The AFC Champions League semi-finals have come to an end. In a matchup in the West Asia zone, although the away team lost 1-2 to Riyadh Crescent, they still eliminated the opponent with a total score of 4-2 in the first leg and a total score of 5-4 and advanced to the AFC Champions League final first.
The second leg of the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League West Asia will be contested, with Saudi giants Riyadh Crescent hosting the UAE's traditional powerhouse Al Ain. A week ago, Al Ain won 4-2 at home to Yad Crescent to take the lead in the two-legged home-and-away knockout round. Before this game, Al Ain was not in a good situation in the league, ranking third in the Arab Super League with only 36 points, five points behind the first-place Dubai Prayer team. The Crescent Moon topped the Saudi Super League with 77 points, nine points ahead of second-place Riyadh Victory. Due to the defeat away from home, the league also had a large lead, so the Crescent Moon returned to the home field and sent the strongest team to give it a go.
In this game, the starting lineup of the new moon was led by Saudi international Al-Shehri, in addition to Ruben Neves, Milinkovic, Malcolm and other strong reinforcements who have played in the five major leagues. On Ain's side, coach Crespo focused on defense and sent Palacios, Eric, Kaku, Park Yongwoo and others to play.
Just four minutes into the first half, Crescent Moon was awarded a penalty by Michael and Neves converted the penalty to open the scoring for the home side. Eight minutes later, the away team Ain also played in color, Nadir crossed, and Eric answered the goal laterally to make it 1-1.
In the second half, the Crescent offensive resumed, and Davasari scored in the penalty area to overtake the score again, 2-1. After that, although Crescent created a number of chances, they still missed the goal. In the end, the Al Ain team eliminated the home team Riyadh Crescent with an aggregate score of 5-4 and advanced to the AFC Champions League final. Live streaming and replay of sports events are free to watch| Link3's post-match stats show that Crescent were in complete control, with 66% possession, 15 to 7 shots on goal and 7 shots on target, but unfortunately, they just couldn't extend their win and ended up hating at home.
For the veteran powerhouse Ain, this is the fourth time in their team history that they have reached the AFC Champions League final. They reached the AFC Champions League final in 2003 and managed to reach the top. Since then, in 2005 and 2016, they have reached the final twice, but both of them have been runners-up. This time, they have a chance to win the AFC Champions League trophy again after 21 years.