Australian Torcaso named Philippines women’s head coach

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Australian Torcaso named Philippines women’s head coach

Manila: The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) has announced Mark Torcaso as the new national women’s team head coach, fresh off their historic FIFA Women’s World Cup debut. 

Torcaso’s appointment comes three weeks after PFF parted ways with Australian Alen Stajcic, who joined A-League side Perth Glory.

Otavio leaves Porto for Al Nassr

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Otavio leaves Porto for Al Nassr

Lisbon: Midfielder Otavio has left Porto for Saudi club Al-Nassr in a deal worth 60 million euros, the Portuguese club said on Tuesday.

The Brazilian-born Otavio joined Porto in 2014 from Internacional and made his international debut for Portugal in 2021.

Skorza: Nakajima a perfect fit for Urawa

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Skorza: Nakajima a perfect fit for Urawa

Saitama: Urawa Red Diamonds head coach Maciej Skorza praised the performance of new midfielder Shoya Nakajima as the defending champions booked their place in Thursday’s AFC Champions League™ 2023/24 group stage draw with a 3-0 win over Hong Kong’s Lee Man.

Goals from Yoshio Koizumi and Shinzo Koroki inside the opening six minutes put Urawa on their way to a comfortable win before Takahiro Sekine applied the finishing touch in injury time.
 
Nakajima played an instrumental role in his side’s success, with the former FC Tokyo playmaker involved in both of the opening goals on his first start for the club since joining from Antalyspor as Reds made light work of last season’s Hong Kong Premier League runners-up.

The Asians who shone at #FIFAWWC

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

The Asians who shone at #FIFAWWC

Kuala Lumpur: The curtains came down on the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 on Sunday after the tournament saw a record overall attendance of more than 1.9 million in the stands and Spain crowned the new world champions on the pitch after beating England in the final. 

The tournament was also a landmark event for Asian football as co-hosts Australia won hearts as they battled their way into the semi-finals while former world champions Japan inflicted a stunning 4-0 defeat on eventual winners Spain and both the Philippines and Vietnam debuted. 
 
With the dust now settled on the ninth edition of the tournament, the-AFC.com takes a look at the players that stood out from each of the record six nations that represented Asia at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023. 

Playoff: Al Arabi (QAT) 0-1 AGMK (UZB)

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Playoff: Al Arabi (QAT) 0-1 AGMK (UZB)

Doha: AGMK FC booked their place in the AFC Champions League™ 2023/24 group stage with a narrow 1-0 win over Qatar’s Al Arabi thanks to a Ruben Sanchez goal at Al Thumama Stadium on Tuesday.

The Uzbek side return to the competition for the second time in their history after 2021 when they finished fourth in their group despite collecting a respectable tally of seven points.

Playoff: Al Wakrah SC (QAT) 0-1 Navbahor (UZB)

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Playoff: Al Wakrah SC (QAT) 0-1 Navbahor (UZB)

Al Wakrah: Uzbekistan’s Navbahor edged Al Wakrah SC of Qatar 1-0 in extra time on Tuesday to advance into the AFC Champions League™ 2023/24 group stage.

After a goalless 90 minutes at the Al Janoub Stadium, second half substitute Doniyor Abdumannopov sealed the win for Navbahor in the 98th minute.

Playoff: Al Nassr (KSA) 4-2 Shabab Al Ahli Dubai (UAE)

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Playoff: Al Nassr (KSA) 4-2 Shabab Al Ahli Dubai (UAE)

Riyadh: A brace from Anderson Talisca helped Al Nassr to a late 4-2 comeback win against Shabab Al Ahli at King Saud University Stadium to advance to the AFC Champions League™ 2023/24 group stage on Tuesday.

The win was a relief for Al Nassr, who had opened their 2023/24 Saudi Pro League campaign with back-to-back defeats. 

Playoff: Tractor FC (IRN) 1-3 Sharjah FC (UAE)

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Playoff: Tractor FC (IRN) 1-3 Sharjah FC (UAE)

Tabriz: Sharjah FC of United Arab Emirates dashed the hopes of Islamic Republic of Iran’s Tractor FC of returning to the group stage of the AFC Champions League™ after they secured an impressive 3-1 win in their playoff tie on Tuesday.

Sharjah’s success was achieved with clinical finishing and steely defensive work which sealed their passage to the AFC Champions League™ group stage for a fourth consecutive season. 

Playoff: Al Khaldiya SC (BHR) 2-3 Al Nahda (OMA)

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Playoff: Al Khaldiya SC (BHR) 2-3 Al Nahda (OMA)

Arad: Al Nahda staved off a fightback from Bahrain's Al Khaldiya SC to book a place in the AFC Cup™ 2023/24 group stage with a 3-2 win in their playoff tie on Tuesday.

Al Nahda were quick to seize control at the Sheikh Ali Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Stadium and will now look forward to Thursday's group stage draw in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Playoff: Al Ittihad Al Ahli of Aleppo Sport Club (SYR) 2-1 Shabab Al Khalil (PLE)

Wed, 23 Aug, 2023

Playoff: Al Ittihad Al Ahli of Aleppo Sport Club (SYR) 2-1 Shabab Al Khalil (PLE)

Ta'if: Syria’s Al Ittihad Al Ahli of Aleppo Sport Club progressed to the group stage of the AFC Cup™ 2023/24 after edging Palestine’s Shabab Al Khalil 2-1 in a playoff at King Fahd Stadium on Tuesday.

Al Ittihad, who qualified for the AFC Cup preliminaries by virtue of being 2021/22 Syrian Cup champions, took the lead just before half time and never looked back, putting Thursday's draw in AFC House firmly in their attention.