ACL MD2 - Group A: Al Ittihad v Lokomotiv preview

Al Muwallad (pictured left), who starred for his country at the AFC U23 Championship in Qatar in January, was sent off in the final minutes of the 1-1 draw with Lokomotiv in Tashkent on Matchday 1 and Al Ittihad will also be without midfielder Riyadh Al Ibrahim, who sustained an ankle injury in training.

Al Ittihad go into the game off the back of a 1-0 win over Saudi league leaders Al Hilal on Friday that moved them to within a point of the top of the table, but Piturca and his players have chosen not to dwell on the success against one of their biggest rivals.

“We didn’t celebrate a lot after the win against Al Hilal because we started preparing for this match against Lokomotiv,” said the Romanian. “But the win in the league will definitely give us a big push in order to have another good result tomorrow.

“We have a tough test because our opponents are a good side and they don’t have the pressure of a heavy schedule. Our players will be ready for the match and we hope that they can recover quickly after the big effort they made against Al Hilal.”

The draw in the first round of group matches was the first time Lokomotiv had played in the 2016 season and, with the Uzbek league not due to kick off until Friday, Mirko Jelicic and his team have had time to prepare for the return meeting with Al Ittihad without additional distractions.

“The match tomorrow will be tough for the two sides but we came here to get a victory not a draw,” said Jelicic. “Al Ittihad are a strong team when they play at home and in front of their own fans but this will not stop us from giving our best.

“We have experienced players who are capable of playing in front of a lot of fans and I hope that we can give our best tomorrow in order to get the three points and strengthen our position in the group.”

Photo: Lagardère Sports