Neymar Jr likely to play in India versus Mumbai City FC in AFC Champions League group stage

• Mumbai City FC have been drawn against Al Hilal SFC in the AFC Champions League
• Al Hilal SFC are record four-time AFC Champions League winners.
• FC Nassaji Mazandaran and PFC Navbahor Namangan are the two other teams in Group D.

Indian football fans are in for a treat if all goes well. Indian Super League club Mumbai City FC have been drawn against Al Hilal SFC in the AFC Champions League and this means that they might have to face off against their latest mega signing, Neymar Jr. Also in the group (Group D) are FC Nassaji Mazandaran and PFC Navbahor Namangan.

Al Hilal SFC are record four-time AFC Champions League winners and finalists in four of the last six seasons, and will present the biggest test for the Islanders. Meanwhile, Mumbai City qualified for the group stage of Asia's premier club competition for the second successive season after winning the 2022-23 Indian Super League Shield and the subsequent Club Play-off against Jamshedpur FC.

Al Hilal SFC have recently signed Brazilian superstar Neymar Jr, who had previously won prestigious tournaments like the UEFA Champions League and gold in the 2016 Olympics. The Brazilian is known as one of the most lethal strikers in the game and is touted as a fantastic dribbler of the ball.

FC Nassaji Mazandaran, winners of Iran's 2021-22 Hazfi Cup, and PFC Navbahor Namangan, runners-up of the 2022 Uzbekistan Super League, will be making their AFC Champions League debut.

Matches will be played on a home-and-away round-robin basis, with the group winners qualifying for the inter-zone play-off semi-finals.

India's football footsteps

Des Buckingham's side had an impressive outing in the AFC Champions League last season, registering two wins over Iraq's Al Quwa Al Jawiya to finish Group B in second place with seven points. Mumbai City will hope for more of the same this season, with an added advantage of playing on Indian soil.

In the AFC Cup, Asia's second-tier competition, India will be represented by continental debutants Odisha FC and qualifying play-off winners Mohun Bagan Super Giant in Group D (South Zone) of the AFC Cup 2023-24.

Bashundhara Kings, winners of the 2021-22 Bangladesh Premier League and Maziya S&RC, winners of Maldives' 2022 Dhivehi Premier League are the other two sides in the group.

Odisha FC qualified directly for the group stage courtesy of their 2023 Super Cup triumph and the subsequent Club Play-off win over Gokulam Kerala FC.

Mohun Bagan SG, champions of the 2022-23 Indian Super League and winners of the Club Play-off against Hyderabad FC, navigated past Machhindra FC of Nepal (3-1) in the Preliminary Round 2 and Abahani Limited Dhaka of Bangladesh (3-1) in the Play-off Round to book an AFC Cup Group Stage berth for the third successive season.

Odisha FC will play their home matches at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, while Kolkata's Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan will host Mohun Bagan SG's home matches.

(With text inputs from IANS)