2021 AFC Cup knockout stage

The 2021 AFC Cup knockout stage was played from 25 August to 5 November 2021.[1] A total of 8 teams competed in the knockout stage to decide the champions of the 2021 AFC Cup.[2] Teams from ASEAN Zone did not compete in the knockout stage, due to the cancellation of group stage matches in ASEAN Zone.[3]

Qualified teams

The following teams advanced from the group stage:

  • The winners of each of the three groups and the best runners-up in the West Asia Zone (Groups A–C) advanced to the Zonal semi-finals.
  • The winners of each group in the South Asia Zone (Group D), and the East Asia Zone (Group J) advanced to the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals.
  • The winners of each group in the Central Asia Zone (Groups E–F) advanced to the Zonal finals.
Key to colours
Teams which enter the Inter-zone play-off finals
Teams which enter the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals
Teams which enter the Zonal finals
Teams which enter the Zonal semi-finals
Zone Group Winners Best runners-up
West Asia Zone A Lebanon Al-Ahed Jordan Al-Salt
(Group B)
B Bahrain Al-Muharraq
C Kuwait Al-Kuwait
South Asia Zone D India ATK Mohun Bagan —
Central Asia Zone E Turkmenistan Ahal —
F Uzbekistan Nasaf
East Asia Zone J Hong Kong Lee Man —

Format

In the knockout stage, the eight teams played a single-elimination tournament. Each tie was played as a single match. Extra time and penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winners if necessary (Regulations Article 9.3 and 10.1).

Schedule

The schedule of each round is as follows (W: West Asia Zone; C: Central Asia Zone).[1] Matches in the West Asia Zone will be played on Mondays and Tuesdays, while matches in the Central Zone and the Inter-zone play-offs will be played on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Round Date
Zonal semi-finals 20–21 September 2021 (W)
Zonal finals 25 August 2021 (C), 20 October 2021 (W)
Inter-zone play-off semi-finals 21–22 September 2021
Inter-zone play-off final 20 October 2021
Final 5 November 2021

Bracket

The bracket of the knockout stage was determined as follows:

Round Matchups
Zonal semi-finals (Matchups and order of legs determined by identity of best runners-up: In West Asia Zone, the first team listed host first leg, and the second team listed host second leg. In ASEAN Zone, the first team listed host the match)
Zonal finals (Order of legs decided by draw)
Inter-zone play-off semi-finals (Matchups and order of legs decided by draw, involving winners of Group D, Group J, CF, and AF)
Inter-zone play-off finals (Winners of IZSF1 host first leg, Winners of IZSF2 host second leg)
  • IZF: Winners of IZSF1 vs. Winners of IZSF2
Final (Winners of WF host the match, as alternated from previous season's final)
  • Winners of WF vs. Winners of IZF


Zonal semi-finalsZonal finalsInter-zone play-off semi-finalsInter-zone play-off finalFinal
Bahrain Al-Muharraq3
Lebanon Al-Ahed0
Bahrain Al-Muharraq2
Kuwait Al-Kuwait2Kuwait Al-Kuwait0
Jordan Al-Salt0
Bahrain Al-Muharraq3
Uzbekistan Nasaf3Uzbekistan Nasaf0
Turkmenistan Ahal2Uzbekistan Nasaf6
India ATK Mohun Bagan0Uzbekistan Nasaf (a.e.t.)3
Hong Kong Lee Man2

Zonal semi-finals

Summary

The West Asia Zonal semi-finals were played over one leg, with the home team determined by the draw mechanism based on which group runners-up qualify. A group winner hosted the match against a group runner-up. If two group winners played each other, one of the group winner (whose group runner-up qualify) hosted the match.[2]

Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Asia Zone
Al-Muharraq Bahrain 3–0 Lebanon Al-Ahed
Al-Kuwait Kuwait 2–0 Jordan Al-Salt
Team 1  Score  Team 2
ASEAN Zone
10–11 Aug
10–11 Aug

West Asia Zone

Al-Muharraq Bahrain3–0Lebanon Al-Ahed
  • Jona 67'
  • Al Sherooqi 86'
  • Al-Hayki 90+2'
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 6,500
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
Al-Kuwait Kuwait2–0Jordan Al-Salt
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 5,021

Zonal finals

Summary

The West Asia and Central Asia Zonal final were played over one leg, with the home team decided by draw. The winners of the West Asia Zonal final advanced to the final, while the winners of the Central Asia Zonal final advanced to the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals.

Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Asia Zone
Al-Muharraq Bahrain 2–0 Kuwait Al-Kuwait
Team 1  Score  Team 2
Central Asia Zone
Nasaf Uzbekistan 3–2 Turkmenistan Ahal
Team 1  Score  Team 2
ASEAN Zone
25 Aug

West Asia Zone

Al-Muharraq Bahrain2–0Kuwait Al-Kuwait
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 8,250
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hoish (Saudi Arabia)

Central Asia Zone

Nasaf Uzbekistan3−2Turkmenistan Ahal
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 54
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hoish (Saudi Arabia)

Inter-zone play-off semi-finals

Summary

After matches in ASEAN Zone was cancelled, there were only three teams which qualified to the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals, i.e., the winners of the South Asia Zone (Group D), the winners of the East Asia Zone (Group J), and the winners of the Central Zonal final. The three Zonal champions were drawn into two pairings where one club got a bye to the Inter-zone play-off final, which happened for Lee Man. The matchups and order of legs decided by draw, without any seeding with the winner of Central Zonal Final hosting the match and the winner of South Asia Zone being the away team.[4]

Team 1  Score  Team 2
Nasaf Uzbekistan 6–0 India ATK Mohun Bagan

Matches

Nasaf Uzbekistan6–0India ATK Mohun Bagan
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 5,865
Referee: Hanna Hattab (Syria)

Inter-zone play-off final

Summary

In the Inter-zone play-off final, the two teams which advanced from the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals played each other, with the order of legs determined by the Inter-zone play-off semi-final draw. The winners of the Inter-zone play-off final advanced to the final.

Team 1  Score  Team 2
Nasaf Uzbekistan 3–2 (a.e.t.) Hong Kong Lee Man

Matches

Nasaf Uzbekistan3–2 (a.e.t.)Hong Kong Lee Man
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 9,890
Referee: Mooud Bonyadifar (Iran)

Final

The final was played over one leg, between the winners of the West Asia Zonal final and the winners of the Inter-zone play-off final. The home team was determined on a rotation basis, with the match hosted by the winners of the West Asia Zonal final, as in the case of odd-numbered years (Regulations 9.1.2).[2]

Al-Muharraq Bahrain3–0Uzbekistan Nasaf
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 9,060
Referee: Ko Hyung-jin (South Korea)

References

  1. ^ a b "AFC Competitions Calendar 2021". Asian Football Confederation. 21 May 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "AFC Cup 2021 Competition Regulations" (PDF). the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation – via YouTube.
  3. ^ "AFC Cup 2021 ASEAN Zone matches cancelled". Asian Football Confederation. 7 July 2021.
  4. ^ "Clubs set to discover road to AFC Cup 2021 Final". AFC. Retrieved 3 August 2021.

External links

  • AFC Cup, the-AFC.com
  • AFC Cup 2021 Archived 2021-05-21 at the Wayback Machine, stats.the-AFC.com
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