Vidmar is focused on fulfilling his quest to ’shock Asia’ as the Australian club continue their continental charge at the 21,000-capacity Expo ’70 Stadium in Osaka, where a packed crowd is expected ahead of next week’s sold-out decider at Adelaide’s Hindmarsh Stadium.

Adelaide, who had enjoyed a 13-game unbeaten streak and now lie second behind Melbourne on goal difference, have punched above their weight throughout their AFC Champions League debut and will again start as slight underdogs against Gamba.

"We have to stay positive," Vidmar said ahead of the two-leg final. "We have two of the biggest games in the club’s history coming up, so we have to get it right for both matches by fixing some small details."

Adelaide captain Travis Dodd, who opened the scoring against Melbourne with a first-half penalty, believes the league defeat could even have a positive effect.

"Things have been going pretty well for us recently so maybe the result will serve a good purpose as it’ll wake the boys up," said the former international midfielder, the first Australian to score a hat-trick in the AFC Champions League.

"We’ll have to work hard to get a result on Wednesday. The AFC Champions League is a massive competition and it’s a big game, so I’m sure the boys will pick themselves up and look forward to it in a positive frame of mind," Dodd added.

Both Adelaide and Gamba have recently depended on midfielders and defenders as much as their attackers for goals, and Dodd is expected to be a thorn in Gamba’s left side on Wednesday.

Dodd headed the opening goal in Adelaide’s last visit to Japan, when they drew 1-1 with Kashima Antlers in the quarterfinals. United then beat the reigning J. League champions 1-0 in Adelaide after Vidmar had written his pre-match demand on the changing room white-board: ’Let’s shock Asia.’

The reds, who topped the champions of South Korea and China in the Group Stage, secured a place in the final by beating big-spending Kuruvchi, featuring 2002 World Cup winner Rivaldo and coached by Zico, another Brazilian legend. A 3-0 home win, with goals from Fabian Barbiero and Brazilians Diego and Cristiano, helped cushion a 1-0 second-leg loss in Uzbekistan.

Vidmar will again be limited to choosing only three foreigners in Osaka, which means excluding at least one of his four Brazilians, usually right-back Alemao.

Cristiano, the club’s top scorer, and left-sided Cassio, who scored a stunning free-kick against Melbourne, have both been in good form, although midfield playmaker Diego was left out on Friday due to hamstring trouble.

There were also injury concerns for goalkeeper Eugene Galekovic, who was replaced by 17-year-old Mark Birighitti for the last three A-League matches, while midfielder Paul Reid has been nursing a groin strain.

Adelaide will still prove a tough nut for Gamba to crack, with a teak-tough defence including Angelo Costanzo, the 1.95-metre tall Sasa Ognenovski and the 1.97-metre tall Robert Cornthwaite, whose diving header from Cassio’s cross sealed the victory against Kashima.

Gamba, J. League champions in 2005, also showed great character to reach their first AFC Champions League final, coming from behind to beat defending champions Urawa Reds 3-1 in front of over53, 000 fans at Saitama Stadium 2002, following a 1-1 draw in Osaka.

Captain Satoshi Yamaguchi cancelled out Naohiro Takahara’s first-half opener with a powerful 51st-minute header from Yasuhi to Endo’s corner. Tomokazu Myojin, a former international, converted from another Endo corner in the 72nd minute to silence the majority of the massive crowd.

Endo, named in the J. League Best Eleven every year since 2003, then capped an amazing comeback, the Japan midfielder coolly finishing a beautiful passing move in the 76th minute.

The blues, who had no game at the weekend, have enjoyed a consistent line-up in recent weeks with goalkeeper Yosuke Fujigayalining up behind central defenders Sota Nakazawa and Yamaguchi, named in last year’s J. League Best Eleven, and full-backs Akira Kaji and Michihiro Yasuda.

The heart of the team is the experienced midfield quartet of Endo, Myojin, Hideo Hashimoto and Takahiro Futagawa.

Gamba’s attacking talents include Roni, who scored four goals in six games for Brazil in 1999, his compatriot Lucas, who played for the 2000 Olympic team, and Japanese strikers Ryuji Bando and Masato Yamazaki.

Already, next week’s AFC Champions League final second leg at Hindmarsh Stadium is fully subscribed, with the last 3,500 tickets sold within an hour of going on sale to the general public last week.

"I’ve been waiting since 4.30am. I didn’t think I’d need to be here that early but the line was massive," a supporter said. "The AFC Champions League Final is one of the best things to happen in Australian club football. It’s just huge. Around a billion people watch it and it will be in little old Adelaide ."