Sepahan eye victory in Al Ain

AFC – AL AIN, Sepahan boss Amir Ghalenoei wants his side to take control of their own AFC Champions League destiny when they face Al Ain at Sheikh Khalifa International Stadium on Wednesday.

With Group C leaders Pakhtakor, Sepahan and Al Ain all in contention for two places in the last 16, the final round of games promise to be a dramatic and tense affair.

Victory over a side they drew 0-0 with in the previous fixture in Esfahan, however, will guarantee the Iranians’ progression and that is exactly what Ghalenoei wants from his men.

“This is a critical game for us. We have to win to go through to the next round and that is what we intend to do,” he said.

“We do not want to depend on other results. We want to win and try and finish as group leaders.

“Al Ain have nothing to lose, which is always a pressure match for us. They will play in whatever manner they want and we have to be very careful.

“Al Ain are a big club and have always been a dangerous team at home. But we are fully prepared and will be only missing Ahmad Jamshidian due to suspension. Otherwise it is a full and fit squad and we are ready.

Al Ain, who sacked coach Toninho Cerezo after the 3-2 defeat to Pakhtakor in Tashkent, will be guided by replacement Abdulhameed Al Misthiki.

And the club’s former under-17 coach said is looking for a maximum return even though Al Ain’s campaign will come to an end after Tuesday’s game.

“For me it is about club and country,” he said.

“We are not going to help any club advance to the next round. We will play to win as it is a matter of our prestige.

“Though we will be missing many of our regular players due to suspensions and injuries, we do have strong bench strength and we will put up a good showing.”

Musallem Al Hamdani, Emerson and Jorge Luis Valdivia are all suspended for the clash, while Saif Mohammad and Ismail Ahmad are on the injured list.