Yeah, I really hope the egos making the decisions at AFC would find it in themselves to eat some humble pie and change the format again. There really is no need to play "Interzone Play-Offs" in the tournament proper as it really dilutes the whole point of the competition. Perhaps they can simply expand the qualification process with home-and-away ties like they have in the Europa League qualification rounds, and keep the AFC Cup as a 32-team competition.
So, now that two Iraqi teams will play each other in next round, will they be able to play their games at home?
Hopefully. FIFA will decide whether they lift the ban on 11 May (and it seems that they will lift it partially for friendlies) so I have a feeling that the second leg will be moved to Iraq.
ASEAN semifinals are set, Philippines are now powerhouse there. Global - Home United Johor Darul Takzim - Ceres Great match-ups. To be played 16/17 and 30/31 May. There's Iraqi duel in West. Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya - Al-Zawraa Al-Wahda (SYR) - Al-Wehdat (JOR) 15/16 and 29/30 May. There are still two matchdays to be played in groups representing SAFF, CAFF, EAFF. Bengaluru suffered humiliating defeat in Bangladesh, but has it's destiny in it's own hands as they host Maziya on last day.
Kuala Lumpur: Seven sides from the West and ASEAN Zones joined Singapore's Home United in the Zonal Semi-finals of the 2017 AFC Cup after another action-packed three days on the continent. Clubs from Iraq, Syria and Jordan progressed from Groups A to C in the West while the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore provided the ASEAN qualifiers from Groups F to H as the tables reached a thrilling climax. West Zone The four sides from Group C took centre stage on Monday with group leaders Al Muharraq of Bahrain travelling to second-placed Al Wehdat of Jordan needing just a point to top the standings. But unbeaten Al Wehdat have been in formidable form in front of their home fans and ran out 3-2 winners thanks to Baha Faisal’s decisive strike to advance as group winners and leave their opponents sweating on other results in their quest to progress as the best-placed runner-up in the West. Oman’s Saham Club, meanwhile, defeated Lebanon’s Nejmeh SC 3-1 to finish third in the standings after the battle of the two eliminated sides. A late Alaa Abdul Zahra penalty secured a 1-1 draw for Al Zawraa with already eliminated Al Ahli of Jordan a day later as the Iraqi side claimed the point they needed to wrap up top spot in Group A. A win for second-placed Al Jaish over bottom side Al Suwaiq of Oman would have guaranteed the Syrian team a place in the Zonal Semi-finals as either group winners or the highest-placed runner-up. A surprise 2-1 reversal, however, meant the early pacesetters in the group were ousted. Another Syrian side, Al Wahda, stormed to a 6-0 victory over bottom team Safa SC of Lebanon to temporarily move top of Group B, two points ahead of Bahrain’s Al Hidd and defending champions Air Force Club of Iraq, who would meet in Tuesday’s later game. And it was Amjed Radhi’s second-half header that secured top spot for the holders, while Al Wahda pipped both Al Muharraq and compatriots Al Jaish to claim the fourth and final berth in the Zonal Semi-finals. An all-Iraqi affair will take place between Air Force Club and Al Zawraa in the first-leg of the Zonal Semi-finals on May 15, leaving Al Wahda and Al Wehdat to square off in the second semi-final a day later. The return fixtures take place at the end of May. ASEAN Zone The ASEAN Zone began proceedings on Tuesday with the three-team Group H, where Home United had already booked their place in the Zonal Semi-finals following a 4-1 win over Myanmar’s Yadanarbon two weeks ago. The Singaporean side sat out this week as Vietnam’s Than Quang Ninh claimed a 3-0 victory at Yadanarbon to finish second as both sides were eliminated. Group G kicked off first on Wednesday with all four teams in the hunt for a place in the next round. Bienvenido Maranon bagged an early brace as table-toppers Ceres Negros of the Philippines saw off Tampines Rovers 4-2 to advance as group winners and bring an end to the Singaporeans’ hopes. Second-placed Hanoi FC scored four second-half goals to sweep aside bottom team Felda United of Malaysia 4-1 and finish joint top of the standings but behind Ceres, by virtue of an inferior head-to-head record, as the Vietnamese team were left to wait to see whether they would advance as the best-placed runner-up. Another Philippines side, Global FC, went into their final Matchday on top of Group F and they made it five wins from six following a 3-1 victory over Cambodia's Beoungket Angkor to advance in pole position. That left 2015 AFC Cup winners Johor Darul Ta’zim needing a win to claim the fourth and final Zonal Semi-final spot and, after falling behind early on, Argentine striker Gabriel Guerra netted a hat-trick as the Malaysian team defeated Myanmar's Magwe FC 3-1 to progress and end Hanoi’s knockout phase dreams. Next up for Johor will be Ceres in the two-legged Zonal Semi-finals, while Global take on Home United. The first-leg of the ties are set to take place in mid-May with the return fixtures to be held at the end of the month.
You might as well just hand the trophy to the winner of the West Zone. Don't get why the AFC insists on splitting East v West in its competitions. It does nothing to aid development.
I guess one of the main reasons is to cut down on travel costs. Some of the clubs, particularly those from the East don't even have their own websites, let alone electricity and running water. The sheer size of the continent is one of the greatest handicaps AFC have in comparison to other confederations. Still, I have to agree with your point. Teams should progress on merit rather than because of where they're based from. The tournament proper should contain 32 teams, 16 each from both zones, and teams from both sides should be drawn against each other in the round of 16.
Federations get money from the AFC and FIFA expressly to cover these costs. The costs of a website, electricity, and running water for a team facility for one year is a lot less than 3 round trip voyages in Asia for 25 people. As long as the format is the way it is- the power structure will remain the same. With all the quality outside the big four concentrated in West Asia.
You mean it does nothing to aid the development of countries from West Asia. How do you expect football to gain traction from some of these countries in the East if they don't have more chances to participate in international competition. This is the reason competitions like the President's Cup and the AFC Cup where created which is to provide the lower tier countries more chances to experience international competition both at the international as well as at the club level. Besides as has been pointed out with the sheer size of the continent many of these clubs wouldn't even participate in this competition, as they could not afford the travel expenses especially with a home and away format. It is the AFC's responsibility to grow the sport of football not only in West Asia but throughout the entire continent, so this format makes sense in this regard. As for the funds provided by FIFA, a lot of it is being used to initiate grassroots initiatives for both men's and women's football as well as training facilities and expenses for the various national teams. The clubs are supposed to fend for themselves and not depend upon FIFA funds.
Palestine doing just fine competing against West Asian opponents. 10 years ago there was no consistent league play and the national team exited WCQ after losing 4-0 to Singapore and forfeiting the second match.
I know Palestine is doing fine. Their constant exposure to good teams and clubs is helping them develop rapidly. But you have to give teams from the East who don't have that same exposure as much as experience as they can get. Many of their clubs(and I am not referring to those top clubs from the Philippines who actually have the means to travel anywhere in Asia to participate in competitions) will not participate in the AFC Cup qualifiers if the travel expenses become too prohibitive, or be too inconvenienced by the travel time(could reach 14 hours or more in each direction in some cases) needed to reach distant venues in Asia in the middle of their crowded league schedule.
The AFC should expose these clubs to clubs in other parts of Asia and cover the costs. The format as it is now is just stunting development.
As expected, the match against Maziya and Abahani Limited saw the home fans get vastly outnumbered against the away fans. We saw a repeat of the same scenario last year when both Maldives and Bangladesh played a friendly. Perhaps they should consider playing a few "home" friendlies in Maldives, the same way Brazil plays exhibition matches in Europe. Football appears to be the favoured sport among Bangladeshi expats, which is refreshing to see.
AFC Cup 2017 matchday 5 Altyn Asyr 4–1 Alay Osh Dordoi 1–4 Istiklol Maziya 2–0 Dhaka Abahani Mohun Bagan 3–1 Bengaluru FC Erchim 0–5 April 25 West Asia Zonal semi-finals Al-Wahda 4–1 Al-Wehdat ASEAN Zonal semi-finals first leg Global Cebu 2–2 Home United Johor Darul Ta'zim 3–2 Ceres–Negros
AFC should look into Kyrgyzstani clubs Alay Osh and Dordoi "performances". Especially today, a big farce, both teams were involved in criminal stuff. It is sad because there is many Kyrgyzstan national team (who have improved in past few years) players involved and also Tajiki current starting goalkeeper Abduazizov Mahkamov. Still both teams should be given a life ban at least for club competitions, maybe Makhkamov and his defence line for national team also.
FULL-TIME | Ceres-Negros FC are through to the #AFCCup2017 ASEAN Zone Final on the away goals rule after their tie against JOHOR Southern Tigers ends 4-4 on aggregate They will face Singapore's Home United in the ASEAN Zone finals.
It was 3rd time in a row this happened with Alay. They have bet against themselves to lose the first half in their last 3 AFC Cup matches. Today there was a twist: after first half it seemed it was Dordoi who bet against themselves on the second (the odds turned upside down prior to the muppets acting acordingly). At least Alay's innocence seems unlikely. I think the last goal was a coincidence, they were probably aiming for a 4-4.however 5-4 filled their requirements also.
Maziya players and coaching staff have admitted that they are finding it difficult to come to terms with their elimination from the group stage. Despite having the upper hand in both their games against Bengaluru FC, Maziya lost by the solitary goal, which came via freekicks on both occasions. In previous seasons their points tally would have seen them comfortably qualify for the knockouts. In the end though, the fact is that this is their fifth season in the AFC Cup and they have never progressed past the group stage. Group D also saw a similar scenario where Turkmen side Altyn Asyr got knocked out despite amassing 13 points.
I really hope this what happened to those two will force funny organization to change their minds and revert to old format or start something new.
ASEAN Zonal Finals Fixtures August 2 Home v Ceres August 9 Ceres v Home Winners will face Istiklol (TJK)
FT: Home United Football Club 2 - 1 Ceres-Negros FC Home United win the first-leg of the 2017 AFC Cup ASEAN Zonal Final by a slim margin! Home United Football Club edge this 2-1 but Ceres-Negros FC have the away goal!