Goodbye, Ronaldo, goodbye, Neymar! The dark horse of the AFC Champions League is soaring all the way, pointing to the 430 million prize!
The second leg of the AFC Champions League semi-finals in West Asia ended not long ago, and the top favorite Riyadh Crescent unexpectedly overturned, although they defeated the UAE giants Al Ain 2-1, but because they lost 2-4 in the first round, Riyadh Crescent was still eliminated with an aggregate score of 4-5, and the dream of a season Grand Slam was completely in vain. And Ain, who was upset and advanced to the finals, will sprint towards the final championship, and as long as they can win the championship, they will receive an unimaginably huge amount of money!
In this AFC Champions League, the two Saudi giants led by Ronaldo and Neymar, Riyadh Victory and Riyadh Crescent, have always been regarded as the biggest favorites to win the championship, but no one expected that Al Ain from the United Arab Emirates suddenly came out and became a nightmare for the Saudi team. In the 1/4 finals facing Ronaldo's Riyadh victory, Ain and his opponent fought for two games, and finally through a brutal penalty shootout, Ain eliminated Riyadh Victory with an aggregate score of 7-5, blocking Ronaldo from the semi-finals!
Immediately after facing the more powerful Riyadh Crescent, the Al Ain team did not have stage fright at all. In the first round, Al Ain, who was playing at home, defeated the unbeatable Riyadh Crescent 4-2, ending the opponent's 34-game winning streak in all competitions, and firmly holding the initiative of qualifying in his own hands. In the second leg of the decisive match, as long as the Al Ain team does not lose more than two goals to the opponent, then they can successfully advance and disrupt the dream of another football superstar Neymar!
Just two minutes into the game, Riyadh Crescent had a good chance to open the scoring when Michael was tackled by an opposition defender in the box and the referee awarded a penalty to the home side after reviewing the video footage. Ruben Neves hit the penalty steadily, helping Riyadh Crescent narrow the total score to 3-4! In the 12th minute, the away team Ain also played a smooth match in the front, Nadel sent a cross from the right side of the penalty area, Menezes swept the goal directly without stopping, 5-3! The Ain team expanded the total score to 2 goals again!
After the rematch, Riyadh Crescent, who had to score two more goals, launched a tidal onslaught, and the game became their half-time offensive and defensive drill. In the 51st minute, Shahrani threw the ball vigorously, Ain defender Balman's header failed to go far, and Saudi international Al-Dosari seized the opportunity to volley in the penalty area to complete the goal, 4-5! Riyadh Crescent once again saw the hope of a counterattack!
In the following games, Riyadh Crescent created a lot of scoring opportunities, but whether it was Michael's one-on-one shot or Blaich's close-range header in front of the goal, it was saved by the brave Ain goalkeeper Issa. In the last minute of stoppage time, Riyadh Crescent's midfielder Milinkovic also missed an empty goal, and in the end they lost 4-5 on aggregate to Al Ain, unfortunately stopped in the semi-finals, and if they want to lift the team's fifth AFC Champions League trophy, they can only hope for next season.
Al Ain, who have been upset in the final, will make the final push to the title, and as long as they can win the title, the team will not only receive a $5 million winning bonus, but also a valuable ticket to the revamped Club World Cup. And the biggest temptation of this ticket for the clubs is that each participating team will receive a participation prize of 50 million euros. If you add the original championship bonus of the AFC Champions League, then this cup will bring more than 430 million yuan to the Al Ain team!
It's a pity that the club of the Chinese Super League has not caught up with the good times, if the peak Guangzhou Evergrande is still there, maybe in the new Club World Cup, there will also be a place for the Chinese team!