Both sides went unbeaten through the first half of the campaign, progressing together from Group A and dispatching their opponents in the Zonal Semi-Finals to set up a rematch in the West Asia Zonal Final.

Nevertheless, Air Force Club and Al Jazeera found themselves on the lookout for new head coaches come June. And have banked on their AFC Cup experience to carry them through the next rounds.

The 2016 AFC Cup top goalscorer scored the only goal of the night on Tuesday as Air Force Club came away from Amman with a valuable win over Jordan’s Al Jazeera to edge a step closer to the final.

Ahmed’s strike just after the hour mark took his tally in the competition to five goals, one behind Amjed Radhi, the side’s top scorer in this year’s AFC Cup campaign.

Chances were far and few between in the opening half; Mahmoud Al Mardi’s effort from the edge of the box was saved in two stages by Air Force Club goalkeeper Fahad Talib 10 minutes in.

Meanwhile, the visitors’ most dangerous chance of the half came in the 28th minute when Ibrahim Bayesh squared for skipper Ahmed, whose strike from an angle hit the side netting.

The pattern continued after the break, with the Jordanians enjoying marginally more possession. At the hour mark, the hosts had a golden chance after Ahmed Al Attar broke free on the left wing before crossing to the onrushing Ahmed Samir, but the Al Jazeera captain could not direct his header and watched in agony as his attempt went just wide.

The Jordanian surprise package and the reigning champions from Iraq have already faced-off twice in the group stage, with both fixtures ending in draws. Air Force Club travel to Amman for the first leg of the West Asia Zonal final, hoping to move a step closer to third successive AFC Cup title.

We spoke to journalist Hassanin Mubarak, who covers Middle Eastern football for London-based daily newspaper Arab News and has contributed to the likes of World Soccer and When Saturday Comes magazines.

With 10 goals between them in the competition so far, Hammadi Ahmad and Amjad Radhi paved the way for Air Force Club to stand tall against every opposition they faced in this year's AFC Cup.

In the West Asia Zonal semi-finals, the Iraqi side knocked out Lebanon's Al Ahed to keep their title defence and unbeaten record ongoing.

Following the introduction of a new format last year, Jordan's Al Jazeera are set to lock horns with the reigning champions for a place in the 2018 AFC Cup final, where the West Asia Zonal final winners face the Inter-Zone final winners.

Air Force Club have only lost one tie in the competition since last year, against Syria's Al Wahda in the first leg of the 2017 West Asia Zonal final.

With an unbeaten run in the AFC Cup this season, Al Jazeera have taken the continent by storm, qualifying to the West Asia Zonal final of the competition for the first time in the club's history.

In the West Asia Zonal semi-final, two goals from one of the tournament's standout performers, Musa Al Taamari, granted Al Jazeera a historic victory against the country's most dominant team Al Faisaly, setting up a date against the reigning champions Air Force Club in the Zonal final.