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Dubai: Kuala Lumpur Debutants Guangzhou Evergrande will lean heavily on coach Marcello Lippi’s tactical expertise after drawing twice winners Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia in the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League on Thursday.
The ambitious Chinese club pulled off a coup when they appointed Lippi in May and are hoping Italy’s 2006 World Cup-winning coach can plot an upset against their Saudi Arabian opponents.
Al Ittihad, who lifted the trophy in 2004 and 2005, play the first leg at home on September 19 before travelling to China for the return match on October 2.
“Hopefully we will have a good run in the knockout stages but to achieve that target we must first get past Guangzhou and given the investment they have made in recent times, it will be difficult,” said Al Ittihad manager Majid Al Malki.
In other quarter-final matches, Sepahan (Iran) take on Al Ahli (Saudi Arabia), Adelaide United (Australia) lock horns with Bunyodkor (Uzbekistan) and Ulsan Hyundai (South Korea) clash with Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia).
BDST: 2035 HRS, June 15, 2012
Edited by
Chanchal Ghosh, Newsroom Editor