JEDDAH, 7 March 2007 — Riyadh-based teams Al-Hilal and Al-Shabab open their AFC Champions League campaign against separate opponents today. In the first match, Hilal host Kuwait of Kuwait while Shabab are away to Al-Ain of UAE in UAE.
Hilal and Kuwait are bracketed in Group B along with Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan. A fourth team of this group, Esteghlal of Iran, has been eliminated from the championship. With Shabab and Al-Ain in Group D are Al-Ittihad of Syria, and Sepahan of Iran.
Al-Ain were the 2003 winners of the competition.
Jeddah-based Al-Ittihad won consecutive titles in 2004 and 2005. Chonbuk of South Korea are the defending champions. Shabab are now in UAE for the Al-Ain match. The Shabab coach said that they know that the match is very difficult but they are ready to claim the three points and make a good start. He said that the team came to win and win only as he at the same time downplayed the impact of Al-Ittifaq defeat and the team’s elimination from the Crown Prince Cup competition. He added he knows the strengths and weaknesses of the UAE team and he is ready to deal with them.
Shabab’s team manager, Khaled Al-Mejel, said that his boys prepared very well for the match both mentally and physically after the loss against Ittifaq. He said, “Al-Ain is a very strong team and very developed. We will suffer from their strength but we are ready to face them nevertheless.”
In Riyadh, the Hilal team have never been better in performance both in the Saudi League and the Crown Prince Cup. The players are healthy and fit and ready to rumble.
Hilal enter the match with high moral after the players were given bonuses by the management for winning the Crown Prince Cup quarterfinal match against Al-Hazem.
Also, they will be enjoying the support of their loyal fans at home.
Prince Muhammad ibn Faisal, Hilal club president, gave his team a psychological boost when he visited them at training. “Kuwait are one of the big teams in the region and they are very strong. The fans are urged to come and support Hilal.”
Only the winners after the group matches (one team from each group) will qualify for the quarterfinals along with the seeded team Chonbuk.
