t one time, the group
stage of the Asian
Champions League
used to take place
over a period of
three months. But
this year, due to COVID circumstances,
it happened over the space of a few
weeks in April and May. Clubs from the
usual suspects of Saudi Arabia,Japan
and South Korea provided eight of the
16 teams that made it to the knockout
stages, but that does not mean
there were no surprises.
Upsets in group stage
Leading contenders for the AFC Champions League fall at the first hurdle
A
The tournament is divided into two
geographic halves until the final, and in
the western zone, Qatari powerhouse
Al Sadd were the biggest failures.
It didn’t help that all five groups in
the west were hosted in Saudi Arabia,
but even without any home advantage,
Al Sadd were seen as good enough
to not only get out of their group but
to win the whole thing. This is a team
that won their league unbeaten for
the second season running, had Santi
Cazorla and Andre Ayew pulling the
strings as well as the Algerian goalmachine Baghdad Bounedjah and
much of Qatar’s national team. Coach
Xavi may have left for Barcelona but
former Watford and Valencia boss
Javi Gracia had picked up where
his countryman had left off.
But just like Xavi last year, Gracia
failed in Asia as the Doha club finished
third in their group.
Saudi Arabia dominated. The Riyadh
duo, defending champions Al Hilal
and Al Shabab, made it look easy by
progressing with games to spare, and
were joined by debutants Al Faisaly.Shock...Malaysia’s
Johor Darul Ta’zim
pipped champions
ofJapan Kawasaki
Frontale in Group IAsia
JOHN DUERDENU p d a t e