The Portuguese opted to rest talisman Abdelrazaq Hamdallah, Australian goalkeeper Brad Jones and both starting full-backs Abdulrahman Al Obaid and Sultan Al Ghannam for the encounter as Al Nassr try to balance their pursuit of a knockout stage berth with a domestic league title race that is reaching its climax.

The Riyadh-based side were still able to dominate from start to finish and cruise to a 3-1 win, with Giuliano netting his third of the campaign before youngster Fahad bin Jumayah broke his AFC Champions League duck and Abdullah Al Salim rounded off the scoring with his second this season.

One of the games of the tournament so far witnessed some excellent attacking play as honours ended even and the fate of the sides remained in the balance.

The Qatari side needed a single point from their trip to Tehran to book their place in the next stage, and they got exactly that. Roozbeh Cheshmi put Esteghlal in front in the 53rd minute, but Al Duhail responded within two minutes thanks to Edmilson’s maiden AFC Champions League goal.

“We worked hard in training in the build up to this match and it showed with our display on the pitch and the way we imposed our football on the opponents,” said the 43-year-old.

Syafiq Ahmad’s solitary goal 69 minutes into the game sealed a remarkable 1-0 victory for the Malaysian Super League champions, who became the first team from the country to win a game in the group phase of the AFC Champions League.

That it came against the reigning Continental kings – and without suspended striker Diogo – made it all the more significant and Mora was delighted with a performance that keeps the club’s slim hopes of progressing to the knockout rounds alive.

Ahead of Matchday Five, Italian striker Graziano Pelle had scored in every one of Shandong Luneng's 2019 AFC Champions League fixtures, and the loss of this year's second highest scorer in the competition would have been keenly felt ahead of the visit of their opponents from Korea Republic.

And, indeed, it proved a struggle from the outset with Shandong forced to opt for a different setup, with three midfielders behind a lone frontman as oppose to their usual 4-4-2 formation.

The result leaves Frontale in third place in Group H, one point behind SIPG and adrift of already-qualified Ulsan Hyundai with only one round of matches remaining.

And that means Kawasaki must defeat Sydney FC in Australia on May 21 and hope SIPG do not win their clash with the club from Korea Republic due to be played on the same day at Shanghai Stadium.

The hosts went into the game in second place in the Group G standings, two points behind their opponents and three ahead of Urawa Red Diamonds with two games to play.

But Korea Republic international Kim Shin-wook’s first-half goal proved decisive as the 1-0 victory for the two-time champions sealed top spot, while Urawa’s 2-1 win over Buriram United saw the Japanese team move above Beijing on goal difference.