The state of play heading into A-League clubs' do-or-die ACL clashes

Defeat at the hands of China’s two biggest clubs on Wednesday will leave Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory on the brink of an early exit from the tournament.

Steve Corica, Oscar, Kevin Muscat, Fabbio Cannavaro Source: Getty Images

The record of the A-League’s biggest two clubs in the competition is poor with just one appearance each in the knockout stage and it could be about to get poorer.

The situation for Melbourne is more serious after two losses from the opening two games. Now they make one of the trickiest trips in Asian football --to the home of Guangzhou Evergrande.

The Southern Chinese Tigers won this competition two times, in 2013 and 2015, continental success to add to domestic dominance. Trophies are part of the DNA at the Tianhe Stadium.

Yet Australian fans and players know all this and have caused problems for the Reds in the past. Melbourne defeated Guangzhou in 2014 when the team was in its pomp and in the last season of Marcello Lippi’s tenure.

The Canton club has also lost to both of the Sydney clubs. I asked Guangzhou’s chairman in 2016 whether the club had a problem against Australian teams and he bristled at the suggestion.

The pressure is on both teams now. Defeat for the visitors and it is almost over but Guangzhou have not been great in Asia this season. An opening game win over a second-string Sanfrecce Hiroshima was followed by a loss at Korean debutants Daegu.

Unlike some Australian teams, Guangzhou set great store by the Champions League and winning it once announced its arrival on the Asian stage and repeating that feat two years later cemented its position as the continent’s glamour club. A third success will be historic.

That is just one of Guangzhou’s objectives. The club still has that spine of Chinese veterans, Zheng Zhi, returning from injury in midfield, Huang Bowen, Yu Hanchao, Feng Xiaoting, Zhang Linpeng and Gao Lin and will continue to invest in local talent.

The powers-that-be at the club have wanted to field all Chinese teams for a few years and the target of 2020 was set. That may or may not be met but the club is selecting no more than two foreign players in 2019 and is gradually moving towards being all homegrown. There is still Brazilian talent in the form of former Barcelona star Paulinho as well as Talisca, a player in a rich vein of goalscoring form. 

For all desire for domestic talent, Guangzhou always go for foreign coaches. The pressure is on Fabio Cannavaro in his second spell at the helm. After succeeding Lippi at the end of 2014, the Italian lasted just six months before being given, harshly, his marching orders. He did a good job with Tianjin Quanjian in 2017 to earn a second chance with Guangzhou. His first full season back at the club in 2018 resulted in a first failure to win the title since 2010 and a disappointing continental campaign. Four wins from four games at home is a solid start but an early exit from Asia could spell another early exit for Cannavaro.

Shanghai SIPG broke Guangzhou’s dominance to lift a first ever Chinese Super League title. Now their focus is on Asia and Sydney. Shanghai have invested big time, over $100 million, in Brazilian stars such as Hulk, not in the best form currently, and Oscar, not completely fit.

Under Portuguese coach Vitor Pereira, Shanghai have been a little inconsistent this season so far; playing well in patches without managing to make it last for a full 90, as was the case in a 3-2 loss to Chongqing at the weekend. The same has been true in Asia so far with a solid win over Japanese champions Kawasaki Frontale followed by a disappointing loss at Ulsan Horangi in Korea.

A bigger loss was that of Wu Lei to Espanyol in Spain in January. The 2018 Chinese Super League top scorer has adapted surprisingly quickly to La Liga life but his absence up front has been keenly felt with opponents saying that it has made the champs more predictable and one-dimensional going forward. There is still time for the champs to find their feet. If that happens against Sydney, there could be trouble.