Al Wakrah players during a training session.
Doha, Qatar: Al Wakrah will host Al Taawoun of Saudi Arabia in the first-leg Round of 16 of AFC Champions League (ACL) Two at the Khalifa International Stadium today. The match is expected to be strong and exciting, given the desire of both teams to achieve a positive result in the first leg before the second leg, which will be hosted by Al Taawoun in Buraidah on February 19.
Al Wakrah qualified for the Round of 16 after finishing second in Group A with four points, while Al Taawoun booked their berth by topping Group B.
Al Wakrah are having a roller-coaster ride of late in terms of results despite having an offensive force capable of scoring. In the last match, Al Wakrah lost 0-2 to Al Duhail, dropping to ninth place in the Ooredoo Stars League standings at the end of Week 15 action.
Meanwhile, Al Taawoun lost to Al Ittihad 1-2 on February 6, a loss that led to the dismissal of Argentinian coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena due to a series of negative results, as the team did not achieve any victory in five consecutive matches in the league.
Both teams are counting on a group of prominent players although they are going through tough times as far as performance is concerned. Al Wakrah are sure to go all out for a positive result before the return leg.The match will kick-off at 7pm.
