Wihdat, Jazira aim to advance

AMMAN — Wihdat and Jazira are aiming to continue an impressive run when Round of 16 of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup start on Tuesday.

Wihdat will host AFC Cup titleholders Kuwait’s Qadissieh, who beat them 1-0 earlier this season in the AFC Champions League.

Wihdat coach Abdullah Abu Zameh, whose team won the Jordan Professional League and Super Cup this season, underlined confidence that his squad was up to the task ahead. “We are playing at home and we have always been aided by our fans’ and our team’s determination. We aim for the title.”

On Wednesday, Jazira, who finished runner-up in the League and participated in the event, after two-time AFC Cup champs Faisali declined, host former AFC Cup champs Syria’s Jeish.

In Round 1, Wihdat topped Group A after they beat Oman’s Nahda 4-0 repeating their earlier 3-0 win in Leg 1. They had an impressive run beating Lebanese hosts Salam Zgharta 3-0 after an earlier 5-1 win. They also held Syria’s Wihda 1-1 after losing 1-0 in Leg 1. 

Jazira finished second in Group B. They secured moving to the Round of 16 after beating Palestine’s Wadi Al Ness 2-0, Bahrain’s Hidd 1-0 and losing 4-0 to Iraq’s Shurta after they started the event with a streak of 1-1 draws with Hidd, Shurta and Wadi Al Ness.

Wihdat have never won the AFC Cup in the past seven times. It is Jazira’s first attempt at the AFC Cup title

This season, 32 clubs from across the continent are competing in the AFC Cup in eight groups with the top two from each group going on to the Round of 16. Last season, first time AFC Cup competitors Jordan Cup champs That Ras exited the Round of 16 while former AFC Cup champs Shabab Urdun exited in Round 1. They were also eliminated by Bahrain’s Hidd in their preliminary round of the AFC Champions League.

The second-tier Asian club competition was won by Syria’s Jeish in its inaugural edition in 2004. Jordan’s Faisali won in 2005 and 2006, and Shabab Urdun won in 2007.