Source  the-afc.com


ESFAHAN – Ali Taheri, General Manager of Foolad Mahan Sepahan, believes Iran’s status as the continent’s Futsal powerhouse will be the telling factor when the inaugural AFC Futsal Club Championship kicks-off in July.

“Iran is number one in Asia so it doesn’t make a difference who we play,” Taheri said after Wednesday’s draw for the historic tournament that pitted hosts Foolad Mahan with Japanese champions Nagoya Oceans, Iraq’s Nawrouz and the Central Asian duo of Uzbek outfit Stroitel Zarafshan and AUB Altyn Tas Bishkek from Kyrgyzstan.

Foolad Mahan begin their campaign against the Kyrgyz side on July 5 and although confident that his team have the quality to become the first winners of the competition, Taheri is not underestimating the opposition.
“We have a tough start and we will have some good games but I believe the clubs from Iran and Japan will go through to the next round.”

Nawrouz coach Salam Mahrouf also feels that the hosts will advance but with the Iraqi side advancing to the semi-finals instead of the 2007 and 2008 F.League champions.

“Our group is very strong because of there are teams from Iran, Uzbekistan and Japan but we will go through with the Iranians.

“This will be a very good championship because it’s the first and we hope it will continue and get bigger in the future.”

Meanwhile, Al Sadd manager Talal Mohammad Al Kaabi is taking a more cautious approach after the Qataris were pooled with Thai champions Port Authority, New South Wales Thunder, Lebanon’s Pro's Café, and Wuhan Dilang from China.

“It’s a relatively good draw for Al Sadd but I can’t really say who will qualify as this is a new championship with new teams.”

Al Sadd, who are the only club from Qatar to have claimed continental honours when their 11-aside team won the 1989 Asian Club Championship, and Pro's Café have the honour of playing the first match in the inaugural AFC Futsal Championship, with the two West Asian sides kicking-off the tournament on July 4.