Ratchaburi Mitr Phol from the host country will make their continental debut and they will be joined by Southeast Asian rivals Johor Darul Ta'zim of Malaysia, 2009 winners Pohang Steelers of Korea Republic and Japan's Nagoya Grampus, who return for the first time since 2012.

After falling at the final hurdle in the playoffs in back-to-back years, United City FC - then known as Ceres Negros - are finally set to make their AFC Champions League group stage debut, a landmark achievement for Filipino football.

The-AFC.com caught up exclusively with United City FC forward Marañón, the AFC Cup's all-time top scorer, ahead of the 2021 AFC Champions League kick off to discuss the Spain-born striker's preparations, their Group I opponents and his goals for the tournament.

The COVID-19 pandemic created numerous challenges but Asian football came together to ensure a successful conclusion to the second round of the Asian Qualifiers.

It was a campaign that was filled with thrills, spills and goals galore so join the-AFC.com as we take a look at how it all went down.

Two first-half goals from skipper Salman Al Faraj established a solid foundation for the Saudis to build on and Renard’s men went on to add a third just before the break, through Fahad Al Muwallad who capitalised on a defensive mistake to round the goalkeeper and put the game to bed.

The former Saudi Arabia and Australia manager fielded the more defensive minded Majed Hassan in place of Khalfan Mubarak, pushing central midfielder Abdullah Ramadan further upfield in a more creative role, and his changes paid dividends as Ramadan set up Ali Salmeen for the opening goal and supplied the through pass for Khalil Ibrahim to win a penalty that was converted by Ali Mabkhout to make it 2-0 before the break.

Mahmoud Khamis headed from point-blank five minutes after the restart to cement the UAE’s victory, but van Marwijk’s men had to survive a late scare as Nguyen Tien Linh and Tran Minh Vuong reduced the deficit in the final five minutes of the match, with the UAE holding for a 3-2 win at the final whistle.

The West Asian side had secured their place in the final round of the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup prior to their final Group E match against Bangladesh, which Oman won 3-0 to finish second behind Qatar on 18 points.

The impressive haul saw head coach Ivankovic's side earn one of the best five runners-up spots available to the final round plus also seal qualification to the AFC Asian Cup China 2023.