Al Ahli and Al Nasr to overcome their first setbacks... Al Hilal and Al Ain to continue advancing in the Asian Champions League

The Saudi team excels in its matches against UAE clubs, having achieved 14 victories, 5 losses, and 8 draws.

Al-Ahli's Dutch-Bosnian coach, Marinko Bušić, expressed satisfaction with the level his team showed during the victory over Al-Fath, emphasizing the importance of a strong start after the international break.

Bušić explained that the victory "is particularly important to me, after I learned before the match that Al-Ahli had not achieved a victory at this stadium for about five years," pointing out that his team delivered an outstanding performance in terms of both performance and result.

The Dutchman stressed "the need to handle with caution the pressure of matches during the upcoming period."

Bušić confirmed his knowledge of the UAE opponent's capabilities and the difficulty of the anticipated match "The decisions regarding the lineup were part of the policy of rotating players, with the aim of maintaining their readiness in light of the successive matches."

For its part, Al-Wasl is looking to regain its balance after losing to Al-Qadisiya of Saudi Arabia 1-2 in the first round.

Al-Wasl hopes to break its streak against Saudi teams in Asian tournaments, having lost to them in the last 5 matches, including the only match against Al-Ahli in the 2025 edition, which ended in a 0-2 defeat in Dubai.

Al-Hilal to continue the streak

After its surprising loss to Neom in September, Al-Hilal achieved three different victories in all competitions, and it hopes to overcome Al-Sadd, who is also seeking to achieve its first victory.

Al-Hilal received a significant morale boost after its 3-2 victory over its rival Al-Ittihad in the league.

Italian coach Simone Inzaghi praised all his players after the recent victory, who celebrated with his Dutch player Crisencio Sammervi after the third goal.

He said about his English striker Ollie Watkins, "He delivered an excellent performance, improving day by day and integrating with the group. He performed wonderfully in the matches against Al-Taawon and Al-Ittihad, and I highly commend his performance."

Meanwhile, the troubles of the team coached by Romanian Razvan Lucescu doubled after suffering its first loss in the domestic league to Al-Arabi 2-3, forcing it to relinquish the top spot it had held for four weeks.

Veteran Brazilian star Roberto Firmino said, "Things did not go perfectly at the start of the Champions League, which makes us required to double our efforts in a challenging task against a strong opponent like Al-Hilal."

For its part, Al-Shamal hopes to achieve its first victory in the elite when it faces Iranian Tractor on Monday at the Sultan Qaboos Stadium in Muscat, following the Asian Football Confederation's decision to move Iranian clubs' matches to neutral venues for security reasons.

The Qatari team had delivered a remarkable performance in its historic first appearance in the tournament, squandering a win that was within reach against Saudi Al-Ittihad.

Spanish coach David Prats of Al-Shamal said, "We have turned the page on the loss (to Al-Duhail in the league) which was a tough lesson, and we are focusing all our attention on the match against the Iranian team for a positive result."

Al-Gharafa, which stumbled in the first round with a loss to Al-Hilal, will receive the Iranian Esteghlal, buoyed by its first victory over Al-Sadd.

Al-Ain to compensate for its domestic failure

Al-Nassr will face the test of compensating for its heavy loss to Al-Ain (0-4) which put it at the bottom of the standings, when it faces Navichi of Uzbekistan in Riyadh.

Australian coach Ange Postecoglou expressed satisfaction with the team after the 3-0 victory over Al-Diriyah in the league, saying, "It is always good to win, and the team delivered a strong performance against a tough opponent, and we managed to score three goals, which makes me happy."

Al-Ain hopes to compensate for its domestic disappointment when it visits Iraqi Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya.

The champion of the 2003 and 2024 editions delivered a perfect performance against Al-Nassr, but it did not know the way to victory thereafter domestically with two losses and a draw in the last three matches in the League Cup.

Its Serbian coach Vladimir Ivić reassured that the League Cup is completely different because we "fielded players who had not played before in its matches, to get to know new elements, as we need a large squad due to our participation in several tournaments domestically and regionally."

Ivić explained after surpassing Al-Nassr in the previous round, "We sent a message to ourselves about what we can do in the tournament, and this is the most important thing for me."

Shabab Al-Ahli will visit Al-Ittihad with memories of last season when it defeated it 1-0 in Jeddah.