima claimed the win with an improved performance after the interval, with neither side impressing in the first 45 minutes on a slick Melbourne Rectangular Stadium pitch that had endured a pregame deluge.

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Al Ahli showed great character, says Jaissle

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Al Ahli showed great character, says Jaissle

Jeddah: Matthias Jaissle was full of praise for Al Ahli Saudi FC after they turned defeat to victory in their AFC Champions League Elite™ 2025/26 opener on Monday.

The German tactician admitted the defending champions were second best in the first half, allowing Khusain Norchaev to net a brace for the Uzbekistan outfit, before putting on a show to walk away with a 4-2 win.

Soliman, Sanchez satisfied with stalemate

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Soliman, Sanchez satisfied with stalemate

Baghdad: Al Shorta’s Moamen Soliman and Felix Sanchez of Al Sadd SC preferred to look at the positives after their sides shared a 1-1 draw in their AFC Champions League Elite™ 2025/26 clash on Monday.

Soliman, in particular, drew encouragement from the performance of Al Shorta who were not overawed by the occasion at Al Zawraa Stadium with his Iraqi side’s dominance in possession and shot count culminating in Dominique Mendy’s first half opener.

Tadic: Al Wahda must be sharper

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Tadic: Al Wahda must be sharper

Abu Dhabi: Dusan Tadic has called on Al Wahda FC to be more clinical in front of goal after their dramatic 2-1 win over 10-man Al Ittihad Club in their AFC Champions League Elite™ 2025/26 opener at the Al Nahyan Stadium on Monday.

Midfielder Tadic put in a stellar performance with Lucas Pimenta netting a stoppage-time strike to seal a memorable victory over the reigning Saudi Arabian champions. 

Milojevic hails resilient Sharjah; Martins rues Al Gharafa’s missed chances

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Milojevic hails resilient Sharjah; Martins rues Al Gharafa’s missed chances

Sharjah: Head coach Milos Milojevic praised Sharjah FC’s spirit and determination after the UAE side came from two goals down to beat Qatar’s Al Gharafa SC 4-3 in their AFC Champions League Elite™ 2025/26 opener on Monday.

The Emirati leveled the tie through Rey Manaj at the Sharjah Stadium before finding an extra gear to snatch the dramatic win, with Igor Coronado scoring the winner deep into added time with a cool finish.

#ACFutsal Qualifiers cast set sights on Indonesia 2026

Mon, 08 Sep, 2025

#ACFutsal Qualifiers cast set sights on Indonesia 2026

Kuala Lumpur: The journey to the AFC Futsal Asian Cup™ Indonesia 2026 begins on September 20 (Saturday) with the 11th edition of the Qualifiers, which comprises eight groups that will each be played in a centralised league format.

The cast of 31 is the joint-largest since a qualification phase was introduced starting from the 2006 edition and 15 spots at the 18th Finals are on offer, to be filled by the eight group winners and seven best-ranked runners-up. They will be joined by Indonesia, who have automatically qualified as hosts and will stage the tournament for the second time after first doing so in 2002.