Al Ahli were agonisingly close to claiming a famous victory over Italian giants Inter Milan on Wednesday night only to be denied at the death.
Ahli, who are preparing for their Asian Champions League quarter-final against Iran's Naft Tehran, took the lead early through new striker Rodrigo Lima. The Dubai club looked likely to hold on for an unlikely victory before Stevan Jovetic, on-loan from Manchester City, equalised from the penalty spot deep into injury time.
Despite the heartbreak of letting victory slip from their grasp, Ahli will take plenty of positives from another good performance against one of the biggest clubs in Europe, most notably the impact of Lima and his increasing understanding with playmaker Everton Ribeiro.
Lima, who joined from Benfica this summer, is tasked with solving the goal-scoring crisis that effectively cost Ahli their league title defence last season. With four goals in his first three games — including a double against Udinese — the early signs are promising.
The Brazilian’s budding relationship with compatriot Ribeiro was on show once again against Inter. Lima started his goal-scoring move with a flick into the path of Ribeiro, who went racing clear before checking his run and slipping the ball to Lima to shoot first time.
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