Oct 6 (Reuters) – The Asian Champions League’s rescheduled group stage matches for clubs in the East Zone will take place from Nov. 18-Dec. 4, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) confirmed on Tuesday with the release of the fixture list https://www.the-afc.com/competitions/afc-champions-league/fixtures.
Asia’s elite club competition was suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resumed in the West Zone hub of Qatar on Sept. 14, with Iran’s Persepolis reaching the final after a penalty shootout win over Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr on Saturday.
They will meet the top team from the East Zone in the title clash on Dec. 19.
Perth Glory, one of three Australian teams in the competition, kick off the East Zone restart with a Group F game against China’s Shanghai Shenhua on Nov. 18.
Fixtures in Groups G and H resume the following day, with Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta’zim facing Guangzhou Evergrande and Sydney FC meeting Shanghai SIPG.
Group E leaders FC Seoul take on second-placed Beijing Guoan on Nov. 21.
Teams in Groups G and H will to play in a centralised location in Malaysia, while the venue for clubs in Groups E and F has not been determined, Yonhap news agency reported.
Clubs in the East Zone could face difficulties with their fixtures due to rescheduled domestic league campaigns, border closures and COVID-19 protocols.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford )
