Tuesday, May 24 2011
Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Al-Ittihad vs Al-Hilal
Al-Ittihad vs Al-Hilal
I am not sure that Al-Ittihad team will pass to the next round, but I ll pray for that. My team Al-Ittihad play this game as live or die game. wish they pass it.
Noor's Middle Eastern promise
Al Ittihad’s veteran campaigner Mohammed Noor is determined to see the two-time AFC Champions League winners reclaim continental club glory and end the dominance of East Asian teams that began the tournament after the Jeddah giants sealed their second title in 2005.
A year after Noor had scored in the 2nd leg of Al Ittihad’s 5-3 aggregate win over inaugural ACL champions Al Ain, the coveted trophy headed East for the first time with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors’ 2006 win over Al Karamah and has since shuttled between South Korea and Japan, with title triumphs for Urawa Reds, Gamba Osaka, Pohang Steelers and most recently Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma.
But Saudi Arabia star Noor is adamant that the trophy has been absent from West Asia for too long and is determined that the prestigious silverware will be displayed proudly at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium soon after November’s final.
“No one can deny the enormous development in the level of football in general in East Asia,” Noor told www.the-afc.com shortly before Al Ittihad’s eagerly-anticipated Round of 16 clash with Saudi rivals Al Hilal on Tuesday.
“Despite the fact teams from the West were in most of the finals over the years they have not been successful,” continued the 33-year-old, recalling Al Ittihad’s loss in the 2009 final to Pohang.
“Al Ittihad was the last team from the West to win the trophy and God willing we will be ones who bring glory back to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.”
Noor is no stranger to continental campaigns and in addition to featuring at the business end of the AFC Champions League on numerous occasions, the mercurial midfielder from Mecca can also boast a winners’ medal from Al Ittihad’s 1999 Asian Cup Winners’ Cup final triumph over Korea’s Chunnam Dragons.
As such, few are better-placed to comment on the evolution of Asian club football than the veteran of over 300 appearances for Al Ittihad.
“I am one of the few players who were playing in Asian competition before the AFC Champions League and I have been witness to the great developments in the tournament…from its rules and regulations to the intensity of the competition,” Noor remarked.
“And I have no doubt that in the coming period we will all see further improvements and an increase in the excitement in the competition thanks to the developmental steps of the AFC and the exemplary response in adopting these by all those involved, including those in Saudi football.”
But Saudi Arabia star Noor is adamant that the trophy has been absent from West Asia for too long and is determined that the prestigious silverware will be displayed proudly at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium soon after November’s final.
“No one can deny the enormous development in the level of football in general in East Asia,” Noor told www.the-afc.com shortly before Al Ittihad’s eagerly-anticipated Round of 16 clash with Saudi rivals Al Hilal on Tuesday.
“Despite the fact teams from the West were in most of the finals over the years they have not been successful,” continued the 33-year-old, recalling Al Ittihad’s loss in the 2009 final to Pohang.
“Al Ittihad was the last team from the West to win the trophy and God willing we will be ones who bring glory back to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.”
Noor is no stranger to continental campaigns and in addition to featuring at the business end of the AFC Champions League on numerous occasions, the mercurial midfielder from Mecca can also boast a winners’ medal from Al Ittihad’s 1999 Asian Cup Winners’ Cup final triumph over Korea’s Chunnam Dragons.
As such, few are better-placed to comment on the evolution of Asian club football than the veteran of over 300 appearances for Al Ittihad.
“I am one of the few players who were playing in Asian competition before the AFC Champions League and I have been witness to the great developments in the tournament…from its rules and regulations to the intensity of the competition,” Noor remarked.
“And I have no doubt that in the coming period we will all see further improvements and an increase in the excitement in the competition thanks to the developmental steps of the AFC and the exemplary response in adopting these by all those involved, including those in Saudi football.”