Former Fulham midfielder Ahmad Elrich says he'll be back for Central Coast Mariners' finals campaign. Elrich is recovering from a knee injury and told the Sydney Morning Herald: "I'll be flying in six weeks."

The Mariners start their Asian Champions League campaign with a home match against Pohang Steelers on March 11 and Elrich believes the A-League team will overcome the Koreans because of their physical strength.

"I've played against them when I was in Korea with Busan," Elrich said. "Technically they are very good and they are very sharp. But they don't like it when you put in a strong challenge. They tend to shy away.

"There's no doubt we'll have the upper hand in physical challenges.

"They are beatable. I think the other two teams we've drawn against (Kawasaki Frontale and Tianjin Teda) are also beatable.

"They'll all be tricky games. It is important we take something out of the away games. Home support will play a big part in getting us through to the next stage (final 16)."