JEDDAH, 31 December 2007 — Al-Ittifaq hope to win their second straight Gulf Clubs Cup championship crown and fourth in team history when they face Al-Jazirah of UAE today in the second leg final match in UAE.

Ittifaq enter the match with a two goals lead on aggregate having won the first leg match by 2-0 in Dammam last Monday.

Ittifaq will be looking to celebrate both a new year and a new title in the season with a victory in the crucial contest.

Ittifaq qualified for the semifinals of the competition after coming second in Group A with 7 points. In the semifinal, Ittifaq battled Riyadh-based Hilal club. In the first leg match in Dammam on Oct. 23, both teams drew 1-1. In the second leg match in Riyadh, Ittifaq defeated Hilal 1-0 on Nov. 27 to qualify for the final.

Al-Jazirah of UAE made the semifinals as the top team from Group A with seven points to face Nasr of Oman. Al-Jazirah defeated Nasr 2-0 in the first leg match in UAE and 1-0 in the second leg match in Oman to reach the final on 3-0 aggregate.

The journey is not going to be easy for Ittifaq as the team are to play in front of a hostile UAE crowd. In the language of football, it is easy to overturn a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 victory. For Ittifaq players the first leg match was now behind them and they are strictly focusing on the final match.

Ittifaq have three chances to clinch the title: lose 1-0, draw at any result or win at any result.

Ittifaq coach Tony said that Al-Jazirah is very dangerous and it will be a difficult match to play. He said, “I am sure the Al-Jazirah coach reviewed the first leg match and identified the mistakes and in the final match he is going to avoid them.” He said that Ittifaq team is ready and players are ready and that they promised to come back from UAE with the trophy.

Ittifaq midfielder Faisal Al-Dossary said Al-Jazirah is a powerful team that will play a death match to overturn the first leg result and win. He said the stadium will be packed with cheering fans from the UAE side and Ittifaq must be ready for it. He said, “We love matches that are full of crowds and we will be ready for them. We will come strong from the beginning and will not give them the chance to take control of the match.”

Ittifaq is the most successful Gulf and Saudi team in the competition with three title wins in 1983, 1988 and 2006. Out of 22 championships played, Saudi teams secured the title 12 times with Ittifaq as the only three-time winner so far. Al-Ahli won twice in 1985 and 2002, as did Al-Hilal in 1986 and 1998, Al-Nasr in 1996 and 1997 and Al-Shabab in 1993 and 1994. Ittihad won in 1999.