On Tuesday 28 August, Kashima Antlers will welcome Tianjin Quanjian (China PR) to their home in the first leg of the AFC Champions League (ACL) 2018 Quarterfinals.

One day ahead of their match, an official press-conference was held at Kashima Soccer Stadium in Ibaraki on Monday 27 August. Coaches and players from both sides attended this conference to share their aspirations towards the match.

Coaches' and Players' Comments

OIWA Go, Coach (Kashima Antlers)
We will be entering the first leg of the ACL Quarterfinals. We will be playing a total of 180 minutes, and in this first 90 minutes we would like to keep a clean sheet and earn a win. The support we will be receiving from our fans will give us great strengths. This title means a lot for the Kashima Antlers and myself. We will fight through as team, with the players, staffs, and everybody involved with the club, the team will strive to get passed the quarterfinals to put ourselves closer to the title.

INUKAI Tomoya (Kashima Antlers)
Tomorrow’s match will be a crucial match in our pursuit to win the ACL title. We will enter the match with a strong intention to win the match. Our opponent has a big post player upfront, but as a defender, I will keep my focus throughout the 90 minutes to give them no space to exploit.

Paulo SOUSA, Coach (Tianjin Quanjian)
I am honoured to be given the opportunity to be in this stage of the ACL quarterfinals. This is a stage we have been dreaming of. This season, the team has started its activities in December and through the ACL playoffs the players has showcased great performance to make it this far. Although we were in second place at the group stage, I am very proud of the fact the team has scored 15 goals in that process. We have conquered many difficulties on the way. For example, we travelled a total of 27 hours to get to Kashima yesterday. Kashima Antlers is a team with rich experience in international tournaments. They have won against two Chinese team at the ACL already and they showcased a very close battle against Guangzhou Evergrande last year. I remember that they have displayed a great bout against Real Madrid in the FIFA Club World Cup 2016 as well. So, I am honoured to face such team tomorrow, and I am sure it will be a great match. We will give our best to win the match so that we can position ourselves in a good spot to advance to the next stage.

Alexandre PATO (Tianjin Quanjian)
First of all, I’d like to thank all the fans for welcoming us at the airport. The travel was much longer than I expected, so I am exhausted right now. Ahead of our match tomorrow, we will rest up tonight and prepare ourselves so that we can enter the match in good condition. I have acquired information regarding the Kashima Antlers from a friend of my mine, who plays for Gamba Osaka. We will be playing in a crucial match tomorrow, and our fans support will give us great strengths.

Tournament Period：30 January 2018 (Tue.) - 10 November 2018 (Sat.)

Quarterfinals 1st-Leg
Tue. 28 August 19:00 Kick-off time
Kashima Antlers (Japan) vs Tianjin Quanjian (China PR)
Match Venue: Kashima Soccer Stadium

Quarterfinals 2nd-Leg
Tue. 18 September 19:30 Kick-off time (Local time)
Tianjin Quanjian (China PR) vs Kashima Antlers (Japan)
Match Venue: Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium

Tournament Information