LONDON: Mohammad Al-Shalhoub was the unlikely hero as Al-Hilal got their AFC Champions League campaign off to a winning start with a 1-0 victory at Al-Ain.
The Group C clash pitted two of the heavyweights of Middle East football against each other with Al-Hilal desperate to get their continental campaign off to a good start, having exited at the group stage this time last year.
But there was to be no early slip-up this time as the Riyadh giants snatched a well-earned win thanks to veteran Al-Shalhoub’s 65th-minute strike.
Al-Hilal were on top for most of the match and the pressure finally told when the club captain got on the end of a Mohamed Al-Buraik cross to fire into the top corner and give the visitors an advantage they would not relinquish.
Al-Ain’s woes were compounded in the final minute as captain Ismail Ahmed was shown the red card — a moment that summed up a miserable night for the UAE champions.
From the start Al-Hilal looked the brighter and more energetic and nearly grabbed the lead as early as the third minute when Carlos Eduardo pounced on a loose ball inside the box, forcing Khaled Eisa into making a good save.
Al-Ain’s one chance of the first-half came from a set piece with Japanese international Tsukasa Shiotani's free-kick narrowly off target in the fifth minute.
It was the Saudi Arabian champions who dominated possession and they finally made the pressure tell when Al-Shalhoub got the winner to ease Al-Hilal nerves.
There was little doubting the win came as a relief to a side still haunted by the calamitous campaign last year.
“A key win in the ACL race: 3 points in the bag. (It was a) good performance of the team in Al-Ain,” French striker Bafetimbi Gomis tweeted.
Elsewhere, Al-Ahli recorded a shock 2-0 win over Qatar’s Al-Saad. A brace from Omar Al-Somah was enough to beat the Qatar side who reached the Westside final last year
The Syrian striker was on fire and once again proved that when on form there are few in Asia that can match him in front of goal.
Al-Hilal get AFC Champions League campaign off to winning start at Al-Ain as Al-Ahli shock Al-Saad
Al-Hilal get AFC Champions League campaign off to winning start at Al-Ain as Al-Ahli shock Al-Saad
- Riyadh giants impress in the UAE to get campaign off to great start.
- Al-Ahli shock Qatar club Al-Saad as Al-Somah bags a brace.
Christensen and Rashford on target as Barcelona beat Guadalajara in Copa del Rey
- Guadalajara’s hopes were extinguished in the dying moments when Lamine Yamal played a sublime through-ball into the path of Rashford
GUADALAJARA, Spain: Late strikes from Andreas Christensen and Marcus Rashford secured a hard-fought 2-0 victory for Barcelona against third-tier side Guadalajara on Tuesday, sending the Catalans through to the last 16 of the Copa del Rey.
Barcelona labored for much of the match at the Pedro Escartin stadium, holding over 80 percent of possession but struggling to break down a disciplined five-man Guadalajara defense.
The home side posed a constant threat on the counter-attack and frustrated the European heavyweights for long stretches.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick introduced regular starters Pau Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde, Jules Kounde, and Pedri from the bench in the second half, seeking a breakthrough.
The changes finally paid dividends in the 77th minute when Frenkie de Jong whipped in a cross from the right and defender Christensen rose highest to meet the delivery, with his header deflecting off Guadalajara’s Julio Martinez before nestling in the net.
The hosts nearly produced an immediate response, with Salifo Caropitche unleashing a fierce drive from distance, but Barcelona keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen — who was playing his first game for Barca since May — reacted superbly to tip the effort over the bar, preserving his side’s slender lead.
Guadalajara’s hopes were extinguished in the dying moments when Lamine Yamal played a sublime through-ball into the path of Rashford.
The English forward showed great composure, wrong-footing keeper Dani Vicente with a quick cut to his left before tapping the ball into the empty net to wrap up the result for Barcelona.
“These are tricky matches; they come out with everything they’ve got and we have to do the same,” Cubarsi told TVE.
“In the second half, we picked up the pace and moved them from side to side to tire them out. As the minutes passed, they grew tired, and that was the key point. They played spectacularly well.”
