Having played a pivotal role in Gokulam Kerala’s I-League championship-winning campaign last year, Sharif Mukhammad was rewarded by being appointed as the captain for the 2021-22 season, and the club are currently on the verge of a second title in as many years. 

The Russia-born Afghan national team midfielder has continued to dictate much of Gokulam’s play from the centre of the park having appeared in all but one league match so far, while he has also chipped in with three goals and two assists.

Mukhammad’s importance in the team is not only reflected in his calm presence on the ball and in breaking up the opposition play, but also by the fact that he is the only player in the defending I-League champions’ squad with previous AFC Cup experience having appeared in the 2020 edition for Maziya S&R.

The 32-year-old is suspended for his side’s title-deciding clash with Mohammedan SC this weekend but will hope to return to AFC Cup as an I-League winner and lead by example for the Kerala club on their continental debut.

With just one goal conceded in three matches in the 2021 AFC Cup, Bashundhara Kings were lauded for their defensive displays despite failing to progress from the group stage, with goalkeeper Anisur Rahman Zico arguably their standout player. 

The young shot-stopper has been one of Bangladesh’s emerging stars in the last few years with his performances in both the Bangladesh Premier League and the AFC Cup helping him cement a place as the national team’s first-choice goalkeeper.

Zico is considered a penalty specialist in his homeland, and he has already managed to display those instincts in the AFC Cup with two penalty saves in four matches to his name. Having also saved 86 percent of shots faced, the Cox’s Bazaar native continues to prove a reliable last line of defence.

This season has seen him keep eight clean sheets in 14 league matches, but it is a first-ever AFC Cup knockout stage appearance that Bashundhara crave most. With key defender and club captain Topu Barman an injury doubt for Group D, Zico will once again have to ensure that the Kings keep it watertight at the back in some challenging fixtures.

Much like Bashundhara Kings, Maziya are the dominant side in their own domestic scene but the Maldivian side have largely been unable to reach those heights in the AFC Cup over the years. 

The Male club will be confident of challenging for a place in the knockout rounds this season, however, with the prolific Cornelius Stewart firing again in the Dhivehi Premier League, having notched 11 league goals to ensure Maziya are sitting pretty at the top of the table.

The 32-year-old is a vastly experienced forward with close to 50 national team appearances for his native Saint Vincent and the Grenadines after graduating from MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps’ youth system before first moving to the Maldives to join TC Sports Club in 2017. 

Stewart has previously grabbed headlines in the AFC Cup qualifying rounds when his goals helped eliminate both Abahani Limited Dhaka and Bengaluru FC to earn the Maldivian club a place in the 2020 group stage, and the Maziya faithful will be hoping for similar exploits from him this time round.

Very few players in the South Zone will attract as many eyeballs as ATK Mohun Bagan’s Liston Colaco, with the young forward in explosive form in the recently concluded Indian Super League season and among the most exciting prospects in the South Asian country. 

Preferably playing on the left side of midfield, Colaco’s ability to take on players and produce silky skills makes him a firm fan-favourite. His impressive haul of eight goals and five assists helped the Kolkata giants reach the 2021-22 ISL semi-finals, before losing to eventual champions Hyderabad FC.

Colaco’s performances also caught the eye of India head coach Igor Stimac as he was handed his first international call-up, making his debut against the United Arab Emirates in March last year, while he also started against Bahrain in the Blue Tigers’ recent match. 

Back in the AFC Cup after one goal and one assist in the 2021 continental campaign, the Goan native will aim to deliver once again against the cream of South Asia with ATK Mohun Bagan looking to improve on last year’s Inter-Zone semi-final showing.