Al Ahli to be without key trio for Nasaf clash

Al Bassas started last week as Christian Gross’ side began their Group D campaign with a 3-3 draw with United Arab Emirates champions Al Ahli, but was withdrawn just after the hour mark to join Hawsawi and Mutairi on the injury list for the 2012 finalists.

Gross, though, is boosted by the return to fitness of midfielder Waleed Bakhswn who missed last week’s draw due to injury as Al Ahli look to end a run of three consecutive draws.

“We have a great desire to win this match because of the draws that we had in the recent matches,” said Gross, who saw his side also share a 1-1 draw with Al Khaleej on Saturday.

“We are playing at home as well which means that we must win and try our best to remove this pressure.

“We don’t know much about our opponents, but I believe they have good physical players. However, we are confident that our team can produce a good performance and get the positive result that we are looking for.”

Nasaf arrived in Jeddah on Sunday having finished Matchday One at the top of the Group D table after kicking off only their second-ever AFC Champions League campaign with a 2-1 home win over Iran’s Tractorsazi last week.

Ruzikul Berdiev’s have yet to begin their domestic campaign, which does not begin until next week, but were good value for their first-ever AFC Champions League win last week as second half goals from Ilkhom Shomurodov and Khamza Karimov secured a comeback victory for the 2011 AFC Cup winners.

“The match tomorrow against Al Ahli will be difficult for us but we are ready for the match,” Nasaf coach Berdiev said.

“We watched the recent matches of our opponents in the competition and in the local league and got an idea about what to expect.

“Most of Al Ahli’s players have good experience and they will give us a tough test.

“I’m sure that we can put a good show and we will definitely not be affected by the weather which is good at the moment in Jeddah.”

Photo: WSG