The winners of the match, to be held at the National Stadium in Male, will advance to the AFC Cup playoffs, where a clash with Abahani Limited Dhaka of Bangladesh awaits.

Qatar’s Al Gharafa and Uzbekistan’s AGMK FC will kick-off the first play-off match as they aim to be part of Asia’s leading 40 clubs in the AFC Champions League Group Stage when they meet at the Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar at 6.20pm (local time).

Tribhuvan Army will host the sudden death clash at Kathmandu’s Dashrath Stadium, marking the first time in nearly a decade that a Nepalese club has featured in continental competition.

Qatar's Al Gharafa and Emirati pair Al Wahda FSCC and Al Ain will be looking for a return to the AFC Champions League Group Stage, while Saudi Arabia's Al Wehda FC will be looking for a first-ever appearance in the Continental club competition and all four will have a player from the East Asia Zone amongst their ranks.

We take a look at the quartet who will be hoping to help their teams into the 2021 tournament proper.

A record 40 teams split into 10 groups will take part in the 2021 AFC Champions League as the competition continues to go from strength to strength, showcasing Asia's finest teams and numerous world-renowned players.

Three of the inaugural four titles went to West Asian sides, then the power shifted with clubs from Japan and Korea Republic splitting the following four between 2007 and 2010. Next up we look at a period that saw a return to two legged finals and one of the all-time greatest sporting shocks.

A record 40 teams split into 10 groups will take part in the 2021 AFC Champions League as the competition continues to go from strength to strength, showcasing Asia's finest teams and numerous world-renowned players.

Having looked at the first four editions of the tournament, dominated by West Asian teams who won three out of the inaugural four titles, the second part of this series revisits the years 2007 to 2010, a period that saw the power balance shift as East Asia completed a clean sweep of titles.

A record 40 teams split into 10 groups will take part in the 2021 AFC Champions League as the competition continues to go from strength to strength, showcasing Asia's finest teams and numerous world-renowned players.

Almost 20 years ago, Asian football moved into an exciting new era as the AFC Champions League saw the merger of the Asian Club Championship and Asian Cup Winners' Cup in 2002-03, and that's where we start our look back at the tournament through the years.