World football stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Sadio Mane, Brozovic, Conte, Savic, Neves and other famous names in the world of football have imposed their strong presence in the Asian competition with Al-Hilal, Al-Nasr and Al. -Ittihad clubs, where they took the leadership of their teams to take the lead in the third, fourth and fifth group matches, in addition… Al-Fayhaa team, participating for the first time in this continental tournament, second place with 9 points.
The strong qualification of the Saudi teams reinforces their strong desire to go far, compete seriously for the AFC Champions League title and lead the continent.
For reference, the lead of 3 teams in the group stage gives Saudi football ambassadors the first classification for West Asian teams, as “Al-Saim”, “Al-Alami” and “Al-Ameet” are guaranteed to make it. The first classification will be in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with Al-Fayha in the second classification along with Uzbekistan’s Nassaf and Nawbagor and Iran’s Seban when the draw for the next round takes place on December 28 in the capital.
A huge success for Saudi football
The success of the Saudi teams in the round of 16 of the AFC Champions League confirms the great potential of the Saudi clubs, and the clear artistic inclusion made by the elite group of world football stars gives a strong boost to the Asian competition. The rest of the journey sees big stars, constant excitement and suspense in the stadiums.
Saudi football ambassadors will shine this year after three teams Al-Hilal, Al-Shabaab and Al-Faisali advanced to the round of 16 last season, boosting their chances of competing for the championship title.
It is noteworthy that Al Hilal Saudi Arabia, who have won 4 titles in the AFC Champions League series, lead the Asian clubs.
Al Ain Emirates’ new Asian number
Regarding the crop of Emirati clubs in the Asian Championship, which entered the group stage with two teams, only Al Ain won to continue the journey, in the same situation where only Shabab Al Ahli qualified for the round of 16 last year. Sharjah and Al Jazeera exited the tournament early.
“The Leader” El Ainaoui set an unprecedented record in his continental record, scoring 15 points for the first time in his career at the group stage.
It is noteworthy that in this edition, Sharjah, the second representative of UAE football, has scored only 8 points and is third in the second group.
The decline of Qatari clubs
Qatari teams recorded a significant decline in the current edition of the AFC Champions League, with Qatari clubs’ share of the continental championship halved this season after Al-Saad and Al-Tuhail failed to progress beyond the group stage. , after previously having 4 seats.
As a result, Qatari football was absent from the round of 16 after being represented by two teams, Al Rayyan and Al Duhail, last year.
The failure of the Jordanian and Iraqi representatives
Since joining the AFC Champions League, the Jordanian and Iraqi clubs have not achieved any positive results and have been eliminated in the group stage.
Since 2019, despite differences in Iraqi football ambassadors, Iraqi teams have not succeeded in getting past the group stage.
Although the Iraqi Air Force performed well in this edition and got 10 points in the third group matches, it did not qualify for the Round of 16 as Iranian team Seban snagged the ticket despite having equal points. Advantage in goals scored.
As for the Jordanian teams that entered the Continental Championship in 2021, the Jordanian Al-Faisali did not succeed in reaching the round of 16 this season as they finished last in the second group with 6 points.
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