There were many exceptional performers in another memorable chapter of Asia’s top-tier club competition as we analyse the stats to assess some of the key categories and those who stood out.
Goals
There were several early frontrunners for the Top Scorer award following the group stage, but the explosive form of Al Ain’s Soufiane Rahimi in the knockout rounds blew away his competition. The Moroccan scored in the Round of 16, quarter finals, semi-finals and final tallying nine of his 13 goals total in the elimination phase of the competition.
۱٫ Soufiane Rahimi, Al Ain FC – ۱۳
۲٫ Aleksandar Mitrovic, Al Hilal SFC – ۸
۲٫ Cryzan, Shandong Taishan – ۸
۲٫ Kodjo Laba, Al Ain FC – ۸
۵٫ Cristiano Ronaldo, Al Nassr – ۶
Assists
Despite lining up in Al Hilal’s rearguard in his favoured full-back position, Mohammed Al Burayk led the way as the best playmaker in this season’s competition with a stunning six assists from just five starts. Yokohama’s Brazilian forward Yan Matheus trailed Al Burayk by one, with three others further behind him tallying four assists each.
۱٫ Mohammed Al Burayk, Al Hilal SFC – ۶
۲٫ Yan Matheus, Yokohama F. Marinos – ۵
۳٫ Marin Jakolis, Melbourne City – ۴
۳٫ Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Al Nassr – ۴
۳٫ Kaku, Al Ain FC – ۴
Chances created
Alejandro Romero, more commonly known as Kaku, was a big part of Al Ain’s road to the title and the Paraguay international topped the standings on chances created. Hot on his heels was fellow finalist and South American Yan Matheus on 26 chances created with Ramin Rezaeian, Moises and Theerathon Bunmathan rounding out the top five.
۱٫ Kaku, Al Ain FC – ۳۰
۲٫ Yan Matheus, Yokohama F. Marinos – ۲۶
۳٫ Ramin Rezaeian, Sepahan – ۲۲
۴٫ Moises, Shandong Taishan – ۲۱
۵٫ Theerathon Bunmathan, Buriram United – ۲۰
Duels won
Jadson was up for the fight in Shandong Taishan’s run to the quarter-finals and no player won more duels than the Brazilian’s 74. Rahimi matched the centre-back’s tally but his total came from more appearances than the 32-year-old giving the Shandong defender a superior duels won to matches ratio.
۱٫ Jadson, Shandong Taishan – ۷۴
۱٫ Soufiane Rahimi, Al Ain FC – ۷۴
۳٫ Bandar Al Ahbabi, Al Ain FC – ۷۰
۴٫ Takumi Kamijima, Yokohama F. Marinos – ۶۹
۵٫ Cryzan, Shandong Taishan – ۶۶
Aerial Duels Won
It was a memorable tournament for runners-up Yokohama F. Marinos, who progressed further than ever before in the club’s AFC Champions League history. Their defence, in particular, put in a lot of work with centre-back Takumi Kamijima winning 55 aerial duels, far more than any of his rivals in this category.
۱٫ Takumi Kamijima, Yokohama F. Marinos – ۵۵
۲٫ Jadson, Shandong Taishan – ۴۰
۳٫ Toma Tabatadze, Navbahor – ۲۸
۴٫ Kouame Kouadio, Al Ain FC – ۲۷
۴٫ Lonsana Doumbouya, Buriram United – ۲۶
Shooting conversion rate (minimum 10 shots)
While Rahimi led the scoring charts, it was Iranian international Ramin Rezaeian who proved the most clinical in front of goal. The Sepahan star converted a hugely impressive 50 percent of his shots, scoring his five goals from just 10 attempts, as the full-back seamlessly stepped into his more attacking role on the right side of a front three.
۱٫ Ramin Rezaeian, Sepahan – ۵۰%
۲٫ Talisca, Al Nassr – ۴۶%
۳٫ Hernandes, Incheon United – ۴۰%
۳٫ Jakob Jantscher, Kitchee SC – ۴۰%
۳٫ Rungrath Phumichantuk, Bangkok United – ۴۰%
Saves
Al Ain title charge was not only thanks to their prolific forwards or hard-working midfielders, but the champions’ run was also very much indebted to the last line of defence and goalkeeper Khalid Eisa. The Al Ain veteran, who will turn 35 this year, proved himself the busiest custodian in the tournament ahead of Jo Hyeon-woo and William Popp.
۱٫ Khalid Eisa, Al Ain FC – ۵۶
۲٫ Jo Hyeon-woo, Ulsan Hyundai – ۴۲
۳٫ William Popp, Yokoham F. Marinos – ۳۷
۴٫ Wang Dalei, Shandong Taishan – ۳۲
۵٫ Utkir Yusupov, Navbahor – ۲۷
Passing accuracy (minimum 200 passes)
A key fixture of the Kawaskai Frontale side in their continental campaign, midfielder Kento Tachibanada rarely gave the ball away, completing 95 percent of his 376 passes before the J1 League side’s campaign was brought to a premature end with elimination at the hands of Shandong Taishan in the Round of 16.
۱٫ Kento Tachibanada, Kawasaki Frontale – ۹۳٫۸۸%
۲٫ Luiz Felipe, Al Ittihad – ۹۳٫۶۴%
۳٫ Tarek Salman, Al Sadd – ۹۲٫۹۸%
۴٫ Ali Al Bulayhi, Al Hilal SFC – ۹۲٫۴۸%
۵٫ Mohamed Kanno, Al Hilal SFC – ۹۲٫۳۶%
Interceptions
Al Ain were dominant when it came to interceptions made, with three of the top five positions taken by Ivorian centre-back Kouame Kouadio and the midfield pairing of Bandar Al Ahbabi and Park Yong-woo. Kim Jin-su and Jadson were behind the trio although both featured in less games than the eventual champions.
۱٫ Kouame Kouadio, Al Ain FC – ۳۲
۲٫ Bandar Al Ahbabi, Al Ain FC – ۲۸
۲٫ Park Yong-woo, Al Ain FC – ۲۸
۴٫ Kim Jin-su, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors – ۲۴
۴٫ Jadson, Shandong Taishan – ۲۲
Dribbles completed
Finally, ending the back-to-back wins of former Al Rayyan winger Yacine Brahimi in this category in the 2021 and 2022 editions, Cryzan topped the dribbles completed category following the conclusion of the competition. His nearest challenger came from Yokohama’s Yan Matheus with the 2023/24 MVP Rahimi rounding out the top three.
۱٫ Cryzan, Shandong Taishan – ۲۸
۲٫ Yan Matheus, Yokohama F. Marinos – ۲۳
۳٫ Soufiane Rahimi, Al Ain FC – ۱۹
۴٫ Oston Urunov, Navbahor – ۱۷
۴٫ Bandar Al Ahbabi, Al Ain FC – ۱۷