‘Decider’ in the Asian Champions League features 17 Brazilians | OneFootball

The Asian Champions will feature a heavyweight clash in the penultimate round of the first phase. Al Sadd from Qatar will host Shabab Al-Ahli from the United Arab Emirates in a match that could seal their qualification for the continental knockout stage.

The duel, scheduled for next Tuesday (23rd) at 1 PM (Brasília time), at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, draws attention due to the large number of Brazilian players on the field, totaling 17 athletes between the two teams.

Al Sadd in search of a comeback

The Qatari team, led by Italian Roberto Mancini, faces a critical situation in the competition. Currently in tenth place with only two points, Al Sadd needs a victory to keep their chances of qualifying for the final phase alive.

With two rounds remaining in the first phase, the situation becomes delicate. The last team within the qualification zone is Al Ittihad, with six points, while Al Duhail and Al Gharafa have seven. To advance, the team needs to win its next two matches.

“This season has been a bit tough for us, yet we still believe in a comeback because our team has a lot of quality and our chances hinge on a victory in this round. It's do or die,” says Brazilian full-back Paulo Otavio, a two-time national champion with Al Sadd who can sign a pre-contract with another team in January.

Brazilian presence in the spotlight

The presence of 17 Brazilian players is one of the main attractions of the match. On Al Sadd's side, besides Paulo Otavio, there are Claudinho, Guilherme, Roberto Firmino, and Giovani.

Meanwhile, Shabab Al-Ahli stands out as the club with the most Brazilians in the competition, gathering 12 athletes. Among them, Renan (former Palmeiras defender), Kaiky (former Santos), and Yuri César (the oldest of the group, at 25 years old) are some of the names. The Emirati team is led by Portuguese Paulo Sousa and arrives in Qatar already qualified, with 10 points.

“Not only because of the number of Brazilians on the rosters, but the teams also have a lot of quality, it's going to be a great game,” says one of the Brazilians, who played for four years at Wolfsburg in Germany before coming to Qatar.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.