There was nothing to separate the two giants three weeks ago in Jeddah as Ittihad failed to score for the first time in the competition this year, while the stalemate meant Al Hilal had gone 180 minutes without finding the back of the net.

Both teams have stumbled in their last domestic appearance; Al Hilal were held to a 1-1 draw by Al Fayha on Saturday, while Al Ittihad were stunned 2-1 by newly promoted side Damac a day earlier.

Having already reached a new milestone by qualifying for their first-ever quarter-final, Al Nassr will have to hold on to their 2-1 home win from the first leg if they are to eliminate the 2011 AFC Champions League winners.

A fortnight ago in Riyadh, Rui Vitoria’s men had overturned an Ali Asad goal for the Qataris to walk away with a valuable victory thanks to goals from Abdulrahman Al Dossari and Giuliano either side of the half-time break.

Attacking intent was present at both ends of the pitch, but clear-cut chances were few and far between for either side.

Al Ittihad were hoping to get a first win over their arch rivals since 2016, while Al Hilal were determined to lay the foundations for a third semi-final appearance in the last five years.

The last eight tie is finely poised after the first leg of the 'Saudi Clasico' ended 0-0 three weeks ago and Chilean Villanueva, speaking after Al Ittihad fell to a shock 2-1 defeat to Damac in the Saudi Pro League on Friday, said the Jeddah-based club can't afford a similar performance against Al Hilal.

All four quarter-finals are finely poised with only Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr ahead on aggregate - albeit by just one goal - after the first meetings last month.

As such, Qatar's Al Sadd, Saudi pair Al Hilal and Al Ittihad, Urawa Red Diamonds and Kashima Antlers of Japan along with Chinese Super League duo Shanghai SIPG and Guangzhou Evergrande all remain in the running for a place in the final four.

Today (September 12) marks two years to the day since the Chinese giants clashed in one of the most dramatic second-leg encounters in the competition’s history on a truly memorable night at theTianhe Stadium. The-AFC.com looks back at how events unfolded.

The Riyadh-based side failed to score for the second game running in the competition, having lost the Round of 16 second leg 1-0 to Al Ahli earlier this month. They had scored in six consecutive matches prior to that.

Wingers Andre Carrillo and Salem Al Dawsari provided creativity down the two flanks and attacking pair Sebastian Giovinco and Bafetimbi Gomis combined well to create chances through the centre, but the Al Hilal players wasted chance after chance to a combination of profligacy and impressive goalkeeping by Al Ittihad’s Fawaz Al Qarni.