KUALA LUMPUR: Al-Hilal booked their place in the last 16 of the Asian Champions League Elite on Tuesday despite being held to a 1-1 draw by hosts Al-Sadd in Qatar that ended the Saudi club’s perfect start to the league phase of the competition.

The draw, coupled with a 3-1 loss for Iraqi side Al Shorta against Al Wasl from the United Arab Emirates, means Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr also progress having defeated Al-Gharafa on Monday.

The pair join compatriots Al-Ahli as early qualifiers for the knockout rounds with the Jeddah-based side topping the standings in west Asia with maximum points after five matches.

The top eight teams in the 12-club league phase in both west and east Asia advance to the last 16, which will be played over two legs on a home-and-away basis in March.

Al-Hilal took a perfect record into their meeting with Al-Sadd at Jassim bin Hamed Stadium and went in front in the 10th minute when Ali Al-Bulahyi pounced at the far post after Mohammed Kanno had flicked on Salem Al-Dawsari’s corner.

Aleksandar Mitrovic hit the crossbar in the second half as Al-Hilal sought a second goal but, with 19 minutes remaining, Al-Sadd levelled when Akram Afif’s low cross was tapped in by Paulo Otavio.

Tarek Salman then hit the woodwork for the hosts in a frantic finish which saw referee Kim Jong-hyeok turn down a pair of late Al-Hilal penalty claims after consulting the pitch-side monitor.

The draw, however, was enough to secure Al-Hilal’s passage to the next round while Al-Sadd also remain on track for the next phase despite dropping to fifth with nine points.

Al-Wasl climbed above the Qataris and into fourth with their win over Al-Shorta, which came after Jonatas Santos had put the UAE club ahead in Karbala in the 14th minute.

Fahd Yousef equalised for Al-Shorta five minutes into the second half but goals from Fabio Lima and Nicolas Gimenez in the 64th and 92nd minutes respectively sealed the win for the visitors.

On Wednesday, substitute Jasir Asani scored with this first touch to earn Gwangju FC a 1-0 win over Shanghai Shenhua that kept the South Koreans in second in the east Asian standings as Yokohama F Marinos defeated Pohang Steelers.

Goals from Yan Matheus and Anderson Lopes earned John Hutchison’s side a 2-0 victory at home to take the J-League outfit, runners-up in last season’s competition, up to third in the standings.

Both teams trail Japan’s Vissel Kobe in the quest for one of the eight berths from east Asia in the last 16 of the competition from the league phase.

Shenhua remain in sixth on seven points, ahead of ninth placed Buriram United from Thailand on goal difference.

Published in Dawn, November 28th, 2024