Bengaluru FC up against mighty Al-wehdat in AFC CL qualifier
AMMAN (JORDAN): Finalists in the AFC Cup in 2016, Bengaluru FC begin their continental quest this season with a tough test away at Al-wehdat in Jordan in an AFC Champions League Preliminary Stage Two fixture here on Tuesday.
The Blues’ Spanish coach Albert Roca said his side will have to come up with something special on the night if they are to become the first Indian club to make the Preliminary stage one of the competition.
“The AFC Champions League is the highest level of competition in the continent, so I don’t think I need to spell out how tough a test this will be. We are coming up against a team that is far more experienced than us but we have to be ready for every sort of challenge if we want to consistently compete in Asia,” said Roca.
The last time Bengaluru competed for a spot in the Champions League group stages was in February 2015 when they took Johor Darul Ta’zim to extra-time in the single-leg tie before going down 2-1. In Alwehdat, Bengaluru have opponents who have won the Jordan League for the last three seasons and 15 times in all apart from 10 Jordan FA Cup titles, 12 Jordan Super Cup titles and 8 Jordan FA Shield titles. In Asia, their best finish was a place in the semifinal of the AFC Cup in 2011.
Though, Bengaluru come into the game having suffered consecutive defeats in the League back home, Roca refused to cite the blip as a reason for worry before what will be his team’s biggest game till date this season. The Jordanian side, meanwhile, are riding on the back of four straight wins and sit second on the Jordan League table.