Regragui, who joins Al Duhail from Moroccan outfit FUS Rabat, replaces Rui Faria with the Portuguese having left three days ago due to personal reasons.

Murod Khalmukhamedov put the hosts ahead with an early penalty before Humoyun Murtozaev scored a second half brace, with Boburbek Farkhadov also finding the net in a dominant display from Vadim Abramov’s side.

Bunyodkor’s win sets up an away clash with Emirati outfit Al Ain next Tuesday, with the Tashkent club to return to the group stage for the first time since 2017 with another victory.

Stephan Schrock claimed the only goal of the game when the midfielder’s ball into the penalty area six minutes into the second half was punched over his own line by Port FC goalkeeper Worawut Srisupa and Ceres will now take on Japan’s FC Tokyo for a place in the group phase of this year’s competition.

Kedah flexed their muscles at the Darulaman Stadium with Tchetche Kipre grabbing a hat-trick and Hadin Azman scoring twice to seal a comprehensive win as the 2019 Malaysia FA Cup champions earned a Playoff round tie against Korea Republic's FC Seoul next Tuesday.

Burriam broke the deadlock in the second half through goals from Bernardo Cuesta and Ricardo Bueno, while Hochiminh scored a late consolation through Pape Diakite.

The Thailand side will now face Shanghai SIPG of China PR in next week's Playoff with the winners to advance to Group H alongside Australia's Sydney FC, Yokohama F. Marinos of Japan and Korea Republic side Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors.

Tajikistan’s reigning player of the year, Dzhalilov lived up to his billing with a swerving strike just before the hour mark, taking the 2015 AFC Cup runners-up a step closer to their first ever AFC Champions League group stage appearance in the continent’s top club competition.

The result comes as a severe blow for Lokomotiv, whose defeat sees them miss out on the group stage for the first time since 2014.

The club issued a statement on its official website that Faria, who hails from Portugal, had decided to leave the team due to personal reasons.