AFC Asian Cup in football is starting from today. Top-24 teams of Asia will take the field in Qatar for the trophy. The first match will be played today between Qatar and Lebanon at 9:30 pm.
The AFC Asian Cup is the biggest football tournament in the continent because the top players play in it. The AFC Champions League has the best clubs in Asia, but it does not have all the top players. Whereas many players playing in the Asian Cup are part of the top clubs of Europe.
South Korea's Son Heung-min is the captain of one of England's top clubs, Tottenham. He is one of the best players of the club. At the same time, Saudi Arabia's Al-Dawsari plays with Brazil's Neymar in Al-Hilal club.
South Korea's Son Heung-min leads Tottenham Hotspur, one of the top clubs in the English Premier League. Son has scored 12 goals in 20 Premier League matches this season. Son, a former forward player of Hamburg and Bayern Leverkusen, has also won the Asian Player of the Year award a record three times. Son has scored 41 goals in 116 matches for his country.
Salem Al-Dawsari is considered the top player of Saudi Arabia. Davasari scored a goal against Lionel Messi's Argentina in the 2022 World Cup. Saudi Arabia is the only team to defeat champion Argentina in the 2022 World Cup.
Dawsari plays as a winger in Al-Hilal club along with Neymar. He has taken his club to the top of the league. Davasri was named Asian Club Footballer of the Year in 2022. Davasari has scored 21 goals in 74 matches for his country.
Last year, Kim Min-jae was named Asian International Player of the Year for players outside Asia. He helped Italian club Napoli win their first Serie A title since 1990. In 1990, the team won the championship for the last time due to Maradona's 16 goals.
The 27-year-old defender is currently considered one of the best defenders in the world. Kim now plays for Germany's top club Bayern Munich.
Japan's Takefusa Kubo is one of the top players of the Spanish league La Liga. FC Barcelona and Real Madrid teams also play in this league. Kubo joined FC Barcelona at the age of 10. Real Madrid signed him after his international debut, but then released him.
After playing for several Spanish clubs, Kubo was signed by Real Sociedad in 2022 and given continuous opportunities. At only 15 years old, Kubo became the youngest player and then youngest goalscorer in Japan's top league. This season, Kubo has 9 goals in 18 matches.
Iran's Mehdi Taremi finished runner-up as the 2022 Asian International Player of the Year. The 31-year-old striker has scored 43 goals in 76 international matches for the national team. He joined Portuguese top club Porto FC in 2020.
Porto is one of the top clubs in Portugal. In 2004, Porto won the UEFA Champions League under the leadership of legendary manager Jose Morhino. Apart from this, the club has also won the Champions League in 1987.
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