However, despite the large margin of victory on paper, the Riyadh heavyweights did not have it all their own way in the second leg in Oman on Tuesday night.
\nDifferent Style, Same Efficiency
\nAl Hilal lined up in an unfamiliar 5-4-1 formation as they anticipated Persepolis to go all-out attempting to turn around a four-goal disadvantage. Salman Al Faraj and Nicolas Milesi shielded the back five while the attacking endeavours were left for Carlos Eduardo, Salem Al Dawsari and Omar Khribin.
\nThe trio moved centrally to shorten the distances between them when in possession and their swift attacking combinations delivered on the counter. Khribin was once again on form, scoring twice as Al Hilal demonstrated their efficiency in front of goal with a 37.5% shooting accuracy compared to Persepolis\u2019 25%.
\nEduardo\u2019s trickery and Al Dawsari\u2019s pace unsettled Persepolis defence. The latter had a chance to nip a winner for Al Hilal five minutes from time after he broke free inside area but was denied by the post.
\nCross, Cross and Cross Again
", "headline": "Analysis: Al Hilal fend-off Persepolis attacks to stay unbeaten", "description": "Muscat:\u00a0Saudi Arabia\u2019s Al Hilal returned to the second AFC Champions League final in four years after defeating Islamic Republic of\u00a0Iran\u2019s Persepolis 6-2 on aggregate in the semi-final.\r\n", "author": { "@type": "Organization", "url": "https://www.the-afc.com/", "name": "the AFC" }, "image": "https://assets.the-afc.com/migration/l/k/lkvit8h7bmhkr7djq06u.jpg", "isAccessibleForFree": true, "datePublished": "2017-10-20", "url": "www.the-afc.com/en/club/afc_champions_league/news/analysis_al_hilal_fend-off_persepolis_attacks_to_stay_unbeaten.html" }
