AFC Cup: Tough group for East Bengal

The Asian Football Confederation today conducted the draw for the 2011 AFC Cup in Kuala Lumpur today. And the battle lines were drawn for the group stage throwing up intriguing encounters across the continent.

Indian Federation Cup champions East Bengal have been drawn in a tough, but very interesting Group H along with Hongkong's South China, Chonburi FC from Thailand and Indonesia's Persipura Jayapura. It is an interesting group and maybe former Manchester United star Nicky Butt could be seen in action in Kolkata, if he decides to sign a contract for South China. It would surely be an interesting guest for the 'City of Joy'.

If I-League champions Dempo SC do not make it to the AFC Champions League, then they would also have to once more play in the AFC Cup. But which group they would play in depends on which teams they face in the AFC Champions League qualifiers.

Twenty-eight teams came out of the pots to be slotted into eight groups of four teams each. Four teams that miss out on the AFC Champions League will complete the line-up. Five groups are in the West and three in the East.


THE AFC CUP GROUPINGS

WEST

Group A
ACL Play-off 2 (West), Al Ansar (Lebanon), Nasaf (Uzbekistan), Al Tilal (Yemen)

Group B
Al Qadsia (Kuwait), ACL Play-off 1 (West), Al Saqr (Yemen), Shurtan (Uzbekistan)

Group C
Al Faisaly (Jordan), Duhok (Iraq), Al Nasr (Kuwait), Al Jaish (Syria)

Group D
Al Suwaiq (Oman), Al Wehdat (Jordan), Al Talaba (Iraq), Kuwait SC (Kuwait)

Group E
Al Ahed (Lebanon), Fnjaa or Al Oruba (Oman), Al Karamah (Syria), Arbil (Iraq)

EAST

Group F
ACL Play-off 2 (East), TSW Pegasus (Hongkong), Song Lam Nghe An (Vietnam), VB (Maldives)

Group G
ACL Play-off 1 (East), Tampines Rovers (Singapore), Victory (Maldives), Hanoi T&T (Vietnam)

Group H
South China (Hongkong), Chonburi FC (Thailand), East Bengal Club (India), Persipura Jayapura (Indonesia)