JEDDAH: Al-Hilal’s foreign players have made the Saudi team one of the favorites to lift the Asian Champions League Elite title but Gwangju coach Lee Jung-hyo has his sights set on the club’s domestic contingent ahead of the quarter-finals on Friday.
The Riyadh-based outfit are aiming for a record-extending fifth continental title when the finals phase of this year’s competition begin in Jeddah with attention largely focused on the expensively acquired talent within Jorge Jesus’ side.
While Serbian duo Aleksandar Mitrovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic have played key roles in a team of high-profile signings such as Kalidou Koulibaly, Ruben Neves and Joao Cancelo, Lee believes the key to prevailing against Al-Hilal lies elsewhere.
“We have to take care of the Saudi Arabian players, their domestic players,” said Lee, who has led the South Korean club into the continental championship for the first time.
“We know the big name players, we know how they play. We have to keep an eye on Salem Al-Dawsari, Mohamed Kanno or Ali Al-Bulayhi. They’re the players who are the core of Al-Hilal. We have to take care of them.”
Gwangju go into the clash at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium as underdogs having already performed above expectations to reach the last eight.
After a series of impressive displays in the league phase, the Koreans battled back from a two-goal first-leg deficit to eliminate J-League champions Vissel Kobe in the previous round.
Gwangju’s Albanian winger Jasir Asani is the tournament’s leading scorer with nine goals and Lee knows his players will need to be switched on for the duration of the quarter-final if they are to prevail.
“Every minute, every second is going to be very precious for us,” he said. “The game will last maybe 100 minutes and this is a showcase for us, to show to the world how we play.
“Tomorrow’s game is do or die. One is going to win and one is going to die.”
Al-Hilal go into the clash in the middle of a stuttering run of form, prompting Jesus to temper the expectations of his club’s demanding supporters.
“We know that this team (Gwangju) is very strong, that they have had a good performance and good forward with good potential,” said the experienced Portuguese coach. “We will face a team that plays well in a collective way.
“We have watched the games they played before. We are aware of all the details of our opponent and we can say they are a strong team and that will make the match harder.”

AUSTRALIA: All roads lead to Jeddah this week as the top eight teams of this year’s AFC Champions League Elite converge on the coastal city to determine the best club in Asia.

There is a significant shift from the usual home-and-away format that has operated for the past two decades since the AFC Champions League was reformed in the early 2000s.

The quarterfinals, semifinals and final will all be staged in a centralized location over a two-week period, in a move that has divided opinion in Asian football circles.

With Saudi Arabia confirmed as the host for this new centralized format provisionally until the 2028-29 edition, it grants a massive advantage to the three Saudi Pro League sides that qualify for the tournament each season, should they progress this far.

And given the strength of the competition at the moment, it is hard to see a scenario in which the final eight does not include three SPL sides.

This year the clubs are Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr and Jeddah-based Al-Ahli, who get the benefit of not just home nation advantage, but home city and home ground as well.

In an ominous sign for the remaining five sides, the three have dominated proceedings this season. In the 30 games played combined, they have won 23, drawn five and lost just two.

If anyone wants to take the trophy away from Saudi Arabia after the next fortnight’s action, they’re going to have their work cut out for them.

But just how well-placed are Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr and Al-Ahli to be crowned Asian champions this year?

Al-Hilal

Widely considered — especially in their own minds — to be Asia’s biggest club, lifting continental silverware is almost a minimum expectation, which is an almost impossible standard to meet.

And it might prove so this season given their current run of form, having uncharacteristically lost four of their past 10 in all competitions. Such form is tantamount to a full-blown crisis, and yet they remain in the running for both the league and ACL Elite this season.

The return to fitness of Joao Cancelo is a significant boost for Jorge Jesus’ side, with the Portuguese international sidelined since the start of March with a hamstring injury. But getting 26 minutes into his legs off the bench in the 3-0 win over Al-Khaleej is just what the doctor ordered.

Their aura in this competition means they are always a threat and if they can get past South Korea’s Gwangju, a potential clash with Al-Ahli awaits in the semifinals. This would pose a significant challenge having lost 3-2 to Matthias Jaissle’s side last time out.

Al-Ahli

It has been a weird season for Al-Ahli. A slow start in the SPL, with just three wins from their first nine, put them on the back foot from the get-go.

But once they turned their form around they became one of the most in-form teams in the entire competition, even if that was not reflected in their ladder position.

Despite their turnaround in form, however, they have continued to struggle against fellow Big Four teams, with just one win from six against Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad this season.

All the while, in continental competition, they went 7-1-0 in the ACL Elite to look one of the most convincing teams. And backed that up with commanding 3-1 and 2-0 wins over Al-Rayyan in the round of 16.

Perhaps no player epitomizes their persona more than Ivan Toney. Despite bagging 25 goals in all competitions, he does not carry the aura that someone with those numbers ordinarily might. That is Al-Ahli this season. The numbers stack up, but the aura is not quite there.

With home ground advantage over the next two weeks, though, and a first-up clash with Thailand’s Buriram United, they have a chance to achieve something this club has never achieved before.

Al-Nassr

This is the moment for Cristiano Ronaldo to silence the doubters, and there have been plenty since his move to Al-Nassr at the end of 2022.

Firstly Al-Ittihad, and then Al-Hilal, have thwarted his attempts for silverware domestically. And again it looks like they will fall short in that regard this season, especially after their 2-1 loss to Al-Qadsiah last week.

That result left them eight points behind top spot with a dwindling number of games in which to overturn the deficit. But the opportunity to lift continental silverware, with all the reward and prestige that comes with it, remains tantalizingly close.

If they are to do it, Ronaldo will be the man to lead them.

Despite entering his fifth decade on this earth, he shows no signs of slowing down, leading the SPL Golden Boot race with 23 goals, while he has 32 in all competitions this season including seven in the ACL Elite.

If Jhon Duran can find the fire again, with his last goal for Al-Nassr coming over a month ago, they have the firepower to go all the way.

They are facing a Yokohama F. Marinos side in disarray, having just sacked their coach Steve Holland, and sitting bottom of the J. League.

In the quarterfinal they have to be favorites to reach the final from their side of the draw, with a potential semifinal against either Al-Sadd or Kawasaki Frontale.