AFC Cup 2018, Inter-zone Playoff Semifinal: Bengaluru FC vs Altyn Asyr - Preview, Date, Start Time and Where to Watch Online

The West Block Blues will roar once again as Bengaluru FC is all set to face Turkmenistan based Altyn Asyr in the 1st leg of the Inter-zonal Semi-Finals at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Wednesday evening. An evenly poised contest is on the cards with both the teams in red-hot form so far in the continental cup.

After securing the pole position in Group ‘E’ of the AFC Cup which included the likes of New Radiant, Dhaka Abahani and Aizawl FC, the Bengaluru based club stormed into the semi-finals of the tournament. On the other hand, Altyn Asyr also topped their respective group without losing a single match. The side edged past last year’s runners-up FC Istiklol in Group ‘D’ to make a cut to the semi-final stage and is expected to give a tough fight in Bengaluru against Sunil Chhetri’s side.

This will be Spanish coach Carles Cuadrat’s first match in charge of the team since he was roped in by the JSW owned club following Albert Roca’s reign. Bengaluru FC will miss the services of midfielder Harmanjot Khabra owing to his illness which is a big blow to the side. "It is strange that we had two cases of chicken pox, but that's what it is. While Gurpreet has recovered, Khabra will miss this game," said Cuadrat.

The visiting team will depend heavily on their strikers Altymyrat Annadurdyyev (6 goals) and Murat Yakshiyev (5 goals), the pair which struck most of their goals in the group stages. To sum it up, Bengaluru is about to witness a mouth-watering tie with the home side in an advantageous position. Bengaluru’s new Spanish recruit, midfielder Xisco Hernandez may get an opportunity to make his debut on Wednesday.