SOCCER/ Yokohama’s Kewell and Al_abha vs al-hilal
SOCCER/ Yokohama’s Kewell and Al-Ain’s Crespo meet again for a continental title. This abha vs al-hilaltime it’s in Asia
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
May 10, 2024 at 13:22 JST
- Share
- Tweet list
Yokohama F. Marinos' head coach Harry Kewell gestures during the first leg of the AFC Champions League semifinal soccer match between Ulsan Hyundai and Yokohama F. Marinos at the Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, South Korea, on April 17. (AP Photo)
Harry Kewell and Hernan Crespo will shake hands as head coaches with the Asian title on the line on Saturday, almost two decades after facing each other when Liverpool met AC Milan in the famous 2005 UEFA Champions League final.
Kewell is now in charge of Yokohama F.Marinos, the Japanese club hosting Al-Ain of the United Arab Emirates on Saturday in the first leg of the Asian Champions League final series.
He was the victor in ‘05 when Liverpool recovered from a 3-0 deficit to triumph in a penalty shootout. Crespo scored two goals for Milan in Istanbul that day but ended as a losing finalist. He’s hoping to lift the Asian trophy at Al-Ain after the second leg on May 25.
Unlike Al-Ain, continental title winner in 2003 and finalist in ‘05 and ‘16, Yokohama has never before reached this stage of the continental club championship.
Kewell has led the five-time J.League winner through the knockout stages, including a comeback victory over Ulsan HD of South Korea in the semifinals.
After a 1-0 first leg loss in the semifinals, the 45-year-old Kewell — the third successive Australian to take charge of Yokohama following Ange Postecoglou and Kevin Muscat — invoked the spirit of Liverpool’s historic comeback 19 years ago.
“I was part of a special team that night that was able to come back from a scenario where a lot of people thought it was dead and buried,” Kewell said. “It just goes to show that a game is never finished, especially when you’ve got a hunger and a desire in a team.
“And I see that hunger and desire in this team to go out there and do something magical.”
Kewell’s coaching career is yet to reach the heights of his time as a player who starred for Leeds United and Liverpool in the English Premier League and represented Australia at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. A stint with Crawley Town in England’s fourth division in 2017 was the first of his three short-term jobs head coaching before he arrived at Barnet, where he was fired after just seven games in 2021.
Invited by Postecoglou to join the coaching staff at Scottish giant Celtic in 2022, Kewell worked as an assistant there until he took over at Yokohama last December.
Victory in Asia could send the Sydney-born coach back into Europe.
Crespo, who won league titles in England and Italy as a player with Chelsea and Inter Milan, has already had success as a coach .
After winning trophies in South America, he led Al-Duhail to the 2023 Qatar league title. The season was blighted by a heavy 7-0 loss to Al-Hilal in the semifinals of last season’s Asian Champions League.
With Al-Ain, the 48-year-old Crespo got the better of the Saudi club at the same stage last month, winning 5-4 on aggregate in the semifinals.
Al-Ain went into that semifinal series on the back of a victory over another Saudi club — Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.
“We talk so much about the two teams we eliminated because we were underdogs in the quarterfinals and semifinals, and we went through,” Crespo said. “We always need to say thank you to the players, congratulations to the players. They believe, they work hard, they fight, and they deserve to go through … I’m very happy to be part of it.”
(责任编辑:レジャー)
- 「うんちく王」上田晋也、吉野家の名前の由来聞かれ一発回答「本当なら『知らない』って言った方がいいんだけど…」
- 不振に終わった日本水泳界 同じ方向を向いていなかった選手と首脳陣…パリ五輪・担当記者見た
- 「INI」許豊凡、「DayDay.」コメンテーター出演にファン歓喜「朝からめちゃくちゃ癒された~!」
- 【POG】新馬Vのアルマヴェローチェは札幌2歳Sへ調整中 陣営「素直で、牝馬にしてはどっしり」
- 【神戸新聞杯】友道師「シュヴァルグランはクラシック出走できなかったので、その息子で菊花賞をとりたい」
- 銀メダルを獲得した安楽宙斗 地元の千葉・八千代市民も驚き「こんな高校生スターが出るなんて」
- サッカー大岩監督「若い選手たちなんで、いろんな…」冷静な指揮官が最後は言葉詰まる…パリ五輪・担当記者が見た
- 【プチ鹿島の本音】「がんばれ、ニッポン」もう一度五輪憲章復唱を
- J2仙台 MF郷家友太「プレーや行動で引っ張りたい」…21日・ホームで好相性の甲府戦
- “戒めの2文字”帽子に刻み魂の121球で山崎伊織7回途中0封8勝目…連敗猛省「すごい気合入ってました」
- 森保監督も称賛! 浦和FW松尾佑介が50M超ドリブル突破弾! 得点生んだ相手2人との駆け引きとは
- 少年女子静岡県選抜が3年連続本大会切符…国スポ東海ブロック大会代表決定戦で三重に完勝
- ベガルタ仙台ユースMF横山颯大が来季トップ昇格「1日でも早くユアスタでプレーしたい」
- 森保一監督「本当に痛快でした」 パリ五輪の印象シーンは…柔道混合団体決勝のあの激闘
- 浜口京子、父・アニマル浜口さん代理で小林邦昭さん「通夜」参列…「父も言葉が詰まちゃって…胸が苦しくなるぐらい」
- 緑の甲子園最終日 高校男子は小川琥太郎がプレーオフで優勝 高校女子は仲村梓が3人のプレーオフを制す
- 日向坂46・加藤史帆&森カンナ、ドラマ共演の2人がディズニーへ!「笑顔見てるだけで幸せ」「デート素敵」の声
- カブス今永昇太「これも野球」勝負球のボール判定から失点、7失点(自責3)も勝敗付かず
- 女子バレー・荒木田裕子さん死去 70歳…76年モントリオール五輪金メダル、21年東京五輪では組織委員会副会長
- 静岡県内10年ぶりの地域FM「RADIO LUSH」が12日・焼津市で開局