AFC Champions League March 2007

[Beejayville]

Challenge Ahead for Adelaide United & Sydney FC Adelaide United & Sydney FC have found themselves in tough groups following the AFC Champions League 2007 draw which was held in Kuala Lumpur today. Sydney have been drawn in Group E with Urawa Reds (Japan), Shanghai Shenhua (China) & Persik Kediri (Indonesia), whilst Adelaide United are placed in Group G with Dong Tam Long An (Vietnam) , Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (Korea Republic) & Shandong Luneng (China). The winner of each of the seven (7) groups will progress to the Quarter-Final stage along with the current champions, Jeonbuk Motors of Korea Republic. The fourth edition of Asia’s premier club competition kicks off on March 7 and concludes on May 23. The competition then takes a pause for the AFC Asian Cup 2007 (July 7-29). The home-and-away quarterfinals are slated for September 19 and 26 while the semi-finals will be held on October 3 and 24. The two-legged Final is scheduled for November 7 and November 14. AFC Champions League 2007 - Groups Group A: A1: Al Arabi (Kuwait) A2: Al Wahda (UAE) A3: Al Rayyan (Qatar) A4: Al Zawra (Iraq) Group B: B1: Pakhtakor (Uzbekistan) B2: Kuwait Sports Club (Kuwait) B3: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) B4: Esteghlal (Iran) Group C: C1: Al Karameh (Syria) C2: Neftchi (Uzbekistan) C3: Al Najaf (Iraq) C4: Al Sadd (Qatar) Group D: D1: Al Ain (UAE) D2: Al Ittihad (Syria) D3: Sepahan (Iran) D4: Al Shabab (Saudi Arabia) Group E: E1: Urawa Reds (Japan) E2: Sydney FC (Australia) E3: Shanghai Shenhua (China) E4: Persik Kediri (Indonesia) Group F: F1: Bangkok University (Thailand) F2: Kawasaki Frontale (Japan) F3: Arema Malang (Indonesia) F4: Chunnam Dragons (Korea Republic) Group G: G1: Adelaide United (Australia) G2: Dong Tam Long An (Vietnam) G3: Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (Korea Republic) G4: Shandong Luneng (China) AFC Champions League 2007 - Match Day Schedule Match Day 1 – Wed 7 March 2007 Match Day 2 – Wed 21 March 2007 Match Day 3 – Wed 11 April 2007 Match Day 4 – Wed 25 April 2007 Match Day 5 – Wed 9 May 2007 Match Day 6 – Wed 23 May 2007 Match Day 7: 19 September 2007 (Quarter-Final 1st Leg) Match Day 8: 26 September 2007 (Quarter-Final 2nd Leg) Match Day 9: 3 October 2007 (Semi-Final 1st Leg) Match Day 10: 24 October 2007 (Semi-Final 2nd Leg) Match Day 11: 7 November 2007 (Final 1st Leg) Match Day 12: 14 November 2007 (Final 2nd Leg) * All Matches to be played on Wednesday nights AFC Champions League 2006 Champions – Jeonbuk Motors (Korea Republic)

[AJ]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw some fantastic betting ops here

[Beejayville]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw

some fantastic betting ops here

Do you know much about any of the teams listed AJ? I might have to do some research and post in here if I can find anything. Any betting ops that stand out to you right now???

[AJ]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw not so much myself, but I have some iraqi friends with good knowledge of middle eastern soccer. They feel that groups A, C & D should contain some massive mismatches. Be interesting to see the prices

[Beejayville]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw Well your inside knowledge may result in some very useful information regards this comp and that will be great to have so we can take advantage of it. I might do a bit of research on the teams and see what I can find out that may be useful from a betting perspective. there is bound to be anomalies in team quality and if we have some info then it could lead to some good bets to be had. Cheers :cheers

[Beejayville]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw FIFA World Rankings for the competing Leagues at December 2006

Country	Ranking
Iran	38
Australia	39
Uzbekistan	45
Japan	47
Korea Republic	51
Qatar	58
Saudi Arabia	64
Kuwait	78
Iraq	83
China	84
UAE	87
Indonesia	101
Syria	112
Thailand	137
Vietnam	172

[AJ]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw I expect the saudi teams to do well, they have money, iranian teams strong at home, weak on the road. iraqi teams just poor, all matches played away from home (can you guess why ?) The aussie teams will be very hard to beat at home, Adelaide are a great footballing team on their day, but I wonder how well they'll travel. J league teams will be strong. I'd expect the winner to come from east rather than west asia.

[Beejayville]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw Found a review of the AFC Champions League groups on a FIFA site. Group A: Too close to call The first group could also looks to be the most difficult to predict, with no big favorites and all four teams well capable of qualifying for the second stage. Kuwaiti Cup winners Al Arabi can draw inspiration from Al Qadisiya, their fellow countrymen who stormed into the last four in the previous edition, while UAE league runners-up Al Wahda will be confident of impressing in this, their third AFC Champions League campaign. Iraqi league champions Al Zawra'a and Al Rayyan of Qatar are by no means there merely to make up the numbers and could well spring a surprise. Group B: Fifth time lucky for Pakhtakor? Having played in all the previous four editions of the Champions League, Uzbekistan double-winners Pakhtakor, which translates as Cotton-pickers, are the obvious stand-out in Group B. Although they have yet to pick up any continental laurels, they have demonstrated tremendous potential by coming within a whisker of reaching the final in 2003 and 2004, on both occasions bowing out only after heart-breaking semi-finals defeats. Nevertheless, the Central Asians will have their work cut out to progress from arguably the toughest group of all alongside Saudi Crown Prince Cup holders Al Hilal, Iranian champions Esteghlal and Kuwait's top side, Al Kuwait. Group C: Another Al Karama fairy tale? After witnessing Al Karama's shock run to the final this year, who would argue against the Syrians' chances of spring another surprise next year? Their hopes of a repeat have certainly been boosted by a draw which has placed them in one of the less formidable groups, alongside with Uzbekistan league runners-up Neftchi, Qatari champions Al Sadd and Iraqi runners-up Al Najaf. Group D: All eyes on Al Ain The inaugural winners and the only team to have reached the knockout stage in each of the past four editions, Al Ain will once again be among the favourites, but the UAE outfit will first need to survive numerous potential banana-skins in a tricky Group D. Iran's Hafzi Cup holders Sepahan will be no pushovers, and Saudi league champions Al Shabab and Syrians Al Ittihad both come into the competition with impressive pedigree at the top level. Group E: Sydney to struggle? Being pitted against two eastern Asian giants and the Indonesian champions was not the kind of introduction Sydney FC were hoping for. It is for good reason that the reputation of Japanese double-winners Urawa Reds and Chinese runners-up Shanghai Shenhua extends far beyond their national borders, while Persik Kediri are an up-and-coming club of which the Aussies should be very wary. Group F: Eastern expectation If the tournament's history has taught us anything, it is that the Eastern Asian sides have tended to prove too strong for their Southeastern opponents, whose last and only appearance in the knockout stage came in the inaugural edition, when BEC Tero of Thailand reached the final. Thus, most will expect supremacy in Group F to be fought over by Korean FA Cup winners Chunnam Dragons and J.League runners-up Kawasaki Frontale. Thai champions Bangkok University and Indonesian cup holders Arema Malang are the teams hoping to buck the trend. Group G: Seongnam look to shine Having gone so close in 2004, where they entered into the final return leg with an 3-1 away victory only to crumble 5-0 at home to Al Ittihad, Korean league champions Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma are intent on banishing that memory by claiming the coveted continental title. However, they will need to call on all their tactical nous, fighting spirit, and an extra ounce of luck emerge from a group that also features ambitious Australian outfit Adelaide United - currently boasting Romario in their ranks - along with Chinese double-winners Shandong Luneng and Vietnamese champions Dong Tam Long.

[Beejayville]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw Sydney may find it hard to win this competition as it is only the WINNER of each group that go through into the next round, and not first and second like most other Group competitions. Sydney face some top opposition to win their group.

[Beejayville]

Re: AFC Champions League 2007 Draw Tough start for Sydney Sydney FC will begin its AFC Champions League campaign against 2006 Chinese Super-League Runner-Up Shanghai Shenhua on March 7, following the release of the full tournament draw on Saturday. The 2005 Hyundai A-League premiers will then do battle with Japanese Emperors Cup winner Urawa Reds on March 21 before traveling to face Indonesian Champion Persik Kediri on April 11. In Group G, Adelaide United have a tough first round assignment against 2006 Chinese Super-League victor Shandong Luneng on March 7. United then play a fixture against two-time Vietnam league winner Dong Tam Long An FC on March 21 before facing off against Korean superpower Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma on April 11. Following the completion of the first three games, teams play each other a second time at the group stage, which concludes on May 23. The winner of each of the seven groups, as well as current Champions League title holder Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors of Korea, will then proceed to the quarter final stage, which involves both home-and-away legs. The tournament will take a break during July as the AFC Asian Cup gets underway and resume in September with the quarter-finals. Teams advancing to the semi-finals will play matches on October 3 and 24 with the two-legged final scheduled for November 7 and 14.