AFC Champions League: Mahdi Ali upbeat despite Shabab Al Ahli's first defeat in 23 games

Al Hilal win Asian Champions League group match 2-0 in Riyadh

Al Hilal goalkeeper Abdullah Al Mayouf advances to close down Shabab Al Ahli midfielder Carlos Eduardo. AFP

Mahdi Ali is confident Shabab Al Ahli can still qualify for the Asian Champions League knockout stages despite losing to Al Hilal on Sunday night, a defeat that ended the Dubai club’s lengthy unbeaten run.

Hilal triumphed 2-0 against their depleted UAE opponents at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium in Riyadh, earning their first victory in Group A courtesy of first-half goals from Bafetimbi Gomis and Andre Carillo.

Shabab Al Ahli, who opened their account on Thursday with a draw against Tajikistan's FC Istiklol, suffered their first loss in 23 matches. Recent winners of the Arabian Gulf Cup, the 2015 Champions League runners-up were missing a number of players, including influential midfielders Federico Cartabia and Jaloliddin Masharipov.

However, Mahdi Ali remains optimistic that his team can progress from the pool, beginning with a positive result on Wednesday against Uzbekistan’s AGMK. Only the group winners are assured to advance to the last 16.

“Al Hilal had a good match and they deserved to win,” said Mahdi Ali, the former UAE national team manager. “We missed many players due to injuries and we also lost possession quickly, which made it difficult for us.

“The players were also tired because we played a lot of matches in our local league. They were also affected by the conditions of Ramadan. We should forget this match and start thinking of the next. We still have a chance but we must avoid the mistakes that we made today.”

Hilal, champions in 2019, were held to a 2-2 draw by AGMK in their Group A opener, but can create a three-point gap in the standings at the halfway stage if they defeat Istiklol on Wednesday.

Manager Rogerio Micale will no doubt be seeking another fast start to that game, after Gomis struck in the 14th minute on Sunday before Carillo doubled Hilal’s advantage shortly before the half hour mark.

“We knew that we would be playing against a strong side with great capabilities,” Micale said. “However, we made it easy right from the beginning when we scored two goals to control the match.

“I’m happy with the performance of the players tonight. The performance is different in each match, but this is due to the extraordinary situation throughout the world and this is also happening to big teams elsewhere.

“We are trying our best not to put pressure on the players during the trainings because we are in Ramadan and playing a match every three days.”

All Group A matches are being played in Riyadh following the Asian Football Confederation’s decision to stage fixtures in centralised hubs to limit the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.