Al Hilal repeats its victory over Al-Ittihad in the AFC Champions League (Getty)
Al Hilal qualified for the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League with a 2-0 victory over its local rival Al-Ittihad in the second leg of the quarter-finals - Tuesday - reaching 28 consecutive victories in all competitions.
Coach Jorge Jesus' team, which defeated Al-Ittihad 4-0 on aggregate, will face its Emirati rival, Al-Ain, who eliminated Al-Nassr Saudi Arabia on penalties, in the semi-finals.
Yasser Al-Shahrani opened the scoring for Al-Hilal in the 61st minute after he received a pass from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and shot a low ball from close range into the net of Abdullah Al-Mayouf.
🔥⚽️ Yasser Al-Shahrani opens the registration for Al-Hilal and makes the task difficult for Al-Ittihad #AFC_Champions_League |
#Al-Ittihad_Al-Hilal #AFCChampionsLeague pic.twitter.com/ZfWKfSschR
- beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) March 12, 2024
In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Brazilian Malcolm doubled the score after shooting into the net from a one-on-one position.
⚽️🔥 Malcolm doubled the score for Al Hilal in the last minute of the match #AFC_Champions_League |
#Al-Ittihad_Al-Hilal #AFCChampionsLeague pic.twitter.com/584mwfacSE
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Al-Ittihad, which was without Karim Benzema due to injury and N'Golo Kante due to his expulsion in the first leg, suffered a severe blow when its Brazilian player Fabinho left due to injury after 15 minutes of play.
Al-Ittihad did not take advantage of its advantage in the first half, as Al-Hilal goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais saved an opportunity from Romarinho three minutes after the start of the match.
A shot from Romarinho hit the post in the 16th minute.
Al Hilal controlled the ball in the second half to maintain its lead.
The atmosphere became tense two minutes before the end of the match’s regular time, and Al-Ittihad striker Abdel Zarraq Hamdallah was sent off after Ali Al-Bulaihi grabbed Al-Hilal’s defender by the neck before getting into an altercation with Kalidou Koulibaly.
🔥 The atmosphere is heating up between the players in the last minutes of the match and the referee shows the red card in the face of Abdul Razzaq Hamdallah #AFC_Champions_League |
#Al-Ittihad_Al-Hilal #AFCChampionsLeague pic.twitter.com/YkrglQhavD
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Source: Reuters