Tournament leading scorers Ulsan have won their last eight games in the competition to become the fourth Korean side in succession to reach the AFC Champions League final, with Kim Ho-gon’s side having scored 24 goals in their 11 match unbeaten campaign.

Al Ahli, meanwhile, are already without Mansour Al Harbi due to suspension while fellow defender Kamil Al Mousa is set to be ruled out through injury as they seek to follow in the footsteps of two-time winners Al Ittihad having beaten their Jeddah rivals in the semi-finals.

“We have looked at Al Ahli and we have analysed everything and we will look to attack as attacking is the best form of defence,” said Ulsan coach Kim.

“We have not prepared anything special for final as we have done so well so far, although we have made some small changes but this is normal.”

Kim is set to keep faith with the same side for the fourth consecutive game in the competition with the majority of the squad having been rested for Ulsan’s recent outings in the K-League as they seek to return the AFC Champions League title to Korean hands for the third time in four years.

“We have played many games in the AFC Champions League and the players have learnt a lot from these games, especially the away games, and this is very helpful,” added Kim.

“Also, we expect a lot of our fans to come to the stadium so this will also be in our favour.”

Al Ahli coach Karel Jarolim, meanwhile, will be forced into at least one change after Al Harbi was sent-off at the end of the semi-final second leg win over local rivals Al Ittihad, while Al Mousa is struggling to recover from a lingering groin injury which ruled him out of the last two games in the competition.

“We will play against a very tough team in the final. It has been difficult to get to the final and we are playing away from home, but I hope we can play well and win,” said Jarolim.

“Mansour is a big loss. He has played for the last two seasons with us on a regular basis, but I hope that the player who takes his place will do his best.

“And the moment, I do not think Kamil Al Mousa will be able to play in the game.”

Simoes, who netted the winner in Al Ahli’s semi-final success over fellow Saudi League side Al Ittihad last month, played alongside Ulsan centre-backs Kwak Tae-hwi and Kang Min-soo during a season long spell in the K-League with Chunnam Dragons in 2008.

And with the pair forming a key part to an Ulsan defence which has conceded just two goals in their last four games in the AFC Champions League, Simoes is well aware of the task he and his Al Ahli team-mates face on Saturday.

“I know the two central defenders from Ulsan very well. When I played in Korea they were my defenders so I know them very well,” said Simoes on Thursday from Al Ahli’s training base in Ulsan which was used as Turkey’s home during the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

“I know they play hard but I hope we can do something to score and win the match and become champions.”

Simoes scored five times as Al Ahli qualified for the quarter-finals which included the extra-time equaliser and decisive penalty in the shootout as Al Ahli edged out UAE Pro League side Al Jazira in the Round of 16.

He then added to his tally with the opening goal in the 4-1 quarter-final second leg victory over Iran champions Sepahan before sealing Al Ahli’s place in the final with the crucial second against local rivals Al Ittihad in the second leg of their semi-final as Karel Jarolim’s side won the return fixture 2-0 to advance 2-1 on aggregate.

“I feel very good and I am confident and I am very excited ahead of the final,” added the 31-year-old, who was the joint top scorer in the Saudi League last season with 21 goals as Al Ahli finished second.

“I am very happy that I have so far been able to help my team with my goals. I am now also 100% fit as before I was a little injured and I was not able to give my best, but now I am fit.”

Kim Ho-gon’s side are the leading scorers in the competition this season with 24 goals in 11 games, while Ulsan’s eight match winning run has equalled the AFC Champions League record to ensure K-League representation in the final for a fourth consecutive season.

And with Kim Shin-wook and international team-mate Lee Keun-ho having scored in the last three matches in the competition and Brazilian striker Rafinha netting four goals in as many games, confidence is high that Ulsan can follow in the footsteps of 2009 champions Pohang Steelers and 2010 winners Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma.

“I feel very good because I have to play in an important match,” said Kim Shin-wook, who has six goals in the AFC Champions League this season.

“There is some tension within the squad because it is such a big game, but we are all focused on doing our best and winning the match.”

Having scored three times to help Ulsan return to the quarter-finals for the first time since their 2006 run to the semi-finals, Kim Shin-wook helped Ulsan record an impressive 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli in their second leg of their quarter-final in Jeddah as the 2011 K-League Cup winners prevailed 5-0 on aggregate.

Another trademark header from the towering striker helped Ulsan record a 3-1 comeback win over Uzbekistan’s Bunyodkor in the first leg of their semi-final in Tashkent before his opportunistic second half strike in the return fixture sent Ulsan on their way to a 2-0 victory to comfortably advance to the continental final for the first time.

Lee Keun-ho’s spectacular second half strike in the second leg against Bunyodkor took his tally for the competition to four, while Rafinha has six goals in total having also netted twice for Japan’s Gamba Osaka during the Group Stage.

“There is very good communication between myself and our other attacking players Lee Keun-ho and Rafinha,” added Kim Shin-wook.

“We are all very skillful and have very good technique and we are confident that we can score many goals.”

Al Ahli’s equally potent attack which contains Brazilian striker Victor Simoes – who is the third-highest scorer in this season’s AFC Champions League with seven goals – and Oman international Amad Al Hosni has, though, not gone unnoticed by Kim Shin-wook with the 2011/12 Saudi League runners-up having netted 19 goals on their way to the final.

But equally the absence of defender Mansour Al Harbi, who was sent-off at the end of Al Ahli’s semi-final second leg win over Al Ittihad, has not been missed by the 24-year-old striker.

Al Harbi and captain Taiseer Al Jassam are the only two players to have started 10 of Al Ahli’s 11 matches in the AFC Champions League this season, but his absence will force coach Karel Jarolim into at least one change for the meeting at Ulsan Munsu Stadium.

“Al Ahli’s attack is very good; they are very fast and very good technically. But equally, they have a good balance. I expect it to be a very attack minded game,” added Kim Shin-wook, who stands at 1.96 metres tall.

“Al Ahli also have a very good defence, but I have noticed they are very small and that is very good for me. I also know that one of their defenders is suspended and that is also very good news for me.”

The Frenchman has succeeded compatriot Bruno Metsu who stepped down recently after contracting stomach cancer.

The former Paris SG and Monaco manager revealed that he  has been on the minds of the club in the past, even before they hired Diego Maradona in 2011.

“Maybe I was a bit hesitant at first because this is a new venture,” said Lacombe at his first press conference after accepting the Dubai position, according to Abu Dhabi daily The National.

“The club contacted me two years ago, there were negotiations but it didn’t work out. It has now.”

“Of course, the whole world heard about Al Wasl as soon as Diego Maradona was made manager,” the 57 year-old said. “But I recognised them long before Maradona knew anything about the club.”

Al Wasl are in eight position in the table after six games of the new season.

“My answer to the Al Wasl fans will be on the pitch, through the team and through achieving positive results,” he said. “The Al Wasl colours remind me of the first team I won a trophy with. This is a very good sign. I hope to repeat that with Al Wasl.”

That victory in Tehran lifts Iran 14 places to 44 though the biggest climbers in the Asian Football Confederation are Myanmar who rose 28 spots to 149.

Iraq fell farthest, dropping 17 spots to 97.

Asia Rankings:

24 Japan  (-1)   32   South Korea (-7)   33: Australia (+1)   44: Iran (+14)  69: Uzbekistan  (+1)   81: North Korea  (+5)    86: Oman (+9)   88: China (-3)    90: Jordan  (-12)   97: Iraq  (-17)  104: Qatar  (-3)  109: UAE (+7)  110: Kuwait (+2)  

A pacey and prolific forward, Lee joined Ulsan ahead of the 2012 campaign with AFC Champions League football again on the agenda after helping Gamba Osaka reach the Round of 16 last year.

He had initially moved to Japan in 2009 to join Jubilo Iwata before returning to Korea after spending three seasons in the J.League.

And having scored twice for Gamba in 2011, Lee has started every game for Ulsan during this campaign and netted on four occasions – with two of those coming in the wins over Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal and Uzbekistan’s Bunyodkor in the knockout stage which have left Kim Ho-gon’s side within touching distance of becoming the third K-League side in four years to win the AFC Champions League title.

Lee was particularly effective in the 3-1 semi-final first leg win over Bunyodkor in Tashkent at the end of October with his endless movement and tireless running, the Uzbeks struggled to contain the bleached blonde 27-year-old as he switched between left and right while offering himself as a third striker alongside Rafinha and Kim Shin-wook.

This attacking philosophy, which saw Lee finish as the third highest scorer in the J.League last year, was born during his first spell in Korea with Daegu Citizen after cutting his teeth in the reserves of his hometown club Incheon United.

He was named the Best Player in the R-League, the Korean reserve league, while playing for Incheon in 2006 before joining Daegu under Byun Byung-joo at the beginning of the following season.

“At Incheon I just had to train and train with the hope that I would be a player with the team. I just had to train,” said Lee.

“Then at Daegu the coach had an attacking mentality and he let me play as I want when attacking.

“The coach from Daegu has played a big part in my career and helped me progress a lot.”

Lee’s consistent return of goals at Daegu quickly established him as a fans’ favourite, but with that came interest from overseas.

His contract with Daegu expired in December 2008 with English Premier League side Blackburn Rovers and Paris St Germain linked with the striker in 2009, although a move to Europe did not materialise and Lee opted instead to switch to Japan, first with Jubilo and then Gamba.

“Korean football focuses on speed and power but in Japan they are very sensitive and they concentrate on progressing the game. This helped me expand my game and I learnt a lot,” added Lee.

“There were opportunities to move to Europe, but the timing was not ideal and I had to also consider the army.”

Prior to returning to Korea, Lee scored a total of 32 goals in 88 league appearances during his time in Japan, with his 15 goals last season for Gamba making him the joint third highest scorer in the J.League.

In the AFC Champions League this season, Lee started every game as Ulsan won their group ahead of Japan’s FC Tokyo before he crucially netted his first goal of the continental campaign with two minutes remaining in the Round of 16 against J.League champions Kashiwa Reysol to secure a 3-2 win.

Having fired home from the edge of the area to ensure Ulsan’s progress to the knockout stage of the AFC Champions League for first time since 2006 – when they reached the semi-finals – Lee then showed his all-round ability with headers in the wins over Al Hilal and Bunyodkor.

With Ulsan seeking to defend a slender one-goal advantage against Al Hilal, Lee’s back post header sealed Ulsan’s empathic 4-0 win in Riyadh and a 5-0 victory on aggregate.

And his stylish flicked header in the first leg of the semi-final against Bunyodkor also wrapped up the scoring in Tashkent having earlier shown excellent vision to set-up Rafinha to level the contest in the first half as Ulsan went on to record a 3-1 comeback win.

And in the return fixture on home soil, Lee emphatically sealed Ulsan’s 2-0 second leg win with an eye-catching first time strike which took his AFC Champions League tally to four in his last five games in the competition.

Having become the fourth successive K-League side to reach the AFC Champions League final, Ulsan are looking to follow in the footsteps on 2009 champions Pohang Steelers and 2010 winner Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma.

And with Lee’s Korea Republic international team-mate Kim Shin-wook having netted six goals in the competition this season and Brazilian striker Rafinha scoring four goals in his last four continental outings, Ulsan will be confident of avoiding the fate of fellow K-League side Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, who lost last year’s final on penalties to Qatar’s Al Sadd despite playing at home.

While the squad includes a number of familiar names including skipper Shahril Ishak, tough-tackling midfielder Hariss Harun, veteran defender Daniel Benett and evergreen striker Aleksandar Duric, there are also a few up-and-coming players including defender Raihan Rahman and midfielder Yasir Hanapi.

Raihan and Yasir are just two of the 15 players selected from Lions XII, Singapore’s representative side in the Malaysian Super League.
The squad will be in Shimizu in Shizuoka Prefecture for a week-long training camp which will include a friendly match against J.League side Shimizu S-Pulse on Saturday, November 10.

“To play against opponents of such quality is good for us as it will be a good learning experience,” said captain Shahril. “Although we will be playing against a club side, the level of intensity will be very high.”

After their Japanese training camp, the Lions will travel on to Cebu for an international friendly against the Philippines at the Cebu City Sports Complex on November 15 before they return to Singapore for their final warm-up match against Pakistan at Jurong West Stadium on November 19.

In addition to the 24 players named for the training camp in Japan, another 10 back-up players including goalkeeper Hassan Sunny, defender Ismail Yunos and forward Agu Casmir will continue to train in Singapore under assistant coach Aide Iskandar.

They could feature in the match against Pakistan, which will take place just six days before the Lions’ opening match at the AFF Suzuki Cup against defending champions Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur on November 25.

Singapore are in Group B and will also meet Indonesia at the Bukit Jalil Stadium on November 28 and Laos at the Shah Alam Stadium on December 1.

www.affsuzukicup.com

Since Al Hosni returned to Saudi Arabia at the start of the 2010/11 season following spells in Qatar and Belgium, Al Ahli have won the King Cup twice and finished second in the Saudi League last season before qualifying for Saturday’s AFC Champions League final against Korea Republic’s Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors.

Having made a modest start to his Al Ahli career with nine goals in 24 appearances during his first season back in Saudi Arabia after initially joining Al Riyadh in 2004 – after finishing as top scorer for Oman at that year’s Gulf Cup – Al Hosni netted 15 goals in just 22 outings last season as Al Ahli finished second behind Al Shabab in the Saudi League.

“Al Ahli is a big team in Saudi Arabia and they have a big fan base and this was one of the main reasons that motivated me to sign for the club,” said the 28-year-old.

“Al Ahli are a successful team and is considered one of the best teams in Saudi Arabia and in the region. I will always give my best to the team and I hope that I can help win titles and lead them to victory.

“The fans of Al Ahli are some of the best fans in Saudi Arabia and they play an important role in motivating the players.”

Al Hosni was also on target twice in four appearances as Al Ahli qualified for the knockout stage of the AFC Champions League, which included a crucial strike in the thrilling victory over Al Jazira in the Round of 16, before netting two goals in the quarter-final second leg win over Iran champions Sepahan.

And while he was unable to add to his continental tally in the semi-final win over local rivals Al Ittihad, which set-up Al Ahli’s AFC Champions League final showdown with Ulsan, that failure has only further fuelled his determination to land the continental club title having won the 2009 Gulf Cup with Oman.

“I’m satisfied with my performance so far in the AFC Champions League and mainly in the semi-final against Al Ittihad. Despite the fact that I didn’t score, I followed the tactics to achieve our goals,” added Al Hosni.

“The match was full of tension and this is normal because of the pressure of qualifying for the final, especially after we lost the first leg. We looked to score a goal in the first half and we managed to do so before adding a second goal in the second period.

“The coach talked to me personally at half-time and asked me to follow certain tactics and this is what I did.

“Our focus is now on the match against Ulsan and I promise the Al Ahli fans that we will have a good performance in the final and win the title.”

While Al Hosni has made a more than substantial contribution to Al Ahli’s recent success, Brazilian striker Victor Simoes is the team’s top scorer in the AFC Champions League this season with seven goals after netting the winner against Al Ittihad as Al Ahli prevailed 2-1 on aggregate having lost the first leg by a single goal.

“Victor Simoes is an impressive player,” said Al Hosni about the Brazilian, who claimed 21 goals in 26 appearances for Al Ahli in the Saudi League last season.

“We have been playing together for some time now and we have great chemistry together with the team. I hope that we can continue to play well for the benefit of the team.”

And with Simoes having scored an impressive 39 goals in 49 appearances for Al Ahli in the Saudi League over the previous three seasons after joining at the end of the 2009/10 campaign, AFC Champions League final opponents Ulsan will certainly have their work cut out to control Al Ahli’s dangerous forward combination.

Both sides have qualified for the final of the revamped continental competition for the first time, although Al Ahli did reach the final of the Asian Club Championship – which became the AFC Champions League 10 years ago – in 1985/6 only to lose to Korea’s Daewoo Royals.

Ulsan, meanwhile, are out to return the trophy to Korean hands for the third time in four years having become the fourth consecutive K-League side to reach the AFC Champions League final.

The Manchester United man has a knee injury that is expected to rule him out of action until the end of Novemnber.

Ryo Miyaichi is another of Japan’s English Premier League stars absent but the Arsenal winger, on loan to Wigan Athletic, has been struggling to find playing time in the north-west of England and will not feature.

Other stars such as Keisuke Honda of CSKA Moscow and Inter Milan defender Yuto Nagatomo are fit and raring to go.

Coach Alberto Zaccheroni believes that the Samurai Blue, five points clear at the top of Group B with ten points from four games, will manage just fine in Muscat.
.
“Kagawa and Honda have been regular features in my squads but they haven’t always been available because of injuries,” the Italian said.

“But the players who have come in to deputise have all performed well. Kagawa is missing but I’m confident whoever plays will do a job.”

Squad:

Goalkeepers - Eiji Kawashima (Standard Liege), Shusaku Nishikawa (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Shuichi Gonda (FC Tokyo)

Defenders – Yuichi Komano (Jubilo Iwata), Yasuyuki Konno (Gamba Osaka), Yuzo Kurihara (Yokohama F-Marinos), Masahiko Inoha (Vissel Kobe), Yuto Nagatomo (Inter Milan), Atsuto Uchida (Schalke), Maya Yoshida (Southampton), Hiroki Sakai (Hannover)

Midfielders – Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Kengo Nakamura (Kawasaki Frontale), Makoto Hasebe (Wolfsburg), Hajime Hosogai (Bayer Leverkusen), Keisuke Honda (CSKA Moscow), Hideto Takahashi (FC Tokyo)

Forwards – Ryoichi Maeda (Jubilo Iwata), Shinji Okazaki (Stuttgart), Mike Havenaar (Vitesse Arnhem), Takashi Inui (Eintracht Frankfurt), Hiroshi Kiyotake (Nuremberg), Takashi Usami (Hoffenheim)

The midfielder scored from the spot after 73 minutes only for Genki Omae to equalise for Shimizu four minutes later at the National Stadium in Tokyo.

Three minutes after the start of extra-time,  Shibasaki struck again to score what would be the winning goal.

“I was fouled for the penalty, so it was mine to take,” the 20 year-old said. “The veterans in this team have won so many titles for this club, so to help the club win another one makes me very proud.”

It may be Kashima’s 16th trophy but it is the first for coach Jorginho.

“It’s a big privilege for me to win this title,” said Jorginho. “Not everyone in the world gets an opportunity like this, but the season isn’t finished yet. The most important thing — more important than me — is the players’ desire to keep on working and winning. Getting this trophy today should help me keep the players motivated.”

S-Pulse boss Afshin Ghotbi was left to reflect on what could have been and is confident that his young team have plenty of time to win trophies.

“Overall I was disappointed with our performance in overtime,” said Afshin Ghotbi. “We let in a very bad goal at the beginning of overtime, and especially in games with so much pressure and when fatigue sets in, it is difficult to come back.

“Having said all that, I am proud of our team and the strategy and vision we have for the club. We still have two cups to fight for in the remaining part of the season, and I think the quest to fight for this trophy will only make us better.”