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Al-Ain leaves Cristiano Ronaldo out of Asian Champions League

Sports Desk, Mar 12 (EFE).- Al-Ain of the United Arab Emirates beat Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr in a tiebreaker in the second leg of the Asian Champions League quarterfinals on Monday, thus eliminating Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo from this competition.

Al Nassr came from 0-2 down to win the game 4-3 to erase the first leg’s 1-0 deficit, taking the game to penalties, where they lost by 1-3.

Moroccan Soufiane Rahimi, scorer of Al-Ain’s winning goal in the first leg, put Al Nassr on the ropes with a brace in the first half.

Abdulrahman Ghareeb scored from a pass of Sadio Mane in the fifth minute of added time in the first half to give the Riyadh club a lifeline.

Khalid Eisa’s own goal took the score level before Alex Telles’s score from a free kick took the game to extra time, making Al Nassr finally believe in a comeback.

At the start of extra time, Al Nassr’s Ayman Yahya was sent off for a harsh tackle on Al Abdullah Khaibari, and Al Ain made the most of their numerical advantage with Sultan Al Shamsi’s goal making the scoreline 3-3.

Ronaldo intervened finally, earning a penalty and converting it by himself late into the second half of extra time to ensure the game was decided in a penalty shootout.

In the penalties, only Ronaldo scored from his shot, but Marcelo Brozovic, Telles, and Otavio failed. Al-Ain, Rahimi, Kaku, and Al Shamsi scored from their shots for Al-Ain, which were enough.

Al-Ain, who are coached by Argentine Hernan Crespo and champions of the tournament in 2003, will play in the semifinals against the winner of the match between the Saudi teams, Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal. EFE

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