Bahrain champions Al Khaldiya wrap up their Group B schedule today in the preliminary round of the AFC Champions League (ACL) Two 2024-25.
Khaldiya square off with Altyn Asyr FC of Turkmenistan at the National Stadium in Riffa. The game is scheduled for a 5pm kick-off.
Khaldiya are in prime position to claim a spot in the knockout stage heading into this evening’s affair. They need only to match the result of Air Force SC of Iraq, who host Al Taawoun FC of Saudi Arabia in the other divisional clash, to go through.
Air Force and Taawoun face off at Al Madina International Stadium in Baghdad, also set for a 5pm start, Bahrain time.
Khaldiya are coming off a critical 1-2 defeat to Taawoun in their previous outing in the ACL Two. The loss was the second for the Bahrainis in five games, and it left them with nine points on the table.
Taawoun posted their fourth win in five outings and improved to 12 points in solo first place.
Air Force are third on the standings, also with nine points, but Khaldiya hold the tie-break if the pair finish on the same points tonight – having beaten the Iraqis in both their meetings, giving them the edge in the head-to-head.
Altyn Asyr are in last place with zero points. They lost all five of their matches in the competition.
Khaldiya held a training session yesterday under head coach Ali Ashoor at the match venue ahead of today’s game. The visiting Turkmen also trained at the National Stadium.
The ACL Two is the second-tier club competition of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Rebranded from the AFC Cup, it is one level below the AFC Champions League Elite and one above the AFC Challenge League.
There are 32 clubs from across Asia competing this season. They have been divided into eight groups for this opening phase, with only the top two from each advancing.
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