The 1971 Asian Champion Club Tournament was the fourth edition of the annual Asian club football competition hosted by Asian Football Confederation.[1] Eight clubs from eight countries competed in the tournament, with Jardine Hong Kong withdrawing before the draw. The tournament was held in Bangkok, Thailand from 21 March to 2 April; it was originally scheduled to be held in Kuwait, but the AFC moved the tournament as Kuwaiti immigration laws would have seen the delegation of Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv refused entry into the country.
 Maccabi Tel Aviv players with the trophy | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Thailand |
| Dates | 21 March – 2 April 1971 |
| Teams | 8 |
| Venue(s) | Bangkok |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Maccabi Tel Aviv (2nd title) |
| Runners-up |  Aliyat Al-Shorta |
| Third place |  Taj Tehran |
| Fourth place |  ROK Army |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Top scorer(s) | Sabah Hatem Shlomo Gerbi Ali Al-Mulla(4 goals each) |
| Best goalkeeper | Sattar Khalaf |
← 1970 1972 → | |
The eight clubs were split in two groups of four, based on the results of a preliminary round, with the group winners and the runners-up advancing to the semifinals.
The final was scratched and Maccabi Tel Aviv were awarded their second Asian title after Iraqi club Aliyat Al-Shorta refused to play them for political reasons. During the award ceremony, Aliyat Al-Shorta players waved the Palestinian flag around the field, [2] while the AFC and Thai FA arranged a match between Maccabi and a Combined Bangkok team that was played in lieu of the final.
Participants
edit| Participants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Team | Qualifying method | |
 Punjab Police[3]
|
Selected by All India Football Federation | |
| Taj Tehran
|
1970–71 Local League champions | |
| Aliyat Al-Shorta
|
1969–70 Iraq Central FA Premier League champions | |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv
|
1969–70 Liga Leumit champions | |
| Al-Arabi
|
1969–70 Kuwaiti Premier League champions | |
 Perak FA
|
1970 Malaysia Cup champions | |
| ROK Army
|
1970 Korean National Football Championship champions | |
 Bangkok Bank
|
Selected by Football Association of Thailand | |
Teams location
edit
Red: Group A; 
Blue: Group BResults
editPreliminary round
editThese were the group allocation matches: each group consisted of two winners and two losers from this round.
Following the original draw, Aliyat Al-Shorta refused to play their scheduled opponent Maccabi Tel Aviv: subsequently, a second draw was conducted.
| Bangkok Bank | 1–2 | ROK Army |
|---|---|---|
Muankasem  79' |
|
| Aliyat Al-Shorta | 3–2 | Taj Tehran |
|---|---|---|
|
Mazloumi 23', 81' |
| Al-Arabi | 8–1 | Punjab Police |
|---|---|---|
| Surjeet Singh 17' |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 1–0 | Perak FA |
|---|---|---|
| Nimni 20' |
Group stage
editGroup A
edit| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taj Tehran
|
5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| ROK Army
|
4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| Al-Arabi
|
3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| Perak FA
|
0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | −9 |
| Taj Tehran | 2–1 | ROK Army |
|---|---|---|
| Hajghasem 43', 67' |
Lim Tae-Joo 46' |
| ROK Army | 3–0 | Perak FA |
|---|---|---|
|
| Taj Tehran | 3–0 | Perak FA |
|---|---|---|
|
| ROK Army | 1–0 | Al-Arabi |
|---|---|---|
| Park Yi-Chun 73' |
Group B
edit| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maccabi Tel Aviv
|
6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 9 |
| Aliyat Al-Shorta
|
4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
| Bangkok Bank
|
2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 |
| Punjab Police
|
0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 12 | −10 |
| Bangkok Bank | 2–0 | Punjab Police |
|---|---|---|
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 4–1 | Punjab Police |
|---|---|---|
| Surjeet Singh 83' (pen.) |
| Bangkok Bank | 0–2 | Aliyat Al-Shorta |
|---|---|---|
|
| Aliyat Al-Shorta | 6–1 | Punjab Police |
|---|---|---|
|
Sukhwinder Singh 78' |
| Bangkok Bank | 1–4 | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
|---|---|---|
| Suvanthada 65' |
1 Aliyat Al-Shorta refused to play for political reasons: the match was awarded to Maccabi 3–0.[4]
Knockout stage
editSemi-finals
edit| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 2–0 | ROK Army |
|---|---|---|
| Gerbi 29', 63' |
| Aliyat Al-Shorta | 2–0 | Taj Tehran |
|---|---|---|
Third-place match
edit| Taj Tehran | 3–2 | ROK Army |
|---|---|---|
|
Final
edit1 The final was scratched and Maccabi Tel Aviv were awarded the championship after Aliyat Al-Shorta refused to play for political reasons.
Exhibition match
editThis match was arranged by the AFC and the Thai FA, and was played in lieu of the final.
| Combined Bangkok | 1–2 | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
|---|---|---|
| Sondhikan 6' |
Bar-Nur 2', 61' |
References
edit- ^ "History of the Asian Club Championship". Asian Football. 9 April 1997. Archived from the original on 9 April 1997. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
- ^ Arabic Post - The History of Stars on Football Shirts
- ^ Mukherjee, Soham (1 April 2020). "How have Indian clubs fared in AFC Champions League and AFC Cup?". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ Maccabi to the semi-finals in Bangkok; beat Punjab 4:1 Davar, 28 March 1971, Page 12, Historical Jewish Press (in Hebrew)
External links
edit- Asian Club Competitions 1971 at RSSSF.com