The AFC Champions League is down to the final four, with three former champions still in the mix for continental glory.
UAE’s Al Ain and Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal square off in the West Zone, while Ulsan HD and Yokohama F.Marinos will meet in the East Zone.
On the back of 34 consecutive victories, Al Hilal are raging hot favourites to claim a fifth continental title. Can they be stopped?
Meanwhile, as one of the dominant forces in Japanese football in recent years, can Yokohama F.Marinos, under former Australian legend Harry Kewell, finally make the final for the first time in their history?
We shared our thoughts on The Asian Game Podcast.
Al Ain are in with a chance
Michael Church
Soufiane Rahimi has been absolutely fantastic for our Al Ain in the Champions League this year, and I think if there’s one player who can potentially unlock that Al Hilal defence, it’s him.
I think he’s been exceptional. He’s just so he’s quick. He’s direct, he’s so dangerous on the ball. He scores goals for fun. He’s been playing really well in the knockout rounds of the Champions League. I think Al Ain’s got a chance. I think, you know, Hernan Crespo, is obviously going in with that little bit of a hangover from last year with what happened when he was at Al Duhail and they got absolutely dismantled by Al Hilal.
But I think this Al Ain team is a better team, certainly player for player. I think they’ve got a chance. I think everybody wrote them off against Al Nassr, and I know all Al Nassr are not as good as him as Al Hilal, and I don’t think anybody disputes that, but there were plenty of opportunities for Al Ain to win that in regulation time and I think they’ll give them a game.
Al Hilal look almost unstoppable
Paul Williams
It doesn’t seem like it at the moment, does it? I mean, whether it’s a world record or not, they’re at 33 wins in a row at the moment, which is a remarkable feat in any competition, and they just seem completely invincible.
They just seem a team that is just so well drilled and well constructed that, it almost seems like it doesn’t matter which players are in, they are the sum of their parts. (Aleksandar) Mitrovic comes out and they don’t even miss a beat. You wouldn’t even know that Alexandar Mitrovic has missed the last few games, they’re still banging in goals. Saleh Al-Shehri, who struggles for minutes, comes in picks up goals. Malcom comes in and picks up, Salem Al-Dawsari steps up to the plate as well. So on paper, it’s very hard to see anyone stopping this Al Hilal side at the moment. They’re just incredibly efficient. And I’ve watched a few of their games, they’re not necessarily an incredibly swashbuckling side, they can be at times, they’re just ruthlessly efficient. They are just an incredibly well drilled team. So I think I’ll have Al Ain have got their work cut out for them.
Hard to split Ulsan and Yokohama F.Marinos
Michael Church
I think it’s very tight. It’s a difficult one to call. I think what will be key as well is the fact that we’ve got two coaches at very, very different stages of their work with the teams that they’re working with.
Embed from Getty ImagesHong Myung-bo has been with this Ulsan team for three seasons, I think it is, and has been very successful, certainly domestically, and this is the second time he’s got them into the semi-finals of the Champions League in three years. They know him well, he knows them well, he knows what he’s got to do, and I think they’re they’re pretty well drilled.
Harry Kewell with Marinos is obviously trying to build on the work that was done by Kevin Muscat and Postecoglou, (and) has had a decent start, that win against Gamba (Osaka) the other night off the back of beating Vissel Kobe on the weekend, they look they’re going in with a bit of form.
They maybe scraped through a little bit against Bangkok United with a penalty from Anderson Lopez right at the death in the second leg, and then in the Round of 16 getting through against a good Shandong side who were pretty strong and a pretty robust and Cryzan, the Brazilian who plays up front, and just who scores for fun. That was that was a good win that 3-1 aggregate win against Shandong. It’s a difficult one. I think Marinos will shade it but it’ll be tight.
Paul Williams
It’s incredibly tough to predict this one. This is evenly matched, and going back to what Michael said, I do give Al Ain in a very slight chance in that one, even if their form hasn’t been great, but on paper that one looks easier to predict. This one is incredibly difficult because the form lines of both are pretty similar in the start of their domestic competitions as well. Almost impossible to predict.
Ulsan have got pedigree in this competition, so perhaps you give them the edge for that where Marinos don’t. But, you know, Marinos have only lost one of their last seven and they’re coming in in good form. They’re playing well, they’re getting results in the J.League, so if they’re ever to break the duck in the Champions League, which they’ve been trying to do for a long time now, this is the best chance they’ve they’ve ever had to do it.
So Harry Kewell can perhaps create a little bit of history for himself as well. I honestly cannot predict this one.
Listen to Episode 219 of The Asian Game Podcast as we discuss the AFC U23 Asian Cup and AFC Champions League semi-finals
