If Nicky Carle and David Williams recover from their injuries and play, then Sydney will have a great chance of getting their first win of the tournament.
Kick-off: 10pm (AEST)
Venue: Hongkou Stadium
Television: Live and exclusive on Fox Sports
Head-to-head
Sydney maintained their unbeaten record against Shanghai when they drew 1-1 at the SFS a fortnight ago. These two sides also met in the group stage of the ACL in 2007 with the Sky Blues winning in China thanks to goals from Steve Corica and Ufuk Talay while the return match at the SFS finished all square.
The Road to the ACL
Shanghai Shenhua: Third place 2010 Chinese Super League
Sydney FC: 2010 A-League champions
Past five matches:
Shanghai Shenhua:
Shanghai Shenhua 2, Shenzhen Ruby 0, Hongkou Stadium
Liaoning Hongyun 1, Shanghai Shenhua 0, Shenyang Olympic Stadium
Sydney FC 1, Shanghai Shenua 1, SFS
Shanghai Shenhua 3, Qingdao Jonoon 3, Hongkou Stadium
Suwon Bluewings 4, Shanghai Shenhua 0, Suwon World Cup Stadium
Sydney FC:
Sydney FC 0, Kashima Antlers 3, SFS
Sydney FC 1, Shanghai Shenhua 1, SFS
Sydney FC 0, Suwon Bluewings 0, SFS
Melbourne Heart 2, Sydney FC 2, AAMI Park
Sydney FC 2, Wellington Phoenix 0, SFS
Selection
Shanghai are coming off a confidence-boosting win in the Chinese Super League at the weekend and will fancy their chances on home soil. Argentine striker Luis Salmeron scored in the 2-0 win over Shenzhen Ruby at the weekend and will again be the player Sydney will need to contain if they are to keep the home side at bay.
Sydney will be boosted by the return of skipper Terry McFlynn from suspension but they are sweating on the fitness of four key players. Midfielder Nicky Carle is battling a hamstring injury while David Williams, Sebastian Ryall and Stephan Keller are all racing the clock to take their place on Tuesday night.
Analysis
It’s reached desperation stakes for both sides if they are to push for a berth in the knockout stage. With Kashima and Suwon both three points ahead of Sydney and Shanghai in the vital top two spots, meaning a loss here will all but end either club’s ACL dreams. In truth a draw won’t do either side any good, either, which should make for an open game at the Hongkou Stadium.
The Sky Blues should have no fears playing in China, having defeated Shanghai on their home soil when they met in the competition four years ago. Vitezslav Lavicka’s side should also take some confidence from their first meeting earlier this month when they dominated the match for long periods but simply couldn’t find a winning goal. Much will depend on what side Sydney can put on the park. If Carle and Williams recover from their injuries and play, then Sydney will have a great chance of getting their first win of the tournament. If not it may swing the initiative back to the home side who should be able to get the job done.
SQUADS
Shanghai Shenhua
Dong Lei, Xiong Fei, Xin Feng, Wang Lin, Dai Lin, Yu Tao, Feng Renliang, Duvier Riascos, Luis Salmeron, Jiang Kun, Song Boxuan, Wen Huyi, Fan Lingjiang, Jiang Jiajun, Dong Xuesheng, Wu Xi, Facundo Perez Castro, Qiu Shengjiong, Wang Dalei, Wang Yang, Wang Guanyi, Cao Yunding, Qiu Tianyi, Tao Jin, Abdulkader Deka, Liu Jiashen, Zheng Wei.
Sydney FC
Liam Reddy, Sebastian Ryall, Stephan Keller, Hirofumi Moriyasu, Brendan Gan, Stuart Musialik, Bruno Cazarine, Nicky Carle, David Williams, Shannon Cole, Terry McFlynn, Kofi Danning, Mark Bridge, Ivan Necevski, Scott Jamieson, Matthew Jurman, Dimitri Petratos, Joel Chianese, Jared Lum, Blake Powell, Nathan Sherlock, Rhyan Grant, Dylan Mitchell, Luke Austin, Andrew Durante.
