O Al Hilal won the Al Ittihad 2-0 this Tuesday afternoon (05) in the first game of the quarter-finals of Asian Champions League. With the result, the team led by Jorge Jesus is one victory away from equaling the world record for most consecutive victories.
The place for the semi-final will be defined next Tuesday (12), at 4pm (Brasília time), at King Abdullah, in Jeddah, under the direction of Al Ittihad.
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The first half started evenly, with both teams’ markings in place and with the precautions that the quarter-finals of a continental competition require.
The first good chance of the match came from Al Hilal, with Aldawsari, who at first carried the ball in fits and starts, but, with skill, gave the defense a pass and came out in front of the goal. When it came time to finish, however, he took too much away from the goalkeeper and the ball went out the left side.
Al Ittihad reacted at 14. After a corner, the ball fell to the foot of Ahmed Hegazy, who shot hard. Shortly afterwards, Mitrovic, from Al Hilal, received a gift from the opposing defense in a wrong pass, was left alone inside the area and was only cut off at the moment of the shot.
The duel changed in the 37th minute. Al Hilal arrived at a cross from the right, Mitrovic tried to meet the ball, but was knocked down in the middle of the way. The referee awarded a penalty. The attacker himself took the penalty and opened the scoring. It was his 20th goal in 20 games for the team.
Jorge Jesus’ team took advantage of the moment and expanded four minutes later. Quickly leaving the defense field, Malcom was launched from the right and rolled into the middle of the area. Saudi Aldawsari appeared to finish and make it 2-0.
Expulsion defines game in the second half
In the 21st minute of the second half, Kanté hit Koulibaly’s ankle in a midfield dispute. The Frenchman from Al Ittihad came over the top, with his sole, and received a yellow card. The referee was called by VAR and, after review, he removed the yellow card and sent off the midfielder.
The expulsion could consolidate Al Hilal’s dominance in the match. Jorge Jesus’ team, however, took a while to kill the game. The match was warm.
In the 42nd minute, Al Ittihad arrived in danger with a shot from Hamdallah and could have reduced the score. After the play was completed, however, the referee ruled it offside. Six minutes into added time, the script was repeated: another dangerous arrival from Al Ittihad, but again in an irregular position.
The score remained unchanged until the end.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s team fights for another place in the semi-final
Whoever advances in the confrontation between Al Hilal and Al Ittihad will face, in the semi-final, Al Ain or Al Nassrby Cristiano Ronaldo, who lost the first game 1-0 and will decide the place at home next week.
On the other side of the bracket, the South Koreans Jeonbuk Hyundai and Ulsan Hyundai, the Chinese Shandong Taishan and the Japanese Yokohama Marinos are in contention.
Search for world record
Al Hilal have 26 consecutive victories. The team is one triumph away from tying the world record held by The New Saints, from Wales, who won 27 duels in a row in 2016. They are now 34 games unbeaten.
Al Hilal’s next games
Al Riyadh (F): 03/08, 11am (from Brasilia) – Saudi Championship
Al Ittihad (F): 12/03, 4pm (from Brasilia) – Asian Champions League
Dhamk (C): 03/16, 4pm (Brasília time) – Saudi Championship