New Adelaide United captain Angelo Costanzo says the club's recent bloodletting and absence of key players has only strengthened its resolve to make a winning start in the Asian Champions League at Hindmarsh Stadium on Wednesday night.

While the Reds head into the clash with Chinese champions Shandong Luneng as favourites, the visitors will have been undoubtedly boosted by the turmoil and injuries which have engulfed the South Australians.

Ross Aloisi, Jason Spagnuolo, Diego and Bobby Petta are all unavailable, leaving only 16 players fit for selection.

However, Costanzo is adamant the side taking to the park will be a completely galvanised unit.

"The feeling in the squad at the moment is great, we feel really fresh and everyone is pulling together," Costanzo told AAP.

"There's a few injuries, but we've got a lot of depth, and this will open opportunities for other guys, like Matthew Kemp, Aaron Goulding and Kristian Rees, who already have plenty of experience."

"Some of these guys are coming off contract too, so everyone is out to impress and a few players are playing for their futures."

The Group G encounter will be the Reds' first competitive hitout since being thumped 6-0 by Melbourne in the A-League grand final last month - a result which proved the catalyst for coach John Kosmina and then captain Aloisi to lose their jobs in the following week.

Influential midfielder Greg Owens also walked out on the team, after heavy criticism for his poor showing in the season decider.

Since then, Socceroo legend Aurelio Vidmar has been installed as caretaker coach to guide the club through its Asian adventure.

"He hasn't changed things too much, just a few little tweaks, but he's definitely got his own style," Costanzo said of his new coach.

"The system is basically the same, but he's just changing the way we do things, and we're confident we're on track to do very well.

"There's pressure on us because we know we're representing Australia, not just Adelaide, but we're quietly confident we can get the points."

Despite the resolute attitude, more change is expected at the club with the futures of several key players still unresolved.

Speculation has been rife Brazilian striker Fernando will be released at the end at the Champions League campaign, while veteran Carl Veart is said to be on the verge of retirement.

Rumours have even been circulating about Aloisi, with large numbers of club supporters calling for the midfielder to be axed after an ill-disciplined end to a disappointing season.

Later on in the evening, Australia's other Champions League entrant, Sydney FC, will take on the biggest club in China's second largest city, Shanghai Shenhua.

Like Adelaide, the fallout from an unsuccessful A-League finals campaign has been considerable, with coach Terry Butcher sacked, key players Sasho Petrovski and Alvin Ceccoli walking out and Jeremy Brockie close to re-joining New Zealand.

They've also appointed an interim coach in the form of Branko Culina, who will no doubt view the campaign as a trial run for the full-time position.

Their hosts, runner up in the Chinese league for the past two years, have well-known ambitions of regional domination and recently accepted an invitation to merge with Shanghai United.

The $US20 million (A$25.55 million) deal was brokered by Zhu Jun, the owner of the nation's second-largest gaming company and one of China's richest men.

Shenhua's current squad boasts no less than 17 players currently involved in either the Chinese senior or under 23 national teams, added to seasoned Uruguayan strikers Diego Alonso and Fernando Correa.

However, the recent upheaval has clearly unsettled the team, which opened its league campaign last weekend with a shock 2-0 loss at home to Beijing Guo'an.

The matches kick off at 8pm and 10pm (AEDT) respectively.

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