It’s hard to look past the 2005 Champions League reunion of Harry Kewell and Hernán Crespo as they meet in the second leg of the final of the Asian version on Saturday. The Argentinian scored twice in Istanbul and yet left empty-handed while Kewell famously limped off when it was all going wrong for Liverpool but still has that winner’s medal. There’s more to the game however, on and off the pitch.
Crespo and Al-Ain welcome Yokohama F Marinos and their Australian manager to the United Arab Emirates. The Japanese team have a 2-1 lead from the first leg that took place two weeks ago at the Nissan Stadium. Crespo never won a Champions League as a player but overcoming that one-goal deficit would surely set him on a course back to Europe.
