Al Hilal put one foot in the final with an emphatic 4-1 win over Al Sadd in the first leg of the 2019 AFC Champions League semi-final at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium on Tuesday.
Al Sadd came into the match on the back of a five-game winning run at home, while Al Hilal were in search of just their second victory in nine away encounters against Qatari opponents.
The hosts got their first clear-cut chance within just eight minutes when a corner-kick for Al Hilal was turned into a swift counter attack thanks to Akram Afif’s vision.
The midfielder collected the ball on the edge of his own penalty box, supplying it to Baghdad Bounedjah on the wide before charging on a 50-yard run to get on the end of the Algerian’s cross at the other side of the pitch, but his left-footed finish was thwarted by goalkeeper Abdullah Al Mayouf.
The near-capacity crowd in the stadium were sent into raptures at the quarter-hour mark as Afif’s short corner saw the ball exchanged between Hassan Al Haydos and Nam Tae-hee.
Al Haydos drilled the ball across the mouth of goal and Bafetimbi Gomis’ desperate attempt to clear it ended with it in the back of his own net to gift Al Sadd an early lead.
Al Sadd were punished for a defensive mistake in the 33rd minute as Tarek Salman’s sideways pass placed Boualem Khoukhi under pressure inside his area, allowing Andre Carillo to intercept the ball and cross for Sebastian Giovinco who sent the ball back across the mouth of goal for Gomis, who was left with a simple finish from close range to level the score.
Xavi’s men suffered another blow just two minutes later as Abdelkarim Hassan was booked for a late challenge, then instantly sent off for excessively protesting the decision.
The hosts’ misery was compounded in the last minute of the first half as a Giovinco corner was nodded on by Gomis for Ali Bulayhi at the far post.
The centre-back rose highest to head home from point-blank, sending Al Hilal into the dressing room with a valuable lead.
Taking advantage of their numerical superiority, Al Hilal dominated the second half, creating chance after chance as they took the game to their opponents.
Yasser Al Shahrani made a smart run to find space down the left and cross into the six-yard box. Gomis, despite being under pressure from Salem Al Hajri, still managed to steer the ball into the net to make it 3-1 for Al Hilal at the hour mark.
Ten minutes after his introduction to replace Giovinco, Mohammed Al Shalhoub collected Mohammed Kanno’s squared pass and expertly placed it into the bottom corner for a fourth Al Hilal goal in the 67th minute.
Boosted by a three-goal away advantage, Al Hilal welcome Al Sadd to King Saud University Stadium for the return leg in three weeks, with the winners facing either Guangzhou Evergrande or Urawa Red Diamonds in the final.
Source: The AFC
