AFC Cup Road to Final: Air Force Club (Iraq)
Kuala Lumpur: Defending AFC Cup champions Air Force Club of Iraq will aim to retain the title they won 12 months ago when they travel to Tajikistan to face FC Istiklol in the final on Saturday.
The dominant team in last year’s competition have found life harder this time round but have edged through to a second successive final. We look back on how they did so.
Group Stage
The holders began with a scoreless draw at Lebanon’s Safa in Group B but claimed their first win of the campaign by beating Al Hidd 2-1 on Matchday Two as last year’s top scorer Hammadi Ahmed (pictured below) and Emad Mohsin both got on the scoresheet.
A goalless draw with Syria’s Al Wahda followed before a late Ahmed Kadhim equaliser was needed to secure a 1-1 draw in the return meeting in a result that suddenly left their qualification hopes in the balance.
Amjed Radhi scored his first of the campaign in a 2-0 victory over Safa as Air Force Club got back to winning ways, but the holders went into their final group clash in Bahrain level on points with opponents Al Hidd and just a point ahead of third-placed Al Wahda.
With the scores tied at 0-0 and the game in to the final 20 minutes, defeat would have sent the Iraqi team out, but Radhi netted the decisive goal as Air Force Club claimed top spot in the group.
Knockout Rounds
A tricky encounter with domestic rivals Al Zawraa awaited in the West Asia Zone semi-finals, and Radhi scored yet another goal in a 1-1 first-leg draw in what was the first AFC Cup match to be hosted in Iraq in just over four years.
Mohsin then tapped home the only goal of the game in the second leg in Doha as the holders advanced to another match-up with Al Wahda in what would be the fifth and sixth meetings between the sides in two years.
Air Force Club suffered their only defeat to date in the first leg but, 2-0 down in the dying moments, Ahmed scored in added time in what would prove and invaluable away goal.
Heading out of the competition deep into stoppage time in the return leg, Radhi was again the hero as the forward headed home in the 94th minute as the 2-2 aggregate scoreline saw Air Force Club progress to a second successive final on away goals.
Photos: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com
Comments
This article has 0 comment(s) , give your comment