The draw at the Al Janoub Stadium kept alive Shabab Al Ahli’s knockout stage hopes, with the UAE side having to defeat defending champions Al Hilal SFC and needing Islamic Republic of Iran's Shahr Khodro FC to deny Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan a win in Wednesday's final round of Group B matches.

The defending AFC Champions League winners produced a gritty display in their 0-0 Group B draw with Shahr Khodro on Sunday, earning the point which sealed their passage to the Round of 16.

It was a magnificent feat as it was achieved with only 14 players in the matchday squad and those who played said they were proud to have advanced despite the challenging situation the Saudi Pro League champions were in.

The previous match between the two sides took place on Matchday One, when Pakhtakor edged the UAE Pro League side thanks to Dragan Ceran’s effort 20 minutes from time instantly after Pedro Conde had cancelled out Jaloliddin Masharipov’s early chip.

A win for the Tehran-based side would mean a guaranteed place in the knockout stage for the third time in four years, while Al Duhail can overtake their opponents into the top spot should they beat them and Al Taawoun fail to defeat Sharjah in the other Monday fixture.

The 2018-19 UAE Pro League winners had collected just one point from their two games in February, but have since added three more, narrowly losing to Al Duhail 2-1 then overpowering them 4-2 on Matchday Four of Group C, leaving them two points behind their Monday opponents and three off the top of the group.

Cape Verde pair Ryan Mendez and Ricardo Gomes left the team in the summer, and Brazilian pair Welliton and Caio were brought in. The latter had appeared in four previous editions of the AFC Champions League, racking 23 appearances in the colours of Kashima Antlers and Al Ain whom he had helped to the final in 2016.

Al Nassr have already sealed qualification to the Round of 16 after collecting full points from their double header against Sepahan FC in the previous two matchdays, while Al Sadd came out of their own fixtures against Al Ain with four points, meaning they are a win away from advancing to the next round.

Sepahan sit in third place, trailing second-placed Al Sadd SC by five points and require a win along with group leaders Al Nassr doing them a favour when they face the Qatari side to stand any chance of qualification going into the final matchday.

Despite Al Ain losing three of their four games so far, Sepahan assistant coach Mojtaba Toutouni had no doubts about the abundance of quality in the Emirati side’s ranks.