Leaders-Mena magazine provided a live coverage of Tuesday’s football game between Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli in the semifinal of the AFC Champions League.
Fulltime: Al-Hilal 1-3 Al-Ahli
Scorers: S. Al-Dawasri 42′ / R. Firmino 9′, I. Toney 27′, F. Al-Buraikan
Yellow cards:
Ezgjan Alioski, Ali Majrashi, Merih Demiral (Al-Ahli)
Kalidou Koulibaly, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Salem Al-Dawsari, Hamad Al-Yami, Ruben Neves, Bono (Al-Hilal)
Red card:
Kalidou Koulibaly (Al-Hilal)
Lineups:
Al-Hilal: Bono; Yasir Al-Shahrani (Hamad Al-Yami 59), Kalidou Koulibaly, Ali Al-Bulayhi, Renan Lodi; Rúben Neves, [Marcos Leonardo (Kaio Cesar 59) Hassan Tambakti 68], Sergej Milinković-Savić; Malcom, Aleksandar Mitrović, Salem Al-Dawsari
Al-Ahli: Edouard Mendy; Ali Majrashi (Mohammed Sulaiman 88), Roger Ibañez, Merih Demiral, Ezgjan Alioski; Franck Kessié, Roberto Firmino (Firas Al-Buraikan 90+7), Ziyad Aljohani; Riyad Mahrez, Ivan Toney, Wenderson Galeno (Gabri Veiga 90+11)
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90+12′ Second half ends.
90+11′ Substitution for Al-Ahli: Gabri Veiga replaces Galeno.
90+10′ Al-Hilal goalie Bono gets a yellow card.
(GOAL) Al-Buraikan fires the rebound into the bottom left corner after the ball breaks to him in the box.
90+7′ GOOAAL… Al-Ahli add the third.
90+7′ Substitution for Al-Ahli: Firas Al-Buraikan replaces Roberto Firmino
90+6′ Franck Kessie picks up a pass inside the box and finds some space for a shot before unleashing a low drive goalwards, but one of the defending players blocks his effort.
90+4′ Galeno connects with Ivan Toney’s cross with a right-footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.
90+3′ Renan Lodi sends over a free kick from long range but the defence is alert.
90+2′ Al-Hilal’s Ruben Neves wins a free kick in the defensive half.
90+1′ Salem Al-Dawsari strikes the ball with his right foot from outside the box, but it goes well wide of the right post
90′ The fourth official signals 8 minutes of added time.
89′ Ziyad Al Johani’s right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
89′ Franck Kessie’s right-footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
88′ Roberto Firmino wins a free kick for Al-Ahli on the right wing.
88′ Substitution for Al-Ahli: Mohammed Sulaiman replaces Ali Majrashi
87′ Al-Hilal’s Ruben Neves gets a yellow card for dissent.
86′Penalty saved! Kessie sends the penalty towards the bottom left corner, but Bono pulls off a wonderful save to deny him.
85′ Al-Hilal’s Hamad Al-Yami gets a yellow card.
84′ PENALTY for Al-Ahli.
83′ VAR Check.. Referee Adham Makhadmeh makes the VAR signal and is going to check whether it’s a penalty. Let’s see what happens!
81′ Al-Hilal wins a free kick in the attacking half following a foul by Firmino.
80′ Salem Al-Dawsari receives a yellow card.
79′ Al-Hilal’s Aleksandar Mitrovic gets a yellow card after bringing down an opponent
78′ WHAT A CHANCE! Galeno picks up the ball inside the box and produces a snap shot which smashes against the right post.
76′ Aleksandar Mitrovic commits a rough challenge and Adham Makhadmeh blows his whistle for an infringement.
73′ WHAT A CHANCE! Roberto Firmino latches on to a sweet pass inside the box and unleashes a shot which only hits the right post.
71′ Mahrez takes the free kick from a long way out but the defender manages to get it clear. Al Ahli SC have been awarded a corner kick.
68′ Substitution for Al-Hilal: Hassan Tambakti replaces Kaio Cesar.
67′ Al-Ahli’s Ibañez is caught offside
66′ Firmino reacts well to latch onto a rebound inside the box, but his shot is well blocked. The ball goes out of play. Al-Ahli are awarded a corner kick.
65′ Firmino shoots inside the box, but is denied by a timely block.
65′ The total number of attempts on target is Al-Hilal 3:11 Al-Ahli
64′ Excellent touch by Ivan Toney! He latches on to a precise pass on the edge of the box following a fast break but miskicks and the ball goes well wide of the right post.
63′ Merih Demiral receives a fine cross from the free kick and fired a decent shot in from close range. Unfortunately for him, it sailed just over the crossbar
59′ RED CARD: Second yellow card to Kalidou Koulibaly for a bad foul
59′ Double subs for Al-Hilal: Hamad Al-Yami replaces Yasser Al Shahrani; Kaio Cesar comes in for Marcos Leonardo
56′ Renan Lodi wins a free kick for Al-Hilal in the defensive half.
55′ Alioski’s right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked.
53′ Ali Majrashi wins a free kick for Al-Ahli
52′ Salem Al-Dawsari connects with Leonardo’s pass with a left-footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is saved in the bottom left corner.
50′ NO GOAL... The referee overturns the goal after VAR check.
49′ GOOAAL.. Ahli add the third.
47′ Firmino capitalizes on Mehrez’s cross with a brilliant header from close range, but it was blocked.
46′ Second half begins.
Halftime
45+10′ First half ends.
45+9′ Al-Hilal’s Kalidou Koulibaly gets a yellow card for a bad foul.
45+8′ Al-Hilal win a free kick in the defensive half.
45+6′ Merih Demiral receives a yellow card for a bad tackle.
45+4′ Al-Hilal win a throw-in in the defensive half
45+3′ Galeno wins a free kick for Al-Ahli on the left wing.
45+2′ Marcos Leonardo receives a sweet cross inside the box from Al-Dawsari, but one of the defenders rushes in bravely to intercept the ball.
45′ The fourth official signals 6 minutes of added time.
(GOAL) Al-Dawsari receives the ball inside the box, reacts quickly and without any problems stabs the ball low inside the left post.
42′ GOOAAL... Al-Dawsari scores for Al-Hilal
41′ WHAT A SAVE! Al-Hilal goalie Bono produces a brilliant save to block Roberto Firmino’s right-footed shot from a difficult angle on the left in the bottom left corner.
40′ Alioski wins a free kick for al-Ahli in the defensive half.
38′ Goal kick for Al-Ahli.
36′ Ibanez finds space in the box and tries a looping header at goal from the corner, but the ball goes just wide of the left post.
34′ Corner kick for Al-Ahli
33′ Al-Ahli’s Edouard Mendy requires medical treatment, so the referee stops play and signals for the physio to come onto the pitch.
30′ Riyad Mahrez wins a free kick in the defensive half.
(GOAL) Ivan Toney connects with Riyad Mahrez’s through pass, sending a left-footed shot from a difficult angle on the left to the bottom right
27′ GOOAAL… Ivan Toney doubles the score for Al-Ahli
26′ Al Johani gets the ball from a rebound and shoots from long range, but sends the ball miles wide of the right post. The goalkeeper doesn’t have to worry about this one. Very poor attempt.
25′ Kessie sends in a pass which fails to reach any of his teammates.
23′ Bono leaps to intercept the corner kick from Riyad Mahrez.
22′ Renan Lodi is penalised for tripping and Adham Makhadmeh blows his whistle
19′ WHAT A CHANCE! Franck Kessie had a golden opportunity. He volleyed from point blank range towards the bottom left corner, but Bono was alert and made an amazing save!
18′ Mahrez slides a pass forward, but one of the defenders cuts it out.
18′ Throw-in for Al-Ahli
16′ Referee Adham Makhadmeh decides there was no infringement by Roberto Firmino and the game can continue.
15′ Wait! The referee makes the VAR signal and he’s going to review that incident from earlier. This could be a red card for Roberto Firmino! Let’s see what he decides.
13′ Delay in match because of an injury to Al-Ahli’s Galeno
12′ Ali Majrashi wins a free kick for Al-Ahli in the defensive half.
(GOAL) Galeno slipped the ball to Firmino who simply steers it home with a right-footed shot from close range.
9′ GOOAAL…. Al-Ahli score
8′ Salem Al-Dawsari is caught offside
6′ Ali Majrashi receives a yellow card for a bad tackle.
2′ Ivan Toney makes a terrific run to get on the end of the free kick and powers a header just wide of the right post from close in.
1′ Al-Ahli’s Alioski receives a yellow card for a bad foul.
1′ First half begins.
17:00 Possible lineups:
Al-Hilal: Bounou (GK); Cancelo, Al Tambakti, Koulibaly, Lodi; Neves, Milinkovic-Savic; Malcom, Leonardo, Al Dawsari; Mitrovic
Al-Ahli: Mendy (GK); Majrashi, Demiral, Ibanez, Alioski; Kessie, Aljohani; Mahrez, Firmino, Galeno; Toney
16:00 The historical rivalry intensifies! These giants have met 53 times before, with Al-Hilal holding the edge at 30 wins to Al-Ahli’s 12, with their most recent encounter dating back to February when the Jeddah side claimed a 3-2 win over the Riyadh giants in the Saudi Pro League. However, recent clashes tell a closer story: in their last five encounters across all competitions, both teams secured three victories and suffered just one defeat, remarkably matching each other with 14 goals scored and six conceded.
15:00 Continental heavyweights Al-Hilal, four-time champions and winners in 2021, are laser-focused on reclaiming their AFC Champions League crown after falling just short last term, where their journey ended in a tough 5-4 aggregate semi-final loss to UAE’s Al Ain.
14:00 Al-Ahli arrive in formidable form, powering into the semi-finals with a commanding 3-0 victory over Thailand’s Buriram United in the quarters. Inspired by the brilliance of former Manchester City star Riyad Mahrez, this marked their ninth win in the last 10 competition matches, extending their impressive current winning streak to four games.
13:00 Al-Hilal sealed their semi-final berth with a sensational and dominant 7-0 demolition of Korean side Gwangju in the quarter-finals, entering this crucial stage with an undefeated record that speaks volumes about their power.
12:00 The Kingdom holds its breath! Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli are set for a monumental all-Saudi clash in the AFC Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday, with both proud clubs vying for a place in the grand final and a chance to etch their names deeper into Asian football history.
Venue: Alinma Stadium (Jeddah)
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
