Ahli and Al-Ittihad will be on crucial duty when the Jeddah teams face their Syrian rivals in their second round of the AFC Champions League on Wednesday. Two-time winner Al-Ittihad will play in an away match against Syria's Al-Ittihad in Aleppo while Al-Ahli hosts Al-Karama at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Jeddah. The matches, however, may decide the future of the Jeddah teams' coaches especially of Al-Ahli's Serbian coach Nebojsa Vuckovic who failed to lift the team to its form in the Saudi League. Al-Ittihad's Brazilian coach Soares is also under pressure after the team's poor performance in the last rounds of the local league. Al-Ittihad seems to be better placed than Al-Ahli after its 1-0 win over Kuruvchi of Uzbekistan in Jeddah last week. But home team Al-Ittihad of Aleppo also had an impressive show in its first match edging last year's finalist Sephaan of Iran 2-0 in the first round match. Ittihad Syria enjoys the top spot in Group A on goal difference to Ittihad Jeddah. Meanwhile, Al-Ahli will be determined to recover from its 2-1 defeat against Al-Sadd in Al-Doha. It has an uphill task against Al-Karama which would be keen to extend its lead at the top in Group C. Al-Karama had a brilliant show in its first appearance in the competition when it edged defending Champion Ittihad Jeddah in quarterfinals in 2006 before losing the final. The 2006 AFC Champions League runner-up Al-Karama resumed its campaign this year with a 4-1 victory over Al-Wehdah of the United Arab Emirates. Al-Ahli coach Vuckovic feels his team must fix the errors that plagued them in their game against Al-Sadd to get its campaign back on track. “Our mistakes killed us in the first game but after several meetings with the players, I can say that we are ready to face this strong Syrian side,” Nebojsa said. The good news in Al-Ahli camp is about the fitness of Brazilian midfielder Antonio Caio, who missed the Al-Sadd match with a knee injury. Caio could link up in attack with Saudi international striker Malek Al-Hawsawi and Brazilian compatriot Osvaldo Souza, the scorer of the lone goal against Al-Sadd. Vuckovic will also welcome back midfielder Taiser Al-Jassim, who would take the place of Saheb Al-Abdullah, who was sent off against Al-Sadd during the first half. Al-Karama coach Mohammed Kwid, who arrived with his team in Jeddah on Monday and closed off the team's training session to the Saudi media, is expecting a tough battle in Jeddah. The Syrian coach added that he will start the match in a striking style to secure the win from the beginning. “I respect Al-Ahli but I will not play with a defensive formation. I have prepared the Al-Karama players well for this clash and I am sure that we can remain in top spot in the group.” Ittihad Jeddah arrived in Aleppo on Sunday afternoon on a private jet to be familiar with the climate in the region. The team could be without the services of defensive midfielder Saud Khariri, who suffered an ankle injury in training before the match, and Aqeel Al-Qarni is expected to take his place. There are also doubts over Guinean striker Elhassan Keita, who suffered a foot injury against Kuruvchi while defender Redha Tukar is expected to return to the team after missing the opening match. For midfielder Ibrahim Swaid it is a revenge match. “I hope to come back with three points and we seek to avenge our defeat to Al-Karama in 2006.” __
