We know that if we lose in the final then this has no meaning, but I firmly believe that if we come together and give everything we have again then we can go all the way and become champions.

Kashima Antlers Brazilian star Serginho has eyes on the prize after their dramatic 6-5 aggregate victory over Suwon Samsung Bluewings following a 3-3 draw in Korea Republic.

Persepolis advanced to the final for the first time following a 1-1 draw in their semi-final second leg against Qatar’s Al Sadd in Tehran on Tuesday, which gave them a 2-1 aggregate win.

Persepolis, who edged Al Sadd 1-0 in the first leg in Doha earlier this month, went behind after Baghdad Bounedjah’s strike in the 17th minute at the Azadi Stadium.

Nemati was the hero at Azadi Stadium on Tuesday as the midfielder volleyed home an equaliser early in the second half to level the scores at 1-1 on the night and, after the Tehran side won the first leg 1-0, his strike proved enough to secure a place in the final against Japan’s Kashima Antlers.

Persepolis will be the first Iranian team to appear in the final since Zobahan in 2010, while Sepahan also played in the showpiece event in 2007, but both sides suffered defeats and, with the competition now in its 16th edition, the Islamic Republic of Iran is still seeking its first title.

Kashima took a 1-0 lead on the night to leave them 4-2 ahead on aggregate, but after conceding three goals in nine second half minutes it looked as though they were heading for a dramatic exit from the competition.

The 23-year-old revealed that the players staged a get-together after falling behind though, stressing the need to keep their heads and not let Suwon’s growing momentum knock them off course.

“We were all saying that we needed to calm down and regain our composure,” he said of the exchange. “We knew if we could pull level (on aggregate) then we’d be back in with a chance, and I’m delighted we were able to do that.”

The Montenegrin created history by going joint-top of the all-time AFC Champions League scoring charts with his 37th continental goal.

It was, however, a bittersweet achievement with Suwon Samsung Bluewings' 3-3 draw not enough to see them progress to the final, losing out to Kashima 6-5 on aggregate.

Damjanovic had four attempts on goal, with his ninth strike of the tournament coming from one shot on target. In addition to his goal, the 37-year-old also created two chances for teammates, earning him a rating of 7.6.

Second in this week’s ranking is Damjanovic's teammate Lim Sang-hyub (below), who was also on target in the roller-coaster tie at Suwon World Cup Stadium.

As the final whistle went at the Azadi Stadium, Iraqi midfielder Bashar Resan broke into tears, overwhelmed by a huge result that came just days after his mother had passed away.

Resan had been on international duty with Iraq in the past week when he received the news about the bereavement.

The Tehran side began the match with a one-goal advantage from the first leg in Doha and an expectant Azadi Stadium was full to capacity, generating an atmosphere that would have rivalled anything the competition has ever see.

But they were stunned into silence inside 20 minutes when the tournament’s top scorer Baghdad Bounedjah swept home his record-equaling 13th of the campaign. Persepolis raised their game after the interval and hit back in the 49th minute as Siamac Nemati volleyed in Godwin Mensha’s cross with what proved the decisive goal.