2023-24 AFC Champions League

And here is the champions league draw:



Al Duhail vs Al Nasser means I probably will get to see Ronaldo + Mane in Qatar. Hopefully the game is not moot by then (I mean both teams still in contention, which is not always the case with only group winners going through)

 

Leaving aside the spectacle seeing tens thousands of Iranian fans wildly greet Ronaldo upon his arrival with Al Nasr to Tehran in a manner that was rather embarrassing, that is definitely going to be an interesting game to watch for me. Too bad the AFC, as punishment for some stupid social media post by the club dating several years back, has chosen to penalize Persepolis by stripping it the right to have spectators for this game. Azadi stadium would have definitely been sold out for this match and it would have added much to the atmosphere. It would also helped even out the playing field, as Persepolis is meeting an Al Nassr side filled with big name stars including Christiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane, Brozovic, Octavio, Laporte, Farfane, among others.

To be sure, Persepolis is one of the top clubs in the AFC and is no stranger when it comes to taking on teams several times its value on the transfermarket. But this time, the differences are a bit greater than in the past, which makes it even more intriguing to see how Iran's top club (with a starting XI composed typically of just Iranian players) will do against an Al Nassr club filled with foreign international with a transfermarket value (around 200 million Euro) that would compare favorably to even many otherwise noteworthy UEFA clubs?

 

Why were there no fans allowed at the stadium btw? Duhail didn't do much better, getting only a 0-0 draw in Tajikistan v Istiklol so Persepolis are very much in it still. Ahal get Turkmenistan's first ever win in the Champions League beating Al Feiha....

 

In the 2019 AFC CL, where the group stage for Persepolis was hosted in India, the so-called "official Instagram" page for Persepolis had a comment about Persepolis conquering India the way a Persian king (Nader Shah) had conquered Delhi in the 18th century. The Indian officials made a big fuss over the comment and the AFC decided to punish Persepolis by depriving them of spectators in their "next game". Since Persepolis had been deprived of hosting games afterwards because of Covid and other issues, and disqualified from the last AFC CL for failing to meet professionalization guidelines, they applied that penalty for their match against Al Nassr tonight.

The game itself was rather boring. Al Nassr scored their goals after Persepolis was reduced to 10 men and while Al Nassr did create some haphazard chances throughout the match, the overall display by the Saudi club was less than I had expected. With the partial exception of Sadio Mane who played okay, none of their other big stars (Ronaldo, Octovia, Brozovic or Laporte) stood out in my eyes. On the other hand, as to be expected, once Persepolis lost its best player, Torabi, early in the first half to injury they became totally toothless upfront. (The club had earlier lost all of its 3 forwards from last season - Moghanlou and Al Kasir to Sepahan, Abdi to Teractor -- during the transfer window and the replacement striker they had recently signed (a foreign player) couldn't practice with the team because of the flu).

Anyway, overall a disappointing match from my vantage point as it was played in an empty stadium and just felt more like a pick up game than a AFC CL match between two clubs that are very highly rated in the AFC.

 

Damn sorry to hear that. I'm personally really looking forward to Al Nasser coming to Qatar in November. I do hope Ronaldo, Mane and the like play in the match but should be cool seeing the Coutinho v Mane reunion. Also hope we can get tickets for that game, I have a feeling that one will sell out. They won't play at Duhail's 9,000 seater stadium but probably at one of the World Cup stadiums...

 

I should add that Persepolis' prospects depend largely on whether the players that were injured in today's game recover in time. Mehdi Torabi and Vahid Amiri are both Iranian internationals and the best players for the club. Torabi was injured inside the first 10 minutes while Amiri was injured at the end of the match and left the club when Persepolis had no more substitution to make, forcing Persepolis to play the final minutes with 9 men. The absence of these players would really weaken Persepolis especially considering several other issues they face. I don't think this will be a good AFC CL year for Persepolis.

 

@Iranian Monitor off topic, but check out https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/performancezone/ranking/


https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/clubs/players/250070322--alireza-jahanbakhsh/
Celtic match stats.

 

That's why I was surprised at their performance in the last World Cup. A lot of local-based players, and the A-League not doing so well these days. Will be interesting to see how they do in the Asian Cup this year. Should get out of the group stages but I smell an upset vs Uzbekistan in that last game.... then again, we all remember the last Asian Cup match in Doha between Australia and Uzbekistan.

 

Not sure where the other teams are at but the A League is still in pre season and doesn't kick off until Oct 20. Even if you accept that excuse for the first matches our performance in the ACL has been mediocre for some time now. Our club sides simply aren't up to scratch.

 

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023...gue-game-cancelled-in-row-over-soleimani-bust

I was really looking forward to this match. The Naghshe Jahan stadium in Isfahan was packed with fans creating a lively atmosphere to cheer Sepahan when suddenly the Saudis pulled one of their stunts and refused to come to the pitch reportedly due to a statue of slain Iranian general Ghasem Soleimani. According to Sepahan officials, the statue was there when the stadium was inspected and approved by the AFC and yesterday when the Saudis practiced there but the Saudi club had not raised any complaints or objections until 30 minutes before kick off. Lets see if the AFC will penalize the Saudi club with a forfeiture although I'm not holding my breath. Money talks and ...

***​

Al Duhail v Persepolis 0:1
A well played and well deserved win by Persepolis despite missing several key players. Don't know if @glennaldo_sf was in the stadium in Qatar?
In the meantime, in the other match in this group Al Nassr came back from behind to defeat Istighlal of Tajikistan 3:1.

 

No didn't go to this one. Honestly I may have had I known they'd play in their home stadium which is literally right across the street from where I work, but they've been playing a lot of club games in World Cup stadiums which are all a bit farther out. I'll try and go to the Al Nasser game if we can score tickets. Hope Duhail are still in the competition by then but not sure any Qatari teams will be as Sadd also lost to Uzbekistan's Nasaf.

And I agree, the Sepahan game should most definitely be rewarded as a 3-0 win the the home team.

 

3 easy points to Ittihad

 

The AFC instead awarded the match 3:0 to the Saudi club, Al Ittihad. But sometimes things get to work themselves out. Tonight, Al Ittihad suffered an unexpected 2:0 loss to their Iraqi opponent. In the meantime, Sepahan (desperate to improve their goal difference in light of the 3:0 forfeiture) had a record setting performance against their Uzbek opponent, beating them 9:0!

 

Lol - Saudi teams dominating so far, but Uzbek (other than AGMK), Emirati, and Iranian teams also doing well. Qatari teams not so much. Sadd lose to Jordanian Al Fasaily and Duhail could be put to the sword tomorrow at home to Al Nasser. Going to this match but looks as if Ronaldo and possibly Laporte will not play... doubt there'll be another chance to see any of the Saudi teams again in Qatar this year....

 

This was a few days ago:
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/03/...bust-soleimani-iran-saudi-spt-intl/index.html
Iranian soccer club punished, fined for displaying slain’s commander bust that forced cancelation of match against Saudi team

This was from results in Sepahan's group last night:
First you had Al Ittihad lose 2:0 to the Iraqi club, despite Al Ittihad boasting a strong lineup that included Karim Benzema:
https://www.si.com/fannation/soccer...-ittihad-lose-afc-champions-league-debut-iraq
Al-Ittihad Suffer Shock Loss In Iraq On Karim Benzema's AFC Champions League Debut

Then you had Sepahan score 12 goals (3 more or less rightly disallowed by VAR) trouncing the Uzbek visitors 9:0. It was already 4:0 when a red card added to the Uzbek clubs troubles).

 

I did wind up going to the match - Coutinho with a double for Duhail but Talisca stole the show with a hattrick....


And that's probably it for me watching champions league in Qatar as Duhail are virtually out, and Sadd really need to win their last 2 games away to Sharjah and at home to Nasaf to go through. Maybe the game against Nasaf will be worth going to considering how they do v Sharjah.

East Asia threw up some crazy results today. Singapore's Lion City Sailors (another team I saw play last summer) beating and tied on points now with Jeonbuk. Could they actually progress further? Hong Kong's Kitchee get a draw vs Bangkok. Malaysia's Johor also beat Ulsan Hyundai and are also tied on points there. Buriram also got a win away to Malbourne City, and Hanoi beath Wuhan. I know these teams have a lot of foreigners helping them but is ASEAN football catching up just a bit? I cetainly hope so...

 

Also went to Al Sadd v Nasaf. Was actually a pretty exciting game, back to back stuff as both teams needed a win to qualify for the next round. Sharjah's defeat and complete capitulation from 8 points after 4 games and first place, to losing their last 2, the latter to already eliminated Al Faisaly from Jordan meant that Nasaf wins the group while Sadd finish 2nd but are most likely eliminated as one of the 2 non-progressing runners up.

Honestly, I know we can't compare AFC to UEFA but no idea why they can't arrange it so that all the last group stage games are played at once like they do in the UEFA Champions League. Instead we have some games today, some tomorrow but it gives the latter teams an unfair advantage as they know what they need to progress as a runner up. Would be much more exciting if all group games were played simultaneously. There's only a 3 hour difference between Amman and Mumbai in West Asia - totally doable. Bit different in East Asia with all the Aussie teams throwing the time zones off but would be fairer that way.

 

Saudi Arabia: 4 clubs
Uzbekistan: 2 clubs
UAE: 1 club
Iran: 1 club

It’s a pity that we, Uzbeks, had a very good chance to play in the quarterfinals with three teams. But Pakhtakor screwed up, to be honest.