Adelaide United will renew their rivalry with FC Bunyodkor after they were drawn to face the Uzbek champions in the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League.
The A-League club beat Bunyodkor, whose side includes Socceroo David Carney, in the semi-finals of the 2008 edition before losing the title decider to Japanese club Gamba Osaka.
If they win their quarter-final, John Kosmina’s men will then tackle either South Korea’s Ulsan Hyundai or Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal in the semis.
In the other ties that were drawn at the headquarters of the Asian Football Confederation in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, the Marcello Lippi-coached Guangzhou Evergrande of China have been handed a tough assignment against two-time winners Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia.
The winner of the that showdown plays either Iranian champions Sepahan or Al Ittihad’s Saudi league rivals Al Ahli in the other semi-final.
The two-legged quarters in Asia’s premier club competition will be played on September 19 and then October 2 or 3.
Big-spending Chinese club Evergrande, who go to Jeddah in the first leg, are making their debut in the Champions League but are regarded as one of the favourites after investing heavily in their squad to secure a first Chinese title.
Lippi, who won the World Cup with Italy in 2006, replaced Korean Lee Jang-Soo as Guangzhou manager last month and duly led them to a 1-0 win over Japanese side FC Tokyo in the round of 16.
The club also recently paid a reported transfer fee of 12 million euros ($A15.13 million)) to sign Paraguayan striker Lucas Barrios from German champions Borussia Dortmund.
The 27-year-old will be eligible to play in the quarter-finals against the powerful Al Ittihad, the eight-time Saudi league champions.
The Saudi side also won back-to-back AFC Champions League titles in 2004 and 2005, reached the final in 2009 and were in last year’s semi-finals.
The Champions League winners qualify for the FIFA Club World Cup, to be played in Japan in December.
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