East Bengal's AFC Champions League Two Rival Watch: Al-Hussein

Red & Gold Brigade will face the Jordanian side on 16th September.

JordanianEast Bengal are all set to kick off their 2026-27 AFC Champions League Two group stages with a tricky test against Jordan side Al-Hussein on Wednesday (16 September, 2026).

This will mark the Red & Gold Brigade’s first-ever appearance in this newly remodelled AFC competition and their return to the second stage of the continental competition after a decade or so.

The Indian Super League (ISL) giants are poised to face some tricky tests in the ACL Two group stages, and that definitely involves the upcoming clash against Al-Hussein. They are going to be facing the defending Jordanian Pro League champions and a club who have earned a lot of reputation in their country because of their success over the years.

Al-Hussein are entering the 2026-27 AFC Champions League Two with a lot of ambitions and have quite a decent amount of continental experience to boast about as well.

Players to Watchout

Brayan Riascos

Al-Hussein will definitely need to be prolific in their attacking work to be able to succeed in the group stages of the AFC Champions League Two and they have roped in Colombian striker Brayan Riascos to bring that bite to their attack this season. Riascos is a bit of a journeyman who has played for 15 clubs in his career, including stints playing in the Turkish Super Lig as well as the Saudi Pro League.

Riascos scored 10 goals for Iraqi side Al-Zawraa SC in the 2025-26 season and is aiming to make a significant impact in the AFC competition for Al-Hussein. He has a bit of experience of playing in the Asian competition, having three goal contributions (two goals, one assist) in the AFC Champions League (Elite) and two goals in one ACL Two match.

The Colombian striker will look to be a thorn for the defenders with his clever off-the-ball movement and link-up play to get into the prime danger zones. He will, however, need to be absolutely clinical with his finishing to help Al-Hussein get a big win over East Bengal.

Mahmoud Al-Mardi

The Al-Hussein skipper, Mahmoud Al-Mardi, is definitely a player with a lot of experience in his career. The 32-year-old has over 80 international caps for Jordan and has made 46 appearances for Al-Hussein, in which he has managed 26 goal contributions (10 goals, 16 assists). Al-Mardi is a dangerous left-winger who loves to be a thorn for the opposition defenders with his clever work in the wide areas.

Al-Mardi has gained a lot of footballing knowledge in his career and will look to utilize that to inspire Al-Hussein to big results in the 2026-27 season. The 32-year-old will be aiming to trouble defenders with his speedy forward runs and be a nightmare in the final third. He will, however, need to nail the accuracy with his crosses to be able to constantly create big chances and also look to venture into more goal-scoring areas to enhance his side’s overall goal threat going forward.

What to expect from Al-Hussein

Al-Hussein are going to look to entertain their home crowd in their 2026-27 AFC Champions League Two opener and will aim to play some decisive attacking football against East Bengal. As they have the advantage on their side, the Jordanian giants will definitely look to dominate the majority of the possession and torment East Bengal with a barrage of patient, intricately created attacking moves.

They will probably look to use the wide areas to create big chances through their tricky wingers and be a thorn in the East Bengal backline. Even though Al-Hussein might not be the most stylish with their attacking football, they’ll definitely look to be at their most efficient in terms of creating accurate chances and finishing them off in a clinical fashion against East Bengal.

Al-Hussein realizes the importance of winning home games for them to move forward from the group stages.

That is why the players will be motivated to work extremely hard, covering a lot of spaces and stifling East Bengal’s game with their physical style. They will look to make things very tough for the Indian side, not allowing them to be threatening on the transitions and capitalizing on the East Bengal players’ lapses in concentration to create big chances and scoring multiple goals to get a big win.

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