Both Al-Nassr of Saudi Arabia and Al-Sadd of Qatar secured valuable away draws, giving them a relative advantage in their quest to reach the AFC Champions League quarterfinals.<\/p>
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In the first leg of the Round of 16, Al-Nassr played out a goalless draw against Esteklal in Tehran, while Al-Wasl and Al-Sadd ended their encounter in Dubai with a 1-1 stalemate.<\/p>
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Al-Nassr played without their Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo due to a technical decision, as Italian coach Stefano Pioli opted to rest him for upcoming matches.<\/p>
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Despite his absence, the Saudi side achieved an important result ahead of their home leg next Monday. They returned to Tehran, where they had previously drawn 0-0 with Persepolis in the final group-stage match, but they couldn't replicate their earlier 1-0 victory over Esteklal from matchday three on October 22, when Spanish defender Aymeric Laporte\u2014who missed this match due to injury\u2014scored the winner.<\/p>
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However, Al-Nassr has yet to rediscover winning form, having suffered a local 2-1 defeat to Al-Orouba in the Saudi Pro League. They have now lost two of their last three league matches.<\/p>
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Despite the scoreless result, Al-Nassr dominated most of the game and posed the greater attacking threat, coming closest through Colombian striker Jhon Dur\u00e1n, who struck the right post in the 69th minute.<\/p>
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Esteklal have also endured a turbulent period, losing 2-1 to Persepolis in the Iranian league last Thursday, effectively ending their local title hopes. They only secured their Round of 16 spot on the final group-stage matchday by defeating Al-Rayyan 2-0, having gone six consecutive continental games without a win. Meanwhile, Al-Nassr finished third in the unified West Asian group behind fellow Saudi clubs Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli.<\/p>
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Al-Sadd, on the other hand, returned from Dubai with a crucial 1-1 draw against Al-Wasl, with the two sides set to meet again in Doha next Monday.<\/p>
Ali Saleh put Al-Wasl ahead just three minutes into the game, but substitute Abdullah Al-Yazidi equalized for Al-Sadd in the 68th minute.<\/p>
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This was their third encounter of the season after drawing 1-1 in Dubai during the group stage and Al-Wasl winning 1-0 in Doha in the Qatar-UAE Super Cup.<\/p>
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The game was packed with action from the very beginning. Al-Wasl struck early when Ali Saleh dispossessed Malian defender Mohamed Camara, dribbled past Pedro Miguel, and fired past goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham in the third minute.<\/p>
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Al-Wasl continued to press, with Al-Sadd defender Ahmed Suhail making a crucial block to deny Brazilian forward Jo\u00e3o Pedro in the ninth minute.<\/p>
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Saleh then squandered a golden opportunity in the 21st minute, firing over the crossbar despite being unmarked inside the box.<\/p>
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Al-Sadd responded through Spanish forward Rafa Mujica, but Al-Wasl\u2019s Moroccan goalkeeper Khalid Al-Sanani\u2014starting in place of Anas Zniti, who was signed specifically for international competitions\u2014made a brilliant save in the 26th minute.<\/p>
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Barsham later denied Malian midfielder Siaka Sidib\u00e9 from doubling Al-Wasl\u2019s lead, pushing his effort out for a corner that led to a goalmouth scramble, with Jo\u00e3o Pedro and Fabio Lima both having shots cleared off the line in the 47th minute.<\/p>
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Al-Wasl paid the price for their missed chances when Al-Sadd found the equalizer in the 68th minute. Akram Afif delivered a pinpoint cross that Al-Yazidi headed past Al-Sanani to level the score.<\/p>","continue_text":"Continue Reading","main_heading":"Blog"},"yoast_head":"\n