Al Ain qualified for the AFC Champions League 2023-24 final despite a 2-1 defeat to Al Hilal SFC in the second leg of their semi-final at Kingdom Arena last night, progressing with a 5-4 aggregate score.
Al Ain, who lifted the title in 2003, will face the winners between Yokohama F. Marinos and Ulsan Hyundai FC in their first AFC Champions League final since 2016.
A Soufiane Rahimi hat-trick had given Al Ain a 4-2 lead in the first leg at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, ending Al Hilal’s 34-match winning run and setting up a captivating encounter in the Saudi capital.
The game got to a flying start with injured duo Neymar and Aleksandar Mitrovic watching from the stands as Al Hilal were awarded a penalty inside the first 60 seconds after Kouame Kouadio lunged into a tackle on Michael inside the penalty box.
Portugal international Ruben Neves stepped up and sent goalkeeper Khaled Eisa the wrong way from the spot to reduce Al Hilal’s aggregate disadvantage to just one goal.
Just minutes later, Al Ain equalised on the night. Left-back Erik embarked on a mazy run, making his way past several defenders before feeding Kaku inside the box, the Paraguayan then squared for Yahia Nader who returned it to Erik to sweep home with his weaker right foot for 1-1 in the 12th minute.
The Brazilian-born left-back’s joy soon turned into sorrow as he was stretched off the pitch following a foot injury which rendered him unable to complete the match, being replaced by Saeed Juma.
A moment of confusion inside Al Ain’s penalty box nearly gifted Al Hilal a second goal when Neves’ diagonal ball into the box was headed by Emirati midfielder Ahmed Barman, but instead of being cleared, it found its way past Eisa and towards Al Ain’s goal, only to bounce off the upright to Barman’s relief.
The travelling supporters celebrated five minutes before the break when the referee pointed to the spot after Al Hilal defender Hassan Tambakti was deemed to have shoved Soufiane Rahimi inside the box, but following a VAR review, the decision was overturned with the video check confirming no foul was made.
The second half started with the same momentum as the first, and within five minutes of the restart, Al Hilal had found the back of the net again. A long Yasser Al Shahrani throw-in was headed away by Barman but only as far as Salem Al Dawsari who drilled it into the bottom corner to restore the Saudi side’s lead on the night.
Brazilian winger Michael thought he had levelled the tie just before the hour mark after going on a jinking run from the right flank and exchanging passes with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic before making his way into the box and aiming for the far corner only to be denied by the feet of goalkeeper Eisa.
Eisa had to be at his best once more to deny Michael’s drilled strike from a tight angle just four points from time, ensuring his side progressed to the final.
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