The Saudi Jeddah Federation is looking to achieve its second successive victory in the third group competition AFC Champions League 2023-24, when he visits Sepahan Isfahan, Iran, on Monday evening, in the match scheduled to be held on the floor of “Naghsh-e Jahan” Stadium in the city of Isfahan, on the opening day of the second round of the group stage of the continental championship.
And inaugurated the Union Their journey in the tournament ended with a 3-0 victory over Agmak of Uzbekistan, to lead the group with 3 points, while Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya of Iraq tied with Sepahan in second place with one point for each team.
Al-Ittihad is armed with an arsenal of professional stars, such as Brazilian Fabinho and Frenchman N’Golo Kante, but Karim Benzema will miss the confrontation due to injury, and it is expected that the team’s coach, Portuguese Nuno Espirito Santo, will rely on the duo of Romarinho and Abdel Razzaq Hamdallah in the front line.
To calculate the same group, solve air Force As a guest of Agmak, the Iraqi representative seeks to achieve his first victory in the tournament, in order to compete seriously to reach the knockout rounds, noting that Al-Quwa tied 2-2 with Sepahan in the first round.
Al-Duhail is counting on Coutinho
And in a strong fifth group, he is searching Victory The Saudi team, led by Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo, announced its second victory, after its first victory against Iranian Persepolis, when it receives the Tajik Istiklal team on Monday.
Al-Nasr is currently performing well, after a slow start in the local league. It achieved 6 consecutive victories, and climbed the standings to become fourth, two points behind leaders Al Hilal.
And he searches Al Duhail Al-Qatari gets the three points when it hosts Persepolis, after a goalless draw with Esteghlal away from home.
The task of the team of Argentine coach Hernan Crespo, which reached the semi-finals of the previous edition, will not be easy for the Iranian team seeking to compensate for its loss to Al-Nasr.
During the current period, Al-Duhail is suffering from mediocrity in the technical performance of the team that narrowly won over Al-Markhiya in the local league 2-1, after falling before that to Al-Gharafa 2-3.
Al-Duhail is counting on the participation of its new star, Brazilian Philippe Coutinho, who recorded his first appearance at the local level against Al-Markhiya, and performed at a remarkable level. Where he contributed to his team’s two goals.
Sharjah and Al-Faisaly for the first win
In the second group, he looks forward Sharjah The Emirati and his guest Al-Faisaly The Jordanians achieved their first victory.
Sharjah returned from Doha with a goalless draw against Al Sadd, while Al Faisaly lost to Nasaf Uzbekistan 0-1 in Amman, in the first round.
Any stumble for the two teams will be costly, especially with the change in the qualifying system for the round of 16, in which the champion of each group now advances, along with the best 3 second-place teams in the five West Asian groups.
Sharjah will try to reconcile with its fans after losing to its guest Al Ain 2-3 on Thursday, which is the team’s second loss after passing 4 stages of the local league, leaving it 6 points behind the leaders.
In addition to its local failure, the Emirates Cup champion played a good Asian match against Al Sadd in the first round, and is counting on playing two consecutive matches at home. They face Al-Faisaly today, Monday, and then Nasaf on October 23, to improve their position in the group.
Malian striker Moussa Marega will return to the Sharjah roster after he missed the Al Sadd match, due to his lack of physical readiness, due to his late joining the team from Al Hilal Saudi Arabia.
Sharjah coach, Romanian Cosmin Olario, said after starting the Malian striker in the Al Ain derby: “Marega was not with us in the external preparation camp and preparations for the new season, and therefore it is natural that he will need a period to adapt and harmonize with the team.”
On the other hand, the Al-Faisaly delegation, led by Tunisian coach Ghazi Al-Gharairi, headed to Sharjah with full ranks and high morale after qualifying for the round of 16 of the Jordan Cup, with a major victory over Hartha from the second division, 8-0.
In turn, he engages Damthe two-time defending champion, received an important test at Nasaf Stadium in Namangan City.
Al Sadd enters the match with great morale after topping the local league, after defeating Al Gharafa 4-0, benefiting from the fall of former leader Al Rayyan to Al Wakrah 2-3.
Al-Zaeem has many winning cards, led by Akram Afif, who has excelled in recent matches, along with Ecuadorian Gonzalo Plata, Brazilian Paulo Otavio, and Colombian Mateus Uribe.
