‘We are not afraid of them’: Kawasaki Frontale ready for Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr in AFC Champions League

One side from East Asia are left to duel the Saudi giants as top continental competition heads for finale in Jeddah

Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring against Yokohama F Marinos in their AFC Champions League quarter-final in Jeddah. Getty Images

The last side left standing in the AFC Champions League Elite who are not from Saudi Arabia insist they can upset the party as the tournament reaches its finale in Jeddah.

The prospect of playing the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane and Marcelo Brozovic might be a daunting enough challenge.

Then there is the fact they are having to shoulder the burden of carrying the hopes of the whole of the eastern side of Asia.

On top of that, Kawasaki Frontale have had one less day to prepare for Wednesday night’s semi-final against Al Nassr.

The short turnaround has been further exacerbated by the fact they required extra-time to beat Qatar’s Al Sadd in their quarter-final on Sunday.

If the opening round of matches are any sort of a guide, then few would give Kawasaki a chance. While they battled past Sadd, the star-studded Saudi sides crushed everything in their wake in their last-eight fixtures.

Al Hilal beat Gwangju 7-0, Al Ahli won 3-0 against Buriram United, while Nassr cruised into their game against Kawasaki by beating fellow J League side Yokohama F Marinos 4-1.

Such dominance is understandable given the outlay the Saudi league has been making on players, according to Shigetoshi Hasebe, the Kawasaki coach.

“If you look at the results, that tells everything,” Hasebe said.

“This country has invested a lot in football. That is why three teams have been in the semi-final.

“But we are playing football, and nobody know what is going to happen. Many people think the teams from Saudi will win, but I want to break that image tomorrow night.”

Hasebe said his side will be focused solely on themselves rather than the idea they are representing the whole of the East Asia conference.

Teams from that side of the continent have traditionally dominated Asia’s top competition. Since 2006, Al Ain, Hilal and Sadd are the only three West Asia clubs to have won the Champions League.

And yet the balance has shifted since world stars started to flood into the Saudi league around two years ago.

“It is hard to pick a specific name; all 11 players in their starting line up are key players,” Hasebe said of Nassr.

“They play especially well in attack, but in defence I can see some chances. We are a representative from East Asia, but also, we are just a club.

“We cannot have that kind of responsibility on us, as the representative from the eastern side [of the continent]. We are just focused on trying to win, that is all we can do tomorrow.”

Kento Tachibanada, the Kawasaki midfielder, said his team will not be thinking about the names in the opposition line up once the game kicks off.

“Yes, we are the only club left from East Asia, but the winner of this competition can only be one club,” Tachibanada said.

“We are playing to go to the final and to win this title. The key point is not to be afraid of the famous players and the big names. They have many talented players.”

Stefano Pioli, Nassr’s Italian manager, said his side are not underestimating the side from Japan.

“We are very confident in our team, we trust them and we are ready to make the final,” Pioli said.

“Our opposition are very organised, they have fast players who like to pass the ball, and they have a good line up. But we are prepared for them.

“I think the match will be tough because all the teams who have reached this stage deserve to be in the semi-finals. It is going to be a very challenging match. We are ready for the challenge.”