When Cristiano Ronaldo was goaded by Al Ahli Saudi fans about their back-to-back continental titles at the end of last season, he had a ready reply: “I have won five.”
Yes, yes. His glorious career in Europe includes winning multiple Uefa Champions Leagues with Manchester United and Real Madrid. But he is still yet to win Asia’s version.
Maybe this will be his year. The Portuguese superstar will be returning to the top tier of Asian football with his club side Al Nassr, who begin their AFC Champions League Elite campaign in the UAE on Tuesday night.
How does it work?
The new Champions League Elite competition features an expanded league stage of 32 clubs, which is eight more than the preceding two seasons.
That equates to 16 teams each in the Western Region - involving clubs from the UAE (three), Saudi Arabia (five), Qatar (three), Iran (two), Uzbekistan (two) and Iraq (one) – and the same in the east.
The sides play eight games each, with the league phase being completed by mid-February. Then there is a two-legged round-of-16 fixture between sides within the same region.
After that, sides from the east and west pitted against each other in a centralised finals competition in Saudi Arabia in April, with the final on May 1.
Who are the champions?
Al Ahli Saudi have won it twice in a row – hence the gloating when they played Nassr in an ill-tempered encounter in April.
Those two titles have been gloriously received by their supporters. They were the first two tournaments to be played in the new format, with a centralised finals competition played from the quarter-final stage onwards.
Ahli benefited greatly from home advantage. Their matches packed out the 62,000-capacity King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, helping lift the team to dual successes.
A hat-trick will be tricky, though. The coach who masterminded those wins, Matthias Jaissle, has since left for Newcastle United, while two of the vital cogs in the side, Riyad Mahrez and Franck Kessie, have been released.
Who are the contenders?
All the Saudi Arabian teams have a significant advantage over the rest because of their financial might.
In the history of the top club competition in Asia, the East has actually won more often. That is 26 for the East, compared with 18 for West Asia.
But in the three full seasons since Ronaldo’s arrival underpinned massive spending on football by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the West has won each time.
It has not always been Saudi Arabian clubs, though. Before the back-to-back wins by Ahli, the UAE’s champion club, Al Ain, were the winners.
Al Ain are back now on the back of a stunning double-winning domestic campaign where they did not lose a league game.
They will have their Champions League title credentials tested immediately when they host Al Nassr at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium on Tuesday evening, with an 8pm kickoff.
The biggest threat will come from Saudi Arabia. Al Hilal have won the competition more times than anyone else. Al Ahli know how to get the job done in this format. Their Jeddah neighbours, Al Ittihad, have a strong squad. Al Qadsiah have been outstanding under the guidance of coach Brendan Rodgers.
And then there is Al Nassr.
How will Ronaldo’s team do?
Al Nassr suffered yet more heartache last season. After an underwhelming previous campaign, when they slumped out of the Elite competition at the semi-final stage and were poor in the league, they had to make do with playing in Asia's second-tier tournament.
The club had been without a significant trophy since Ronaldo arrived amid much pomp and ceremony at the start of 2023.
That continued when they were stunned by Japan’s Gamba Osaka in the final of the Champions League 2 on home soil in Riyadh.
In fairness, they did only have to wait a few more days to exorcise that demon as Al Nassr won the Saudi Pro League title shortly after.
Their side is packed with firepower, with Sadio Mane, Joao Felix and Kingsley Coman in the same forward line as Ronaldo.
And they have Ange Postecoglou, who won the Uefa Europa League with Tottenham Hotspur, as their manager, so they should be good to watch.
