UAE's Al Nasr set to take on Tractorsazi in tussle of first timers

Top Stories

UAEs Al Nasr set to take on Tractorsazi in tussle of first timers
Jonathan Pitroipa (right) of UAE's Al Nasr vies with Sherzod Fayziev of Lokomotiv during their ACL match.

Dubai - AFC Champions League Round of 16 first leg to be played tonight at The Blue Wave home turf

By James Jose

  • Follow us on
  • google-news
  • whatsapp
  • telegram

Published: Mon 16 May 2016, 8:52 PM

Last updated: Tue 17 May 2016, 12:45 AM

Al Nasr walk into the unknown when they take on Iran's Tractorsazi Tabriz in the Round of 16 of the AFC Champions League and it would be interesting to see how the Blue Wave chart their course in the knockout stage of the competition.
The Round of 16 is played over two legs - home and away - and Al Nasr will be eager to get a good result when they play hosts at their fortress - the Al Maktoum Stadium on Tuesday night. Al Nasr travel to Iran for the return leg to be held at the Yadegar Emam Stadium on May 24.
Ivan Jovanovic's men negotiated their way from a tough Group A which included two-time winners Saudi Arabia's Al Ittihad, Uzbekistan's Lokomotiv and Iranian side Foolad Mobarakeh Sepahan, to come away unscathed.
Despite their frailties in the Arabian Gulf League which saw them finish fourth, Al Nasr painted a different picture in the continental competition, with a hot streak of sorts, so to speak.
The Oud Metha club have not tasted a loss in five games, their only defeat coming at the hands of Sepahan, a 2-0 verdict in their group opener in late February. Since then, Al Nasr have gone on to win two - avenging the defeat to Sepahan by the same margin, and a crucial 2-1 result on the road against Al Ittihad.
That has been a pretty decent run for a side which had lost 10 of their 13 previous games during their two unsuccessful bids to make it out of the group stages in 2012 and 2013, under Walter Zenga.
Al Nasr have undergone changes in personnel since then with fine reinforcements coming in the form of Luis Antonio Jimenez from Dubai rivals Al Ahli, Jires Kembo-Ekoko and Jonathan Pitroipa, summer buys from Al Ain and Al Jazira respectively as well as former Lyon and Villarreal striker Nilmar from Internacional.
And these acquisitions, along with the abundant Emirati talent that they possess, have made the Blue Wave a crack outfit and ready to compete at the upper echelons of Asia.
Al Nasr sure have come a long way since logging just a single point in 2013. They ended their group engagements with nine points, one behind toppers Lokomotiv after both played out 1-1 and 0-0 stalemates over both the legs.
Al Ittihad, who had won back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2005, while also finishing runners-up in 2009, were tied on nine points with Al Nasr. But the Blue Wave made the cut as the second team because of their better head-to-head record, having beaten the Saudi giants.
And here they are, for the first time in the Round of 16 and the fifth club from the UAE to do so after inaugural champions Al Ain, Al Ahli, Al Jazira and Al Shabab, since the format was introduced in 2009.
Like Al Nasr, it is a first for Tractorsazi Tabriz too. The Iranian side's previous three appearances in 2013, 2014 and 2015 saw them finish last in the group.
But this time, Amir Ghalenoei's side topped Group C with 12 points after four wins and two losses.
So, it is a journey into the unknown for both.
james@khaleejtimes.com


More news from