1 defeat to Esteghlal of Iran in a Group B match, Al-Nasr qualified to the knockout stage of the Asian Champions League at Azadi Stadium in Tehran Wednesday. Kuwaiti striker of Nasr, Badr Al-Muttaw'a, put his team in the lead in the 59th minute before Esteghlal skipper Farhad Majidi leveled the score two minutes later. However, Iraqi striker of the host team, Hawar Mulla Zeebari, made the difference in the 89th minute. Nasr and Esteghlal collected eight points, each. They also shared the same number of points and goals in their encounters against each other, as Nasr won 2-1 in Riyadh. However, the total scoring of goals in all matches made Nasr second in the group. Nasr had scored ten goals and received seven while Esteghlal had scored 11 but received 10. In Round 16 of the competition, Nasr will play against leader of Group D, Zobahan of Iran. Later, Al-Hilal also qualified following a 2-0 win over visitor Al-Gharrafa of Qatar in a Group A match at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. Following a corner kick, striker Yassir Al-Qahtani headed in to put Hilal in the lead. In the 82nd minute, an unmarked midfielder Ahmed Al-Furaidy sealed the Blue Wave's win. The win took Hilal to the knockout phase (second position) where the blue team will meet Al-Ittihad (Group C leader), in a Saudi confrontation at the latter's pitch. Elsewhere, a trademark free kick by Yasuhito Endo delivered Gamba Osaka a 2-0 win over Tianjin Teda in Group E and a place in the knockout stage. Frustrated by a sodden pitch and an opponent that defended in numbers, Gamba looked like making a shock early exit from the competition until Japan playmaker Endo curled a free kick around the wall and into the top right corner in the 73rd minute to make it 1-0. Tianjin had been intent on securing a draw that would have delivered home advantage in the one-leg round of 16, and Arie Haan's side showed its attacking hand only after falling behind. With Tianjin committing men forward, Gamba substitute Shoki Hirai broke clear in the dying seconds and was brought down by Tianjin goalkeeper Yang Qipeng, who was sent off. Highly regarded youngster Takashi Usami converted the penalty. The win moved Gamba to the top of Group E, ahead of Tianjin on goal difference. The result rendered as meaningless the outcome of the other Group E game between Jeju United and Melbourne Victory, which ended 1-1. Meanwhile in Group F, Hangzhou Greentown scored an injury-time equalizer to snatch a 1-1 draw at home against Seoul, denting the Korean club's hopes of taking top spot in the group. The point was enough to allow Seoul to move into the top spot, after Al Ain beat Japan's Nagoya Grampus 3-1. In Group B, Al-Sadd of Qatar qualified. Al-Sadd was held by Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan 1-1 while Esteghlal of Iran went out of the competition with a 2-1 win over Al-Nasr. Foolad Sepahan of Iran continued its dominance of Group A, hammering hapless Al-Jazira of the UAE 4-1 to end in the top spot. Al-Ansar, Hajr to qualify Al-Ansar team joined Hajr to qualify for the Zain Saudi Premier League after winning 3-1 over visitor Abha in the last round of the Saudi first division League at Al-Ansar Club Stadium Wednesday. Al-Madina-based Al-Ansar had collected 55 points during the 30 encounters while Hajr got 63 points. The two teams will now replace the last two teams on the standings of Zain Saudi Professional League, one of which, as yet, is Al-Hazm.
