What was to be an epic match opened in appropriately exciting fashion with chances at either end in the first 10 minutes.

First Novri Setiwan’s angled effort from inside the area after three minutes was kept out, before Ceres midfielder Kevin Ingreso saw his own close-range attempt denied by a smart save from Andritany Ardhiyasa.

Last year's AFC Cup matches at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta were unquestionably one of the highlights of the 2018 tournament, with the passionate fans of Persija breaking multiple attendance records for the competition as they packed the stands.

Had Persija defeated Singapore's Home United in the 2018 ASEAN Zonal semi-finals they would have faced Tuesday's opponents Ceres-Negros in the ASEAN Zonal final, but a surprise defeat to the Singaporeans ended the chance of the Indonesia-Philippines clash, and with it Ceres' chance to taste the sensational atmosphere generated at the Gelora Bung Karno.

Until, that is, this week's vital Group G clash in Indonesia's capital.

First up will be Group G on Tuesday, before the eight sides in Groups F and H follow suit a day later in what promises to be another thrilling round of fixtures.

When Marko Simic's off-field concerns ruled him out of Persija's AFC Cup campaign, the club acted swiftly to replace the Croatian in their forward line for the Continental competition, signing Perseru Serui's Escobar.

However, the 32-year-old has struggled to replace the prolific Simic, who netted eight times in the Group Stages of the 2018 edition, and has admitted his troubles fitting into the team.

"It may still be an issue of adapting to the team, there are many new players at the club, so maybe that makes it a little difficult," he said.

Assistant coach Noh Rahman will assume duties at the helm as interim, with Home United in the search for a permanent head coach.

The 2018 AFC Cup ASEAN Zonal winners, lie second in Group H of the 2019 AFC Cup following their dramatic 3-2 win over Lao Toyota of Laos on Matchday Four.

The clash on Wednesday pitted the top two sides in Group H against each other and after conceding a late goal in their home game against Kaya earlier in April, Makassar looked determined from the outset to stamp their authority on the contest.

After Rizky Pellu’s header opened the scoring in the 21st minute, Finnish striker Eero Markkanen doubled the away side’s lead just three minutes later and, from there, the platform for the Indonesian side to go on and eventually win the match was set.