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Persipura Jayapura faces a do-or-die Asian Champions League qualifier in Australia today, but coach Jacksen Tiago says he isn’t bothered about the result.

Adelaide United hosts the Black Pearls at Hindmarsh Stadium with a place in the lucrative group stage on the line. RCTI will broadcast the match starting at 4 p.m. Jakarta time.

Even if Persipura wins, it has to wait for a final verdict from the Court of Arbitration for Sport before it knows for sure if it’s in the group stage.

“Just playing in that match is already a victory for us,” Tiago told the Jakarta Globe in a phone interview on Tuesday. “You know how ugly our battle was to fight for our right to play in the Champions League.

“I myself didn’t expect that we could provisionally win our appeal in the CAS, so I wasn’t thinking too much about playing in the Champions League. But there is actually justice in this world.”

Persipura won last season’s Indonesian Super League, when it was still the officially sanctioned top-flight competition.

However, a leadership change saw the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) disband the ISL and instead recognize the Indonesian Premier League. When Persipura elected to stay with the ISL, the PSSI chose not to register it for the Champions League.

With Persipura’s initial absence and the withdrawal of Chinese Super League club Liaoning Whowin, Adelaide moved directly into the group stage after finishing third in last season’s A-League.

Persipura appealed against its exclusion, and on Feb. 1 a CAS tribunal provisionally reinstated it to the Champions League. A final ruling is expected by March 6.

The CAS ruling forced the Asian Football Confederation to scramble in preparing the qualifier. Persipura had to hustle as well, only arriving in Adelaide early on Wednesday morning.

Tiago admitted that he had not bothered to prepare his players for regional competition after he learned that Persipura was kept out of the Champions League draw, instead focusing on domestic matters.

“As a coach, of course I want us to win the playoff, but I also have to be realistic with what we have right now,” the Brazilian said. “Adelaide is a good team and will play at their home. I think we only have a 10 to 20 percent chance of winning. I’ll just tell the boys to enjoy the match, play their best and don’t think too much about the result.”

Persipura goes into the playoff without star striker Boaz Solossa, who is still sidelined with a knee injury. The Black Pearls received a boost, though, with the news that Liberian playmaker Zah Rahan and defensive stalwart Bio Paulin of Cameroon had secured Australian visas on Wednesday.

“They will fly here [to Adelaide] from Jakarta [on Wednesday night],” Tiago said. “I hope they will be fit enough to play.”

Persipura is second in the ISL, one point behind Sriwijaya FC. Adelaide, meanwhile, is ninth in the 10-team A-League, four points out of the playoff places and 17 off the pace of the league-leading Central Coast Mariners.

ISL administrator Liga Indonesia did its part to aid Persipura’s preparations, rescheduling the club’s fixtures this week. The Black Pearls were scheduled to host Pelita Jaya today and Persib Bandung on Sunday.

Confusion surrounding the playoff only increased with the news that Adelaide coach John Kosmina had failed to meet Champions League criteria. Kosmina holds an AFC B coaching license instead of the A license required by the competition, leaving his assistant Luciano Trani in charge for the match.

Trani said he and his squad were trying to ignore the mess and concentrate on beating a foe about whom they knew little.

“They are just unknowns to us,” Trani told the Associated Press on Wednesday. “As long as we play well, it doesn’t matter who we play against — we’ll win.”

He also said the Reds only received scouting videos of Persipura a day before the match. “They’re a side that is typically Asian football — technically based, and they like to play the ball and move and go and get numbers forward of the ball.”

While Persipura had its league matches cleared for the playoff, Adelaide also must concern itself with a home fixture against Sydney FC on Sunday.