Aside from Al Ittihad, Group C also contains Umm Salal of Qatar and Al Jazira of the UAE but while recognising the enormity of Esteghlal's task to make it through to the knockout stages, the former Iran coach warned the Saudis not to expect an easy ride on Wednesday.
"The match in Jeddah won't be easy for either team," said Ghalenoei.
"There are no easy matches in this group which is why it's the Group of Death. Three of the teams are (currently) top of their league.
“Al-Ittihad know they're playing a team with a special kind of determination and desire and the commitment of whose players is the talk of Asia."
Two-time AFC Champions League winners Al Ittihad, meanwhile, are keen to make amends for their disappointing 2008 campaign.
The Tigers won the tournament in 2004 and 2005 but exited at the group stage last year.
As a result they have made several signings in a bid to give themselves the best chance possible of progressing to the knock-out stage.
Emad Meteb came from Egypt's Al Ahly while Moroccan Hicham Aboucharouane, Omani Ahmed Hadeed and Brazilian Renato Morais have all joined the club.
The signings appear to have made a positive impact with Al Ittihad currently top of the Saudi League following a 3-0 victory over Al Ettifaq and are two points ahead of defending champions Al Hilal.
Meteb proved that he is ready for the AFC Champions League as he scored a brace while Saleh Al-Saqri completed the scoring.
Meanwhile coach Gabriel Calderon has been boosted by the return to fitness of a number of key players.
Saud Kariri and young striker Naif Hazazi have returned to training after recovering from their injuries they picked up in the domestic league while defender Hamad Al-Montashiri, Ahmed Hadeed and Sultan Al-Nomari have been undergoing intense fitness training in order to be fit for the clash.
"We will be playing on home soil and we expect a lot of fans to attend the game," said Calderon.
"We have built the squad with some key players and with the return from injury of a number of players I am sure that we will pick up three points at home.”