The AFC Champions League is back with a bang. Ahead of Matchday 3, some interesting matches are lined up, with Al Ain vs. Al Hilal being one of them. Both sides are set to lock horns against each other at the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi. The last time these two strong teams met was in the semifinal of this tournament last season, where Al Ain advanced with a 5-4 aggregate victory on their way to winning the title.

Speaking of the home side, Al Ain isn’t even close to being what they were last season. It has been a rather different story for Hernan Crespo’s side, who are sitting in 6th place with just 7 points in the UAE Pro League. Meanwhile, the defending champions are also struggling in the AFC Champions League, having accumulated just a single point so far and occupying 10th place in 12-team-based Group B.

Meanwhile, the visitors might be the best club in Asia. They are sitting at the top of the Saudi Pro League table with a whopping 21 points. Jorge Jesus and Co.’s quality hasn’t taken a dip even in the AFC Champions League having won all matches so far to take the top place of Group B with 6 points. They are showcasing all the signs of why they deserve to win this season’s tournament.

Al Hilal Vs Al Ain: Team news

Injuries

Al Hilal

The return of Neymar Jr is one of the biggest headliners so far. After almost a year of being sidelined due to a tear-jerking injury, the Brazilian striker may finally gain some minutes for the Blue Waves. In his absence, Aleksander Mitrovic has been doing the job just fine. However, the main injury concern revolves around Yassine Bounou, who picked up an injury during international duty with Morocco, causing him to miss the weekend’s win against Al Fayha. If he’s not fit in time for this game, Mohammed Al-Rubaie will likely continue as goalkeeper for the visitors.

Al Ain

Star midfielder Alejandro Romero, a.k.a. ‘Kaku’ had to miss Al-Ain’s President’s Cup win over Hatta last week, as he had just returned from international duty with Paraguay only hours before kickoff. However, he is expected to return to the starting lineup this week.

Predicted lineups

Al Ain [4-2-3-1]: Eisa; Al-Ahbabi, Cardoso, Autonne, Erik; Park, Traore; Sanabria, Palacios, Romero; Rahimi

Al Hilal [4-2-3-1]: Al-Rubaie, Cancelo, Koulibaly, Al Bulaihi, Lodi; neves, Milinkovic-Savic; Malcolm, Leonardo, Al-Dawsari; Mitrovic

Head to Head and prediction for AFC Champions League

Total matches: 16

Won by Al Ain: 5

Won by Al Hilal: 9

Draws: 2

Although Al-Ain secured a significant victory over this opponent at this venue in their last meeting, they have struggled to find their best form this season. Considering Al-Hilal’s strong performance this term, we believe the Blue Waves are poised to exact their revenge in this matchup. We reckon the score will be Al Ain 1-2 Al Hilal.

Watch Al Hilal Vs Al Ain AFC Champions League on TV Channels and livestream

Fans can stream the match live on Paramount+ and Apple TV.