DUBAI: There is a sense that Al-Hilal are not just playing for themselves tonight, not even for Saudi Arabia, but for the entire region which, since the Champions League changed to its current format in 2003, has produced only four winners. Here Arab News looks at the quartet of Arab sides who can provide some inspiration to the Riyadh giants before they step on the pitch tonight.
AL-AIN (2003)
Al-Ain’s route to the final was an impressive one. The Boss saw off Al-Hilal, Al-Sadd and Esteghal in the group stage before a supremely entertaining tie with Chinese side Dalian Shide in the semi-final. A 4-2 first-leg victory looked to have put the UAE side in the driving seat but 87 minutes into the second leg they were 4-2 down and heading for a 6-6 aggregate draw and extra time. Then Iranian Farhad Majidi popped up to grab the decisive goal and book a spot in the final.
Spearheaded by UAE captain Mohamed Omar, the Emirati side went on to beat Thailand’s BEC Tero Sasana 2-0 in the first leg. A 1-0 loss in the return leg in Bangkok was enough for Al-Ain to claim a maiden continental crown, the first for a UAE side.
AL-ITTIHAD (2004)
The trophy would stay in the Gulf for another two years thanks to Saudi powerhouse Al-Ittihad. In the 2004 final, they prevailed in a ding-dong between two commanding domestic champions. The Jeddah-based outfit had won the previous season’s Saudi league by 14 points from Al-Shabab while Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma had a mammoth 19-point gap as they took the K-League title. The South Koreans carried that form into the continental competition, sweeping all before them on the way to the final, including a ruthless 11-2 aggregate annihilation of Sharjah in the quarter-finals. A 3-1 victory in the first leg of the final in Saudi Arabia seemed insurmountable for Al-Ittihad but an unforgettable night in Seongam was to follow.
In an incredible turnaround, the Saudis scored five unanswered goals in front of a stunned Korean crowd. Hamzah Idris, Redha Tukar and a Mohammed Noor brace took the score to 4-0 before a 95th-minute goal from Manaf Abushgeer put the icing on the cake.
AL-ITTIHAD (2005)
Twelve months later and the Jeddah giants were back for more, to become only the fourth side to win back-to-back titles. Former Inter Milan striker Mohammed Kallon was the undisputed star, scoring six goals in the knockout stages. The Sierra Leonean’s late equalizer in the first leg of the final against Al-Ain was arguably the tipping point of the tie and he added another in the second leg, his fine free-kick in Jeddah setting the reigning champions on the way to a convincing 4-2 victory and the successful defense of their crown.
AL-SADD (2011)
It was six long years before a Gulf team triumphed again, with Al-Sadd putting Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors to the sword in arguably the most enthralling final seen in the competition’s history. Coming at a time when the AFC implemented a one-off game, for which the venue was controversially drawn, Jeonbuk were handed the early psychological edge as their Jeonju Stadium was picked to play host to the final.
But Al-Sadd ultimately came out on top of a topsy-turvy affair. Jeonbuk grabbed an early lead before an own goal from Sim Woo-Yeon and an Abdel-Kader Keïta strike put the Qataris 2-1 up. Lee Seung-Hyun agonisingly snatched victory away with a 92nd minute equalizer but Al-Sadd regrouped to edge out the South Koreans on penalties.
