Doha: Saudi giants Al Hilal progressed to the knockout phase of the AFC Champions League but Qatar’s Al Rayyan must wait after suffering one of their worst drubbings in recent memory yesterday.
Al Hilal picked up a valuable point following a goalless draw against Iran’s Persepolis that secured them a top two finish in Group D, while Michael Laudrup’s Al Rayyan suffered a 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Al Wahda in Abu Dhabi.
Al Rayyan are still in second spot with seven points from five games and will have to wait two more weeks to find out if they could make the knockouts for the first time in their history when they face Al Hilal.
Al Wahda’s victory in Abu Dhabi was sweet revenge for a 2-1 defeat in the reverse fixture, but more importantly it also keeps their faint last 16 hopes alive after losing three of their four previous games.
Meanwhile, last year’s runners-up Al Ain booked their spot in the round of 16 with an emphatic 3-0 victory over Iran’s Zobahan. The victory gave Al Ain nine points from five matches, meaning they cannot finish outside the top two in Group C.
Already eliminated Bundyokor ended an 18-match winless streak with a 2-0 victory over Al Ahli of Saudi Arabia in Group C.
The Uzbek side shot out the blocks at Bunyodkor Stadium in Tashkent with an early goal when defender Akramjon Komilov headed home following a corner.
Al Ahli created several chances but failed to score and Eldor Shomurodov doubled the hosts’ lead five minutes into the second period, while the visitors rarely threatened.
With yesterday’s defeat, Al Ahli missed the chance to make the last 16 with a game to spare and are left facing a crunch tie with Zobahan next month.