Shabab Al-Ahly’s AFC Champions League 2 Journey: Fixtures, Teams, and Key Insights

Murad Al-Masry (Abu Dhabi)
Shabab Al-Ahly continues its continental journey in the new season, participating in “AFC Champions League 2”, after losing to Al-Gharafa from Qatar by a goal, in the second match of the qualifying matches for the “AFC Europa League for the Elite.”
Shabab Al-Ahly will enter the “First Pot”, at the “AFC Champions League 2” group stage draw ceremony, tomorrow, with the participation of 32 teams, 16 teams from East and West Asia.
“Al-Fursan” is present in the first level of the classification for the West Asian region, together with Foolad Iran, Saudi Cooperation, and Al-Wakrah from Qatar, and the second level gives a- in Sharjah, together with the Uzbek Nasaf, the Iraqi Air Force, and the Jordanian Hussein, and in the third stage, the Tajik Istiklal, the Indian Mohun, Al-Khalidiya from Bahrain, Al-Wahdat from Jordan, and in the fourth stage , Rafshan from Tajikistan, East Bengal of India, or Altyn Asir from Turkmenistan, Al-Ahly from Bahrain, or Al-Kuwait from Kuwait.
The principle of not playing against a team from the same country is applied, and a special lottery program is used, to prevent conflicts or complicated situations.
After the end of the group stage, which starts next September, the top two teams from each group will qualify for the round of 16, which will be held in two round robin games, where the matches will be determined ​​​​​​through the draw for the knockout stages, which determine the features of the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. Zoning will be applied throughout the competition.
The semi-finals and semi-finals will also be played over two legs, before the tournament ends with the final match of one round on May 17, 2025.
Returning to the course of the rivalry that brought together Shabab Al-Ahly and Al-Gharafa, the lack of efficiency was a very influential factor, because according to the official website of the Asian Football Confederation, the “Knights” percentage of possession the ball reached 71%, compared to 29% for its rival, but Shabab Al-Ahly lacked accuracy in shots, the team shot 13 times, including 4 times in the side within the target, a rate of 30.8%.
Although Portuguese coach Paulo Sousa, the team’s coach, tried to introduce all the attacking elements through the minutes of the game, and they eliminated the five available substitutes to draw blood update, the team learned a lesson in the importance of taking advantage of opportunities. more effective, especially as we stand at the gates of the new season.
After the end of the conflict, the “Knights” close the Asian file for a while, to draw attention to the local competitions, while it meets Ajman next Sunday, in the first round of the “Islamic Bank Cup Abu Dhabi”, and then face Al Bataeh and Ajman on August 24 and 30 in the “ADNOC League”.