All the goals were scored in the second half, with Ashkan Dejagah opening his side’s account from the spot on 53 minutes while teammate Mohammad Abbaszadeh doubled the tally three minutes later.

With 20 minutes left on the clock, Pakhtakor mounted a tremendous comeback with Dragan Ceran halving the deficit before Sharof Mukhitdinov’s thunderous strike six minutes later equalised for the Uzbek side. Pakhtakor went a goal up thanks to Hojimat Erkinov before Abbaszadeh converted a penalty for his second goal of the night to restore parity and round off the goal fest in Sharjah.

After a shy start to the game from both sides, it was Pakhtakor who took the initiative at the quarter-hour mark as Dragan Ceran advanced down the middle and supplied a fine through pass for Erin Derdiok who fired low from inside the box, but Tractor goalkeeper Mohammadreza Akhbari produced a quick save with his feet at the near post.

Sharjah saw the bulk of possession in a cagey opening 15 minutes, but it was Air Force Club who had the first chance of the game as Ibrahim Bayesh looked to test the goalkeeper from range, but his eighth minute effort was deflected off defender Abdullah Ghanim and collected by Adel Al Hosani.

The two sides exchanged chances midway through the half with striker Ayman Hussein powering through and taking a pop from a narrow angle, forcing a save out of Al Hosani and winger Caio responded in kind at the other end of the pitch as Air Force Club’s Fahad Taleb produced his first save of the night.

The two met at the same stage last season with Saudi Arabia's Al Ahli winning 2-1 on Matchday Two and Esteghlal of Islamic Republic of Iran responding with a 3-0 triumph on the final matchday.

Both advanced to the knockout stage, with Al Ahli's campaign ending in the quarter-finals while Esteghlal exited the competition in the Round of 16.

Coming into the tournament as champions of the Tajik League, debutants Istiklol will be eager for their first taste of AFC Champions League group stage football but in Shabab Al Ahli, they will face a team appearing in the continental showpiece for the eighth time, setting the stage for an enticing tie at the King Fahd International Stadium.

A COVID-19 outbreak in the squad forced Al Hilal to withdraw from last year's competition, which meant the Saudi Pro League champions could not defend the AFC Champions League title won in 2019.

The 2019 crown was added to the earlier Asian Club Championship titles Al Hilal had in their trophy cabinet and for Uzbekistan's AGMK, the tie at the Prince Faisal Bin Fahd Stadium promises to be tough test in their competition debut.