Al Ain team returns to the continental arena, raising the slogan of compensation in front of its Qatari host, Al Gharafa, in the confrontation that will bring together the two sides at ten o’clock this evening, UAE time, at Al Bayt Stadium (Al Khor), within the second round of the AFC Champions League (Elite). After stumbling to a 1-1 draw in the first round against Al Sadd of Qatar.
What most enhances Al-Zaeem’s chances of achieving the three points is the good condition experienced by the players, who booked their place in the second stage of the Confederations Cup at the expense of New Zealand’s Auckland City FC with a 6-4 victory, in addition to the exciting victory over Al-Wasl in the “Al-Wasl” match. El Clásico 4-2 in the fourth round of the ADNOC Professional League.
It is unlikely that the squad of Argentine coach Hernan Crespo, who knows his Qatari rival well during his previous career with Al-Duhail, will witness any changes, and he is expected to continue using the “fake striker” plan, which continued to bear fruit from one match to another, at the expense of the presence of Togolese striker Laba Kodjo, who started. He gradually loses his position.
On the other hand, Al-Gharafa, the owner of the land and the fans, is not experiencing its best condition, as in the first round it was defeated 0-3 by Iran’s Esteghlal Tehran, and it also lost in the local Qatari championship 2-4 against Al-Sadd, but these difficulties may turn into motivation for the team, as Victory over a team the size of Al-Ain could restore stability and give it a big boost.
It is noteworthy that despite the long history of the two teams, today’s confrontation is the first in the history of the two sides’ meetings in the Asian competition, noting that there was only one confrontation that brought them together previously, but it was in the Gulf Champions League Club Championship in 2001, which was decided by Al-Zaeem with a score of 1- zero.
• The two teams met only once in the Gulf Club Championship in 2001, which ended 1-0 with Ainawiyeh.
Rehabilitation program for the injured trio
Al Ain Football Club Company announced through its official account on “X” that the trio, Laba Kodjo, Muhammad Abbas, and Issa Khalfan, failed to accompany the “Zaeem” delegation to Doha, and the club stated that the three are still undergoing a rehabilitation program to recover from the injury.
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