Some of the clubs may not be too familiar to the likes of Neymar, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema but these superstars now know who they will be facing in the 2023-24 AFC Asian Champions League.
The draw in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday was a low-key affair but all of the 40 teams who start on this journey — with the tournament now an autumn-to-spring affair — know that the quartet of Saudi Arabian clubs are the ones to beat.
With Al-Nassr squeezing through the playoffs with a 4-2 win over Shabab Al-Ahli on Tuesday and going into Pot 4, any group they entered was always going to earn that well-known cliched tag. There is no “death” here though as Group E is alive with talent, history and excitement.
It contains Iranian titans Persepolis, one of the biggest clubs in Asia, and there could be 100,000 fans in Tehran to greet the Yellows when they arrive. That will be quite the clash and will show those who are new to Asian football what the competition is all about.
Al-Duhail are not only the champions of Qatar but reached the semifinals last time around and have Hernan Crespo as coach. The other team in the group is far from a whipping boy too. Istiklol of Tajikistan beat Al-Hilal in 2021 and cannot be underestimated.
Al-Nassr will be fancied to go through given the talent at coach Luis Castro’s disposal but the Portuguese boss, who has had a poor start to the domestic season with two defeats from two, may end up wishing that he had been handed an easier ride.
Al-Hilal’s certainly looks to be a smoother ride to the last 16 and their three opponents have just one previous appearance in the tournament between them. It is less than four months since the Blues lost the final to Urawa Reds and missed the chance to extend their record of four wins to five.
Their Iranian opponents are FC Nassaji Mazandaran. They are little-known outside the country and are making their continental debut after winning the Hafzi Cup. Taking on Al-Hilal will likely be the biggest game in their history, however, and motivation levels will be high. India’s Mumbai City will be a longer trip and their English coach Des Buckingham would love nothing more than to get one over on an Asian titan.
Navbahor complete the group and will make their Champions League debut after finishing second in Uzbekistan’s league last season.
There may not be a better chance for Al-Ittihad to add to their back-to-back titles from 2004 and 2005 when they looked as if they were going to establish an Asian dynasty.
Now Saudi Arabian champions again, their coach Nuno Santo has some homework to do but the group does not look overly taxing, though in Asia you can never be sure.
Sepahan of Iran are experienced campaigners but the league runners-up do not have anything like the same firepower as the Jeddah giants. Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya of Iraq will be delighted to have the chance to test themselves against the likes of Benzema, Fabinho and Kante; while AGMK of Uzbekistan do not have the same pedigree of some of their rivals.
The same can be said of Al-Fahya who also do not have the stars and the stature of their other three domestic counterparts but, under the wily Serbian coach Vuk Rasovic, should give a solid idea of how strong the Saudi Arabian league is.
Taking on Uzbekistan club Pakhtakor, a team that has years of experience in the competition — this is their 19th appearance, a record matched only by Al-Hilal — will be a real challenge. The champions of the Central Asian nation will be tricky opponents but Al-Fahya will be confident of finishing above Ahal FC from Turkmenistan.
The presence of Al-Ain as the fourth seed is a blow however. The UAE club are past winners and will be eyeing top spot. If Al-Fahya can get out of this group it would be as much of an achievement as one of the other three Saudi Arabian clubs going all the way.
Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr are now the ones that everyone wants to shoot down but that is now the new reality in Asian football.
