A 2-0 defeat to the Uzbekistan side in Syria two weeks ago means Valeriu's side will be eliminated from the competition if they lose at MHSK Stadium on Wednesday as they trail Kuruvchi by three points.

And their cause will not be helped by the absence of suspended defenders Majd Homsi and Salah Chahrour.

Midfielder Obaid Al Salal is also sidelined through injury but Ammar Rihawi and Yahia Al Rached are set to return from suspension.

Valeriu, however, believes Al Ittihad Aleppo can overcome the odds and shock their in-form hosts.

"If we perform well on Wednesday, I think we can get a positive result," said the Romanian.

"This game is our last chance to stay in contention and I hope that the players will rise to the occasion."

Kuruvchi have won their first six games in the Uzbek League season as well as enjoying consecutive Champions League victories after an unfortunate loss to Saudi Arabia's Al Ittihad in their opening encounter.

With right winger Rashid Gafurov returning from suspension, Kuruvchi will be at full strength save for veteran goalkeeper Pavel Bugalo, who is undergoing treatment for a back injury.

And coach Mirdjalal Kasimov was refusing to take anything for granted despite having eased past the Syrians last time out.

"A victory for our opponents could just as easily send them up to first place so it would be wise not to underestimate them," he said.

"If you look at our group, you will see that only three points separate first from last."

Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad will be looking to bounce back from a 2-1 defeat to Sepahan in Tehran when they entertain the same opposition in Jeddah.

A first defeat of the competition, which means they are now level on points with Kuruvchi, was swiftly followed by a 1-0 home loss to Al Hilal in their final league match of the season, handing the title to their arch-rivals.

That cost Brazilian coach Estevam Soares his job and his replacement, former Saudi national coach Gabriel Calderon, is keen to quickly turn around the club's fortunes.

"I watched the match against Sepahan in Iran and we will try our best to fix the mistakes that the team made," said the Argentinian.

"Sepahan are a big team and they have good players but we will try our best to stop them and get a win."

Defender Osama Al Harbi is suspended after picking up his second booking of the competition last time out but Al Ittihad should otherwise be at full strength with skipper Mohammed Noor, defender Redha Tukar and Brazilian imports Magno Alves and Tcheco all recovering from injury.

Sepahan, on the other hand, know nothing less than victory will do if they want to emulate last season's performance when they became the first Iranian side to reach the final of the Champions League.

Problems with the Saudi embassy in Iran, which saw some players initially being refused travel visas, has disrupted preparations but perhaps more importantly, they will be without prolific striker Mahmoud Karimi, who is out for the season after suffering an eye injury in the 1-1 draw with Mes last Friday that requires surgery, while defender Hadi Aghili is suspended.