The 18th edition of the tournament, which will see Asia’s top 24 national teams compete for the most coveted prize in Asian football, aims to engage more fans than ever before, and will maximise the advantage of playing the opening game on a Friday and the final on a weekend.

Last week we presented the candidates for the 2020 edition's best goalkeeper, and now we shine the spotlight on the players who will make up the backline.

So, here are the 14 players in contention for the four places in defence. Review the nominees and then choose your favourite defenders for this all-star XI in the respective polls.

The semi-finals garnered hundreds of thousands of votes with Persepolis FC's Mehdi Abdi Qara leading the way with two of his goals making the final.

Abdi Qara, however, won't have it easy in the final - which will feature six goals - as Yokohama F. Marinos' Theerathon Bunmathan, Al Nassr duo Abderrazak Hamdallah and Abdulrahman Al Obaid and Esteghlal FC's Cheick Diabate also enjoyed sizeable support in the semi-finals.

Check out the finalists and cast your vote below!

Kubo, 19, spent time in the youth system at Barcelona, where he was predictably nicknamed "the Japanese Messi", before moving to FC Tokyo.

He returned to Spain in 2019 when he joined Real Madrid, but has yet to play for the club.

The winner will be revealed on January 24, with 60 percent of the votes supplied by the direct participation of fans on the-AFC.com and 40 percent by a panel of Asian football experts.

Check out the nominees once again and don't forget, the result will be announced on January 24. Thank you for voting.

The winner will be revealed on January 24, with 60 percent of the votes supplied by the direct participation of fans on the-AFC.com and 40 percent by a panel of Asian football experts.

Check out the nominees once again and don't forget, the result will be announced on January 24. Thank you for voting.

The 39-year-old, who is currently second on the list behind recently-retired former Korea Republic international Lee Dong-gook, was unveiled by the 10-time Hong Kong champions in a social media post on Saturday.