Kuala Lumpur: Group B runners-up of the AFC Champions League, Lekhwiya and Group D winners El Jaish face off in an all-Qatari tie at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha tomorrow.
The kick off is set for 7.15pm.
Having qualified for the group stages via the play-offs by defeating Iran’s Naft Tehran, El Jaish became the first side into the last 16 with two games to spare as they secured just their second appearance in the tournament’s knockout stage.
Two-time quarter-finalists Lekhwiya, meanwhile, will be playing in the second phase of the continental competition for the third time.
El Jaish resumed training yesterday evening ahead of tomorrow’s game, having rested on Saturday, following their 2-1 defeat to Lekhwiya in the Emir Cup semifinals.
The team met at Qatar University Grounds for the training session last evening and Sabri Lamouchi’s side will be eager to get back to winning ways over their local rivals Lekhwiya.
Meanwhile, Lekhwiya also conducted a training session on Saturday evening. Djamel Belmadi’s side could be without one of their star strikers, Mohammed Muntari for the crunch AFC Champions league match. The Qatari international striker suffered a knock against El Jaish in the Emir Cup semifinal and was checked over at ASPETER hospital as a precaution.
The remainder of the squad underwent light recovery training, under the watchful eye of Belmadi and his coaching staff.
Knockout stage debutants Melbourne Victory and Lokomotiv face a pair of continental champions in the last 16 of the AFC Champions League tomorrow as the Australian side host Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors of Korea Republic while the Uzbekistan club travel to Saudi Arabia to face Al Hilal in their first legs.
Melbourne sealed their maiden appearance in the last 16 as Group G runners-up following a 2-1 win over Japan’s Gamba Osaka in the final round of group fixtures earlier this month.
And Kevin Muscat’s side will now await the arrival of Group E winners and 2006 winners Jeonbuk, who have gone on to reached the quarter-final stage or better on six previous occasions.
Like Melbourne, Lokomotiv are also in uncharted territory having exited in the group stage in their only other appearance in the tournament last year.
But after topping Group A, the Uzbek League side will now travel to Riyadh to face two-time Asian Club Championship winners Al Hilal who finished as Group C runners-up.
By contrast to their visitors, Al Hilal are making their ninth consecutive Round of 16 appearance and were semi-finalists last year and finalists in 2014.
Debutants Shanghai SIPG from China also come into the Round of 16 for the first time having topped Group G and earned a meeting with Group E runners-up FC Tokyo from Japan.
The J.League side reached the last 16 in 2012, but will be hoping that a meeting with a Chinese Super League at this stage will have a different outcome after their elimination by Guangzhou Evergrande four years ago. Defender Yuichi Maruyama will, however, be suspended for the first meeting in Japan.
The final fixture in the first round of knockout ties sees a pair of newcomers to the AFC Champions League latter stages with Al Nasr from the United Arab Emirates, who were runners-up in Group A, entertain Group C winners Tractorsazi Tabriz of Iran.
Al Nasr had been eliminated in the group stage of the Champions League in both their previous appearances in the continental competition in the 2013 and 2012 editions, while Tractorsazi have fallen short three times at the same hurdle.
The Peninsula
