Brave Al Ahli beaten by 'lucky' Al Hilal

Al Ahli have not given up their hopes of going into the next round of the AFC Champions League despite having just one point from four matches in Group D.

Coach Nooreddine Al Obaidy was happy with his side's performance after losing 3-2 against Saudi giants Al Hilal on Tuesday night.

"We played well against a strong team, losing in the last minute. We also showed fighting spirit coming back from 2-0 down," he said. "But for our bad luck they scored with a last minute goal."

Al Hilal coach Eric Gerets admitted that they were fortunate to win via Lee Young-pyo's stoppage-time strike.

Yasser Al Qahtani and Christian Wilhelmsson handed Al Hilal a two-goal cushion after just 16 minutes at Al Rashid Stadium. But Ahmed Khalil pulled a goal back for the hosts just before half-time, before Cesar got the equaliser.

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