RIYADH: Bafetimbi Gomis and Sebastian Giovinco starred as Riyadh giants Al-Hilal grabbed a 3-1 victory over Qatari champions Al-Duhail to take top spot in Group C of the AFC Champions League on Tuesday.
Al-Duhail’s new signing Shoya Nakajima’s 75th-minute strike had canceled out a first-half Carlos Eduardo goal, but Ali Al-Bulayhi put the hosts ahead again in the 77th minute, chesting the ball over the line from Italy international Giovinco’s corner at the King Saud University Stadium in Saudi Arabian capital.
Rui Faria’s men barely had time to regroup before former Lyon and Swansea City striker Gomis made it 3-1 in the 79th minute, rounding goalkeeper Amine Lecomte and firing into the roof of the net after a pass from Salem Al-Dawsari.
The win gave two-time champions Al-Hilal top spot in the group with six points, following their opening victory over the UAE’s Al-Ain 1-0 last week.
In Group D, Al-Sadd pipped Iran’s Persepolis 1-0 for their first victory with Baghdad Bounedjah scoring a dramatic winner five minutes into injury time.
Al-Sadd dominated proceedings but poor finishing let them down at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium before last year’s top scorer Bounedjah came to the hosts’ rescue.
The Algerian striker, who had a goal disallowed for offside earlier in the game, rose above the defense to nod home after Abdelkarim Hassan had headed the ball in his direction following a free-kick.
The victory helped 2011 champions Al-Sadd get back on track after they were beaten by Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahli 2-0 in the opening week.
Al-Ahli, meanwhile fell to a 1-0 defeat by Uzbekistan’s Pakhtakor in Tashkent, with Marat Bikmaev scoring the winner with a fine free-kick in the 62nd minute.
Pakhtakor took top spot in Group D with four points, having drawn their first match against Persepolis.
Iran’s Esteghlal and Al-Ain played out a 1-1 draw earlier on Tuesday.
Al-Hilal show AFC Champions League potential with victory over Al-Duhail
Al-Hilal show AFC Champions League potential with victory over Al-Duhail
- Riyadh giants make it two from two with victory over Qatar club.
- Al-Hilal looking good to exit group stage having fallen at first hurdle last year.
Ravaglia heroics lead Bologna to Italian Super Cup final in Riyadh
- Despite falling behind early, Bologna equalized in the 34th minute before prevailing on penalties
RIYADH: It was a night of shared football culture in Riyadh as Inter Milan and Bologna met in the second 2025/26 Italian Super Cup semi-final. The travelling Inter support brought their drums, colour and constant noise, blending with Saudi Inter fans to create a lively atmosphere inside the stadium.
The match began at a blistering pace, with Inter taking the lead less than two minutes after kick-off. Marcus Thuram powered home from close range after meeting an accurate cross from Alessandro Bastoni to score the opening goal of the night.
Inter immediately searched for a second, with Ange-Yoan Bonny going close in the fourth minute, feinting past Torbjorn Heggem before dragging his effort just wide of the post.
After Inter’s early barrage, Bologna began to grow into the contest, with Jens Odgaard leading much of the offence. Goalkeeper Josep Martinez was called into action to preserve Inter’s advantage.
The energy among Inter supporters continued to build, with fans jumping in unison and lifting their scarves as they urged their side forward in search of a second goal.
That momentum was checked in the 34th minute, when a VAR review resulted in a penalty for Bologna. Riccardo Orsolini slotted the spot-kick coolly past Martinez to bring I Rossoblu back level.
Inter pushed forward after the break as the game opened up, but there was no getting past Bologna goalkeeper Federico Ravaglia, who made four saves in the second half alone.
Hope briefly returned for the Nerazzurri when Bonny was brought down in the box in the 56th minute, only for the initial appeal for a penalty to be overturned following consultation with VAR.
Less than 10 minutes later, the stadium rose to welcome Lautaro Martinez. Brought on alongside Andy Diouf and Davide Frattesi in a triple substitution, Lautaro made an immediate impact but was unable to find the decisive goal before the end of regular time.
Bologna came within moments of snatching a winner in injury time, but goalkeeper Martinez reacted sharply to make a crucial save, sending the semi-final into a penalty shootout.
The shootout began evenly, with both sides converting their penalties before goalkeepers intervened at either end. Nicolo Barella then fired over the crossbar, only for Juan Miranda to mirror the miss moments later.
Inter’s struggles from the spot continued as Ravaglia made his second save of the shootout, before Jonathan Rowe gave Bologna the advantage. Stefan de Vrij converted to extend the contest, but Ciro Immobile struck decisively to send Bologna through.
The Rossoblu will now face Napoli in the Italian Super Cup final at Al-Awwal Park on December 22, after the Serie A champions defeated AC Milan 2-0 in the first semi-final.
