Qatar’s giants Al Sadd produced a remarkable comeback performance to defeat Al Hilal 4-2 on penalties after a dramatic 3-3 draw following extra time in the Round of 16 of the AFC Champions League Elite 2025/26 at Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Sports City Stadium, Jeddah.
Fresh from clinching the Qatar Stars League title earlier in the day, Al Sadd began confidently against an Al Hilal side missing defensive stalwart Kalidou Koulibaly.
Midfielder Mohamed Camara forced an early save from Yassine Bounou with a swerving long-range effort in the third minute, while Roberto Firmino nearly capitalised on the rebound.
However, the Saudi powerhouse gradually gained control and broke the deadlock in the 29th minute when Sergej Milinković-Savić finished calmly from Theo Hernandez’s determined cutback.
Al Sadd needed only seven minutes to respond. A defensive mistake allowed Romain Saïss to flick the ball into the path of Claudinho, who delicately lifted his finish over Bounou to level the tie before halftime.
Al Hilal regained the lead in the 55th minute when Portuguese midfielder Rúben Neves delivered a superb pass to Salem Al-Dawsari, who coolly slotted the ball into the bottom corner.
But once again, Al Sadd answered almost immediately. Just three minutes later, Rafael Mujica surged onto Claudinho’s through ball and fired past Bounou from a tight angle to restore parity.
The match continued to swing back and forth when substitute Marcos Leonardo, introduced by coach Simone Inzaghi, struck just two minutes after entering the pitch. The Brazilian forward finished a cutback from Karim Benzema to give Al Hilal their third lead of the night.
Yet Al Sadd refused to surrender. A rapid throw-in sparked another attack down the right flank, where Augustin Soria delivered a precise cross for Firmino to head home and make it 3-3, sending the tie into extra time.
Extra time produced few clear chances, the closest arriving in the 114th minute when Pablo Marí fired narrowly wide from inside the box.
The match was eventually settled in a tense penalty shootout. Firmino missed Al Sadd’s opening attempt, but failures from Benzema and Saimon Bouabre shifted the momentum.
Al Sadd captain Akram Afif then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure a 4-2 shootout victory and send the Qatari champions into the quarter-finals.
The victory keeps Al Sadd’s continental ambitions alive and sets up a high-stakes quarter-final encounter with Vissel Kobe, one of Japan’s strongest clubs.
Credit Photo : Al Sadd
