2015 AFC Champions League final

Football match

2015 AFC Champions League FinalEvent| 2015 AFC Champions League

|

| Al-Ahli | Guangzhou Evergrande

|

0 | 1
on aggregate
First leg
| Al-Ahli | Guangzhou Evergrande

|

0 | 0
Date| 7 November 2015
Venue| Al-Rashid Stadium, Dubai
AFC Man of the Match| Zheng Zhi (Guangzhou Evergrande)[1]
Referee| Kim Jong-hyeok (South Korea)
Attendance| 9,480
Weather| Clear and warm
25 °C (77 °F)
62% humidity[1]
Second leg
| Guangzhou Evergrande | Al-Ahli

|

1 | 0
Date| 21 November 2015
Venue| Tianhe Stadium, Guangzhou
AFC Man of the Match| Elkeson (Guangzhou Evergrande)[2]
Referee| Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan)
Attendance| 42,499
Weather| Hot
27 °C (81 °F)
88% humidity[2]

← 2014

2016 →

The 2015 AFC Champions League Final was the final of the 2015 AFC Champions League, the 34th edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 13th under the current AFC Champions League title.

The final was contested in two-legged home-and-away format between Emiratis team Al-Ahli and Chinese team Guangzhou Evergrande. The first leg hosted by Al-Ahli at Al-Rashid Stadium in Dubai on 7 November 2015, while the second leg hosted by Guangzhou Evergrande at the Tianhe Stadium in Guangzhou on 21 November 2015. Having previously won the tournament in 2013 Guangzhou Evergrande has making its second final appearance in three years.

Guangzhou Evergrande won the final 1–0 on aggregate and as Asian champions earned the right to represent the AFC at the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, entering at the quarterfinal stage.

## Qualified teams

[edit]

Team  | Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners)

|

Al-Ahli | None
Guangzhou Evergrande | 2013

## Venues

[edit]

The Al-Rashid Stadium hosted first leg of the final. The Tianhe Stadium hosted second leg of the final.

The 2015 AFC Champions League Final was contested in two-legged home-and-away format, held at the home of both finalists. It was the third consecutive year that the AFC adopted such an arrangement.

Al-Ahli's home venue, Al-Rashid Stadium, is a 9,415 seated stadium located in the city of Dubai.

Two previous final has been held in United Arab Emirates. The first one was in the first leg of the 2002–03 final, Al Ain defeated BEC Tero Sasana F.C. 2–0 in Tahnoun bin Mohammed Stadium in the city of Al Ain, and they eventually claimed the title 2–1 on aggregate. The second one was 10 years ago, in the first leg of the 2005 final, Al Ain was defeated by Saudis' team, Al-Ittihad, and they eventually lost the title 3–5 on aggregate.

Guangzhou Evergrande's home venue, Tianhe Stadium, is a 58,500 seated stadium located in the city of Guangzhou.

In the history of the competition, two finals have been held in China and this final will be the third, and the second that Guangzhou hosted. The first final hosted by a Chinese city in 1989–90, which was won by Chinese side Liaoning FC 3–2 against Nissan Yokohama in the city of Shenyang. The next final, the 2013 and second leg of the 2013, was hosted in Guangzhou. The 2013 final was won by Guangzhou Evergrande on the away goals rule with 3–3 on aggregate.

## Road to the final

[edit]

Further information: 2015 AFC Champions League

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).

Al-Ahli | Round  |  Guangzhou Evergrande

|
|

Opponent  | Result  | Group stage | Opponent  | Result
Al-Ahli | 3–3 (H)  | Matchday 1  |  FC Seoul | 1–0 (H)
Tractor Sazi | 0–1 (A)  | Matchday 2  |  Western Sydney Wanderers | 3–2 (A)
FC Nasaf | 0–0 (H)  | Matchday 3  |  Kashima Antlers | 4–3 (H)
FC Nasaf | 1–0 (A)  | Matchday 4  |  Kashima Antlers | 1–2 (A)
Al-Ahli | 1–2 (A)  | Matchday 5  |  FC Seoul | 0–0 (A)
Tractor Sazi | 3–2 (H)  | Matchday 6  |  Western Sydney Wanderers | 0–2 (H)
Group D runners-up

| Pos | Team

* v
* t
* e

| Pld | Pts

|
|
|

1  |  Al-Ahli | 6  | 12
2  |  Al-Ahli | 6  | 8
3  |  Nasaf Qarshi | 6  | 8
4  |  Tractor Sazi | 6  | 4

Source: AFC

Final standings  | Group H winner

| Pos | Team

* v
* t
* e

| Pld | Pts

|
|
|

1  |  Guangzhou Evergrande | 6  | 10
2  |  FC Seoul | 6  | 9
3  |  Western Sydney Wanderers | 6  | 8
4  |  Kashima Antlers | 6  | 6

Source: AFC

Opponent  | Agg.  | 1st leg  | 2nd leg  | Knockout stage | Opponent  | Agg.  | 1st leg  | 2nd leg
Al-Ain | 3–3 (a)  | 0–0 (H)  | 3–3 (A)  | Round of 16  |  Seongnam FC | 3–2  | 1–2 (A)  | 2–0 (H)
Naft Tehran | 3–1  | 1–0 (A)  | 2–1 (H)  | Quarter-finals  |  Kashiwa Reysol | 4–2  | 3–1 (A)  | 1–1 (H)
Al-Hilal | 4–3  | 1–1 (A)  | 3–2 (H)  | Semi-finals  |  Gamba Osaka | 2–1  | 2–1 (H)  | 0–0 (A)

## Rules

[edit]

The final was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, with the order of legs decided by draw. The away goals rule, extra time (away goals do not apply in extra time) and penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winner if necessary.[3]

## Match details

[edit]

### First leg

[edit]

#### Summary

[edit]

#### Details

[edit]

7 November 2015

19:45 UTC+4

Al-Ahli | 0–0|  Guangzhou Evergrande

|
|

| Report |

Al-Rashid Stadium, Dubai

Attendance: 9,480

Referee: Kim Jong-hyeok (South Korea)

Al-Ahli

Guangzhou Evergrande

|

|  |

|

GK | 12 |  Ahmed Mahmoud
RB | 26 |  Abdulaziz Haikel |  84'
CB | 2 |  Salmeen Khamis
CB | 21 |  Kwon Kyung-won |  90+3'
LB | 62 |  Abdelaziz Sanqour |  |  72'
RM | 8 |  Everton Ribeiro |  |  90'
CM | 88 |  Majed Hassan
LM | 4 |  Habib Fardan
RF | 11 |  Ahmed Khalil (c) |  |  88'
CF | 9 |  Lima
LF | 7 |  Ismail Al Hammadi
Substitutes:
GK | 55 |  Majed Naser
DF | 5 |  Walid Abbas |  |  72'
DF | 80 |  Humaid Abdulla |  |  88'
DF | 77 |  Yousef Al Sayed
MF | 6 |  Hassan Abdurahman
MF | 71 |  Nawaf Mubarak
FW | 14 |  Oussama Assaidi |  |  90'
Manager:
Cosmin Olăroiu
|  |

|

GK | 19 |  Zeng Cheng
RB | 5 |  Zhang Linpeng
CB | 3 |  Mei Fang |  80'
CB | 6 |  Feng Xiaoting
LB | 35 |  Li Xuepeng |  |  70'
CM | 8 |  Paulinho
CM | 10 |  Zheng Zhi (c)
RW | 16 |  Huang Bowen
AM | 11 |  Ricardo Goulart |  |  59'
LW | 27 |  Zheng Long |  |  46'
CF | 9 |  Elkeson |  36'
Substitutes:
GK | 22 |  Li Shuai
DF | 17 |  Liu Jian
MF | 2 |  Liao Lisheng
MF | 12 |  Wang Shangyuan
MF | 20 |  Yu Hanchao |  |  59'
MF | 25 |  Zou Zheng |  |  70'
DF | 28 |  Kim Young-gwon
FW | 29 |  Gao Lin |  |  46'
Manager:
Luiz Felipe Scolari

AFC Man of the Match:
Zheng Zhi (Guangzhou Evergrande)

Assistant referees:
Jeong Hae-sang (South Korea)
Yoon Kwang-yeol (South Korea)
Fourth official:
Kim Hee-gon (South Korea)

#### Statistics

[edit]

First half[4] |  | Al-Ahli  | Guangzhou Evergrande

|
|

Goals scored  | 0  | 0
Total shots  | 2  | 5
Shots on target  | 1  | 1
Saves  | 1  | 1
Ball possession  | 41%  | 59%
Corner kicks  | 3  | 5
Fouls committed  | 7  | 4
Offsides  | 1  | 0
Yellow cards  | 0  | 1
Red cards  | 0  | 0

Second half[4] |  | Al-Ahli  | Guangzhou Evergrande

|
|

Goals scored  | 0  | 0
Total shots  | 4  | 3
Shots on target  | 3  | 3
Saves  | 2  | 3
Ball possession  | 47%  | 53%
Corner kicks  | 4  | 1
Fouls committed  | 13  | 4
Offsides  | 1  | 0
Yellow cards  | 1  | 1
Red cards  | 1  | 0

Overall[4] |  | Al-Ahli  | Guangzhou Evergrande

|
|

Goals scored  | 0  | 0
Total shots  | 6  | 8
Shots on target  | 4  | 4
Saves  | 3  | 4
Ball possession  | 47%  | 53%
Corner kicks  | 7  | 6
Fouls committed  | 20  | 8
Offsides  | 2  | 0
Yellow cards  | 1  | 2
Red cards  | 1  | 0

### Second leg

[edit]

#### Summary

[edit]

#### Details

[edit]

21 November 2015

20:00 UTC+8

Guangzhou Evergrande | 1–0|  Al-Ahli

|
|

Elkeson 54' | Report |

Tianhe Stadium, Guangzhou

Attendance: 42,499

Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan)

Guangzhou Evergrande

Al-Ahli

|

|  |

|

GK | 19 |  Zeng Cheng |  |  38'
RB | 5 |  Zhang Linpeng
CB | 6 |  Feng Xiaoting
CB | 28 |  Kim Young-gwon
LB | 25 |  Zou Zheng |  72'
DM | 10 |  Zheng Zhi (c)
DM | 8 |  Paulinho
AM | 11 |  Ricardo Goulart |  |  90+1'
RW | 16 |  Huang Bowen |  76'
LW | 27 |  Zheng Long |  |  87'
CF | 9 |  Elkeson
Substitutes:
GK | 22 |  Li Shuai |  |  38'
DF | 3 |  Mei Fang
DF | 33 |  Rong Hao
DF | 35 |  Li Xuepeng
MF | 17 |  Liu Jian |  |  87'
MF | 20 |  Yu Hanchao
FW | 29 |  Gao Lin |  |  90+1'
Manager:
Luiz Felipe Scolari
|  |

|

GK | 12 |  Ahmed Mahmoud
RB | 62 |  Abdelaziz Sanqour
CB | 2 |  Salmeen Khamis |  67'
CB | 21 |  Kwon Kyung-won
LB | 5 |  Walid Abbas
RM | 8 |  Everton Ribeiro
CM | 88 |  Majed Hassan |  11' |  90+3'
LM | 4 |  Habib Fardan |  |  65'
RF | 9 |  Lima
CF | 11 |  Ahmed Khalil (c) |  |  63'
LF | 7 |  Ismail Al Hammadi
Substitutes:
GK | 55 |  Majed Naser
DF | 57 |  Mohamed Sebil |  |  90+3'
DF | 80 |  Humaid Abbas |  |  65'
MF | 6 |  Hassan Abdurahman
MF | 70 |  Waleed Hussain
MF | 71 |  Nawaf Mubarak
FW | 14 |  Oussama Assaidi |  |  63'
Manager:
Cosmin Olăroiu

AFC Man of the Match:
Elkeson (Guangzhou Evergrande)

Assistant referees:
Abdukhamidullo Rasulov (Uzbekistan)
Jahongir Saidov (Uzbekistan)
Fourth official:
Valentin Kovalenko (Uzbekistan)

#### Statistics

[edit]

First half[4] |  | Guangzhou Evergrande  | Al-Ahli

|
|

Goals scored  | 0  | 0
Total shots  | 6  | 3
Shots on target  | 3  | 2
Saves  | 2  | 3
Ball possession  | 53%  | 47%
Corner kicks  | 3  | 0
Fouls committed  | 5  | 5
Offsides  | 1  | 1
Yellow cards  | 0  | 1
Red cards  | 0  | 0

Second half[4] |  | Guangzhou Evergrande  | Al-Ahli

|
|

Goals scored  | 1  | 0
Total shots  | 3  | 1
Shots on target  | 1  | 0
Saves  | 0  | 0
Ball possession  | 57%  | 43%
Corner kicks  | 2  | 1
Fouls committed  | 7  | 11
Offsides  | 0  | 3
Yellow cards  | 2  | 0
Red cards  | 0  | 1

Overall[4] |  | Guangzhou Evergrande  | Al-Ahli

|
|

Goals scored  | 1  | 0
Total shots  | 9  | 4
Shots on target  | 4  | 2
Saves  | 2  | 3
Ball possession  | 57%  | 43%
Corner kicks  | 5  | 1
Fouls committed  | 12  | 16
Offsides  | 1  | 4
Yellow cards  | 2  | 1
Red cards  | 0  | 1

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "2015 AFC Champions League Final First Leg Match Summary: Al-Ahli v Guangzhou Evergrande". AFC. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
2. ^ a b "2015 AFC Champions League Final First Leg Match Summary: Guangzhou Evergrande v Al-Ahli". AFC. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
3. ^ "AFC Champions League 2015 Competition Regulations" (PDF). AFC.
4. ^ a b c d e f "AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2015 MATCH CENTRE". AFC. Archived from the original on 21 November 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015.

## External links

[edit]

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*[Pos]: Position
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