The Saudi Arabia side lost 2-1 to Uzbekistan champions Bunyodkor in their first AFC Champions League match last week and face another tricky match against Sepahan, who defeated UAE champions Al Shabab 2-0 in their opening match.
Al Ettifaq will be banking on their huge fan base in Dammam to give them the edge over their opponent and Andone believes nothing less than a win against Sepahan will do if they want to remain in contention for a place in the knockout stage.
“We have discussed the main reasons behind our defeat in Uzbekistan,” said the Romanian.
“We have tried our best to correct the mistakes that we made in that game before we play Sepahan.
“In the previous match we played well but the result was not good for us. This is our home debut in the ACL and we must take advantage of playing at home.”
Sepahan arrived in Dammam on Monday and have had only one training session before the game but coach Farhad Kazemi has done his homework on Al Ettifaq.
As a result, the Iranian is confident his side possesses the necessary quality to take the three points on Wednesday.
“We have done our work and watched a game for Al Ettifaq against their local rivals Al Ittihad,” he said.
“Al Ettifaq and Bunyodkor are strong teams but we have what it takes to defeat them.
“Al Ettifaq’s defeat against Bunyodkor shows that we can still beat them at home because we watched their strengths and weaknesses.
“Those teams have prepared well for the competition but I think we can do well against them.”
Kazemi will be hoping that influential midfielder Moharram Navidkia will be fit enough to start the game after managing to play in the second half of the defeat to Al Shabab last week.