Al Ittihad's Mohammed Noor Warns Against Complacency In Semi Final Second Leg In Nagoya

Al Ittihad may have a 6-2 advantage going into Wednesday's return match against Nagoya Grampus in the semi-final Asian Champions League but Mohammed Noor has warned his team-mates not to be overconfident. 

Noor inspired the Saudi Arabian champions with three second-half goals in Jeddah, but admitted the Tigers’ comeback was made possible by Nagoya’s tiring resistance after losing central defender Akira Takeuchi to a seventh-minute red card.  

“It’s true we recorded a positive result last week, but we’ll work hard to win the second leg in Nagoya as well,” said the long-time Saudi Arabia international, a veteran of two World Cups.

“Who knows, we might be in the same situation as Nagoya and lose a player in the early minutes.” 

Noor knows how a tie can change over two legs. In the 2004 AFC Champions League final, Ittihad lost 3-1 at home to Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma, but Noor scored twice in a 5-0 away win to complete one of Asian football’s most famous comebacks and secure the first of two straight titles. 

Despite Takeuchi’s red card, Ittihad were 2-1 down at half-time last week following goals from Josh Kennedy and Naoshi Nakamura either side of a strike by Oman international Ahmed Hadid, set up by Noor. 

Noor led the second-half blitz with a hat-trick, while Argentine forward Luciano Leguizamon converted a penalty and Tunisia striker Amine Chermiti scored the sixth deep into stoppage time. 

Ittihad coach Gabriel Calderon was delighted with his players’ performance, but is also determined that his side remain focused and secure a place in the November 7 final in Tokyo. 

“My players played one of the best matches since I took my position, but we’ve only achieved 50 per cent of our mission and I’ll advise my players to forget about the first-leg score,” said the former Argentina midfielder, who played against Nagoya boss Dragan Stojkovic in the 1990 World Cup quarter-finals.

“Nagoya are a strong team, but we took advantage of them being a man down. We expect a different performance on Wednesday.”