AFC Cup Preliminary Stage 1st Leg (South): Thimphu City FC 0-0 Club Valencia

Thu, 28 Oct, 2021

AFC Cup Preliminary Stage 1st Leg (South): Thimphu City FC 0-0 Club Valencia

Thimphu: Both Bhutan’s Thimphu City and Club Valencia from the Maldives failed to land a winning blow on Tuesday as their AFC Cup Preliminary Stage encounter ended in a 0-0 draw at the Changlimithang Stadium.

The tightly contested affair leaves the tie evenly balanced ahead of next week’s second leg at the National Stadium in Male.

Thimphu City enjoyed their best season to date in 2016 as they topped the Thimphu League before edging Druk United by two points to win the Bhutan League for the first time. They are the first club from Bhutan to earn a spot in this stage of the AFC Cup.

After struggling in the 2016 Divehi Premier League and narrowly avoiding relegation, Club Valencia earned a spot in the AFC Cup by beating TC Sports Club to win a fifth Maldives FA Cup title. They have appeared in the AFC Cup three times before (2004, 2005 and 2009) but have yet to get past the Group Stage.