Goals from Mohammad Naderi, Farshid Esmaeili and Cheick Diabaté at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium steered the Tehran giants to their second win in Group C, with Esteghlal's task seemingly made easier following Hussam Kadhim's red card in the 11th minute.

The result made it two wins on the trot for Esteghlal - who had defeated Al Ahli Saudi FC 5-2 in their opener - but Majidi said his side had to fight hard to get past a determined Al Shorta.

Michael Olunga gave the Qatar side the lead before the break but Al Ahli striker Omar Al Soma scored a stoppage time equaliser to salvage his side a point.

The result meant Al Duhail - who had opened their campaign with a 2-0 win over Al Shorta of Iraq - trail group leaders Esteghlal FC of Islamic Republic of Iran by two points heading into their clash on Wednesday.

In what was considered a Central Asian derby, the back-and-forth encounter at the King Fahd International Stadium saw Istiklol take the lead heading into the break after AGMK’s Jovan Djokic conceded an own goal in added time, with Dzhalilov doubling their advantage in the 55th minute with a fine header.

AGMK quickly bounced back with Zafar Polvonov reducing the deficit two minutes later, only for Muhammadjon Rahimov to reclaim Istiklol’s two-goal lead by the 80th minute. Polvonov scored his second goal of the night in the final minute, but it only served as a consolation as Istiklol walked away with all three points.

Clinical finishes in the first half from Bafétimbi Gomis and André Carrillo gave the 2019 AFC Champions League winners a lead that never came under any threat as Al Hilal sealed their first win of this year's competition after being held 2-2 by AGMK FC of Uzbekistan on Matchday One.

Inspired by former Paykan FC striker Shahriyar Moghanlou – on loan from Portuguese side CD Santa Clara – the Iranian champions made a statement of intent as they came from a goal down to defeat their Qatari opponents 3-1 at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

The-AFC.com dives into some of the key takeaways from the game.

Goals from last year’s top scorer Abderazak Hamdallah and second half substitutes Abdulmajeed Al-Sulaiheem and Khalid Al-Ghannam gave 2020 semi-finalists Al Nassr their first victory of this year's campaign, having opened with a 0-0 draw against Jordan's Al Wehdat.

Qatar champions Al Sadd, meanwhile, are still seeking their first win after needing a last gasp equaliser to salvage a point against Foolad Khouzestan FC of Islamic Republic of Iran on Matchday One.

FC Goa secured their second draw on the trot, having registered an identical scoreline against Qatar’s Al Rayyan on Matchday One, while Al Wahda picked up their first point of their AFC Champions League campaign.