Domestic competitors will collide with the finals in the Asian Champions League

HONG KONG, Oct 18 (Reuters) – Familiar enemies will face battlefields in next month’s Asian Champions League final as Saudi duo Al Hilal and Al Nassr meet on Tuesday ahead of South Korean Ulsan Hyundai and Pohang Steelers.

The semi-final line-up guarantees a match between the clubs of two Asian national football teams. The Saudi Arabian and South Korean teams will meet in the final for the fourth time since 2004.

But before the title-decisive intercontinental clash on November 23, local affairs dominate the construction of the last four meetings of this week.

Al Hilal has been the dominant force in Asian club football for the past three decades, but the second title in the Asian Champions League in three seasons is bitter rivals rival Al Nassr.

The yellow side of the city has long lived in the shadow of Al Hilal, only once until the finals of the leading club competition in Asia, when they lost to South Korea’s Ilhwa Chunma in the 1995 Asian Clubs Championship.

In contrast, Al Hilal is one of the most successful clubs on the continent, winning the Asian Club Championship in 1991 and 2000 before taking over the 2019 Asian Champions League.

Despite history, however, there is little difference between the current teams going to a meeting at Mrsool Stadium in Riyadh.

Both have 12 points from six matches in the starting points of the Saudi Pro League.

– This is a game between two big teams in Riyadh, the former coach of Monaco said.

“The most important thing is the players, not the coaches. We believe that recovery is the most important factor, so we leave the game fully prepared.

– Our goal is to reach the finals.

Defending champion Ulsan Hyundai in the eastern half of the draw has already seen domestic resistance in the form of double-winner Jeonbuk Motors, which Hong Myung-bo’s team won 3-2 on Sunday.

On Wednesday at Jeonju Stadium, they will meet in the K-League, Pohang, who has struggled in recent years to reach the heights previously reached by the club that dominated Asian football in the late 1990s.

During his well-known playing career, Hong was part of the team in 1997, winning the first Pohang Opposite Asian Championship trophy, and now he is waiting for Chief Ulsan’s attempt to emulate consecutive championships.

No team has won consecutive Asian Champions League crowns since Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad in 2004 and 2005. Ullsan wants to join Pohang and Al Hilal as Asia’s only three-time Mainland club champion.

Reporting by Michael Church, edited by Stephen Coates

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