Al Zayani, who guided Saudi Arabia to the 1984 championship - the first of three AFC Asian Cup titles the West Asian nation has won - collected 77 percent of the votes on a poll on the-AFC.com.

Al Zayani was one of 10 nominees. Check out the nominees below and the result of the poll at the bottom of the article.

With Team Melli facing a huge challenge in the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023, Skocic has been busy scouting players ahead of Iran resuming their Group C campaign in October.

Back-to-back defeats to Bahrain and Iraq mean Iran have to win their remaining four matches to advance to the third round of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifiers and Skocic is determined to have the best players available.

On March 27, 2018, Yemen made history when they qualified for UAE 2019 for what was their maiden appearance (as a unified nation) at the AFC Asian Cup. And while they suffered three straight group-stage defeats at the hands of IR Iran, Iraq and Vietnam, their appearance at the Finals provided a solid foundation to build on.

The West Asian side then made a strong start to the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023. They drew 2-2 with Singapore in Kallang and took a point from Asian heavyweights Saudi Arabia, before recording their first win in Group D with a Matchday 5 triumph over Palestine.

It therefore came as a surprise when the South Asians were suddenly thrust into the global spotlight in 2013, when ace striker Ali Ashfaq was named the 'World's 2nd Best Top Goal Scorer' of the year by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS).

With only goals in international and major continental club competitions taken into consideration, Ashfaq, with 23 such goals that year, trailed global leader Cristiano Ronaldo by just two, but was five goals clear of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and eight clear of Lionel Messi.

Last week we presented the candidates for the 2018 edition's best goalkeeper, and now it's time to turn our attention to defenders.

So, here are the 14 players in contention for the four places in the backline. Review the nominees and then choose your favourite defenders for this all-star XI in the respective polls.

Owairan's superb effort was picked as the best from a list of 20 goals the-AFC.com shortlisted in polls which were conducted over the last three weeks.

From a delightful tournament-winning strike in Qarshi to impudent efforts in Al-Ram, Arbil, Dhaka and Cibinong, our latest edition of the '5 of the Best' really does cover the length and breadth of the Continent. So enjoy the selection and don't forget to vote for your favourite in the poll below!

Also take a look at past editions that feature acrobatic goals, solo goals, volleys, long-range screamers, free-kicks, last-minute winners and curlers.