Al-Ahli Go Top as Al-Ittihad Claim Their First Victory

Saudi champions Al-Ahli temporarily climbed to the top of the unified group after a resounding 4-0 win over Qatari side Al-Gharafa in Matchday 3 of the AFC Champions League Elite.

The goals came from Frenchman Enzo Millot (32’), Ivorian Franck Kessié (38’, 41’), and Saleh Abu Al-Shamat (76’), lifting Al-Ahli to 7 points — ahead of Al-Wahda (UAE) on goal difference. Defending leaders Al-Hilal (6 points) are set to host Qatari visitors Al-Sadd on Tuesday, while Al-Gharafa dropped to eighth with 3 points.

Al-Ahli returned to winning ways after back-to-back draws: a 2-2 stalemate with Al-Duhail in Round 2, followed by a domestic league draw with Al-Shabab, leaving them eighth with 9 points from 15.

For Al-Gharafa, it was a second defeat in the competition, having previously beaten Iraq’s Al-Shorta 2-0 in Round 2.

Meanwhile, UAE side Al-Wahda claimed another important victory, beating Al-Duhail 3-1 to move into second on goal difference behind the leaders. Omar Khribin (35’, penalty), Brahima Diarra (45+2’), and Alaeddine Zouhir (67’) scored for the hosts, while Polish striker Krzysztof Piątek had scored Al-Duhail lone goal (20’).

Al-Wahda had earlier beaten Al-Ittihad 2-1 in Abu Dhabi and drawn 0-0 away to Iran’s Tractor, raising their tally to 7 points. Al-Duhail, in contrast, remain in 10th with a single point after losing 1-2 to Al-Hilal and drawing 2-2 with Al-Ahli.

Al-Ittihad Finally Won!

Saudi giants Al-Ittihad acheived their first continental victory, defeating Iraq’s Al-Shorta 4-1 away, prolonging the hosts’ struggles despite strong home support from over 30,000 fans.

Al-Ittihad now sit on 3 points from 3 games, while Al-Shorta remain on just 1.

The Jeddah club overcame being reduced to 10 men in the 50th minute after Portuguese midfielder Danilo Pereira was sent off. Still, French winger Moussa Diaby (17’), Brazilian Fabinho (29’), and Algerian Houssem Aouar (60’, 76’) found the net to overturn the early lead given to Al-Shorta by Bassam Shakir (5’).

Elsewhere, Iran’s Tractor cruised past UAE side Sharjah with a stunning 5-0 win. Albanian striker Regi Lushkja (8’, 11’), Mehdi Hashemnejad (40’), Daniel Esmaeilifar (45+3’), and Masoud Kazemian (48’) were all on target.

The result came as a surprise given Sharjah’s solid start to the campaign, having beaten Al-Gharafa 4-3 and drawn 1-1 with Al-Sadd.

Tractor, who have now faced three UAE clubs in succession — drawing 1-1 with Shabab Al-Ahli in Dubai and 0-0 with Al-Wahda in Tabriz — climbed to third with 5 points, while Sharjah dropped to sixth with 4.