Following his success with Senegal in the FIFA World Cup 2002, French coach Bruno Metsu was a man in demand, and eventually it was UAE giants Al Ain who landed him. The Emiratis were rewarded with instant success in Metsu’s first season in Asian football, winning the inaugural edition of the relaunched AFC Champions League.

Metsu remained in Asian football for the next 10 years of his career, winning two UAE League titles with Al Ain, one Qatar Stars League title with Al Gharafa and the 2007 Gulf Cup with the UAE, while also enjoying spells at Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia and the Qatar national team. He passed away in 2013, leaving a legacy as one of the best coaches to grace the AFC Champions League.

The only manager to win both the Asian Club Championship and its successor the AFC Champions League, Anghel Iordanescu first arrived to Asian football through Al Hilal in 2009, leading the club to win three domestic trophies and capping off his annus mirabilis in Riyadh with the Asian Club Championship title, beating Japan’s Jubilo Iwata 3-2 in the final.

Iordanescu then joined Al Ain, winning the President’s Cup before returning to Saudi Arabia where he took charge of Al Ittihad. Under the Romanian, the Jeddah side played some memorable attacking football, defeating Shandong Luneng 8-3, Busan IPark 7-0 and Al Ain 5-3 on aggregate enroute to winning the 2005 AFC Champions League title.

Overseeing Western Sydney Wanderers’ fairytale run in their debut AFC Champions League campaign in 2014 was Tony Popovic. A centre-back who was part of the Socceroos squad that qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Popovic’s first managerial role came with Wanderers who named him as their first-ever head coach in 2012 – a decision that reaped huge rewards both domestically and on the continent.

A top-of-the-table finish in the club’s first A-League season and a place in the 2014 AFC Champions League followed, and Wanderers then won four from six group stage games to reach the knockout rounds. Sanfrecce Hiroshima, defending champions Guangzhou and FC Seoul fell next as the remarkable run continued to the final. A hard-fought 1-0 win against Al Hilal then meant Popovic became the first and still the only Australian coach to win the title – a record that Harry Kewell will hope to break when Yokohama F. Marinos face Al Ain in the final second leg on Saturday.

Choi Kang-hee was the chief architect of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors’ two AFC Champions League triumphs which came 10 years apart and he remains the only head coach to lift the coveted trophy twice. The master tactician secured his first continental title in 2006 as Jeonbuk edged Syria’s Al Karamah 3-2 on aggregate in the final in only their second appearance in the competition.

The former defender also added two league titles and a Korean FA Cup with Jeonbuk before leaving in 2011 to take up the reins at Korea Republic national team. Returning to the Jeonju-based side for a second stint two years later, Choi scripted AFC Champions League history when Jeonbuk once again emerged as the champions of Asia in 2016 – this time defeating Al Ain 3-2 on aggregate in the title clash.

Luiz Felipe Scolari’s 42-year managerial career saw him coach across Asia in places including Japan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan. But it was during his stay in China PR with Guangzhou FC that the 2002 FIFA World Cup-winning Brazilian tasted the ultimate glory in Asian club football, winning the AFC Champions League in 2015.

‘Big Phil’, who had already won the Copa Libertadores with both Gremio and Palmeiras, inherited a star-studded line-up from Fabio Cannavaro and bolstered it by bringing in Paulinho to add to the star power that already had Ricardo Goulart and Ai Kesen. And it was the latter who turned their hero, scoring the all-important goal as the Chinese club beat UAE’s Al Ahli 1-0 on aggregate to win their second Asian crown in three seasons.

Since Iordanescu’s success in 2000, Al Hilal’s pursuit of continental glory saw them reach finals under Laurentiu Reghecampf in 2014 and under Ramon Diaz in 2017, but losing on both occasions. Eventually, it was another Romanian, Razvan Lucescu, who brought the long elusive trophy to Riyadh in 2019 after they beat Urawa Red Diamonds in the final.

The son of legendary Romanian manager Mircea Lucescu, Razvan’s first managerial assignment outside his native Romania was in Qatar with El Jaish where he won the Qatar Stars Cup in 2012-13. He returned to Asia six years later, guiding Al Hilal to the treble of the AFC Champions League, the Saudi Pro League and the King’s Cup.