AFC Champions League Elite - Inzaghi pleased with Al Hilal’s perfect start

Qarshi: Al Hilal SFC made it two wins out of two in their AFC Champions League Elite™ 2025/26 League Stage campaign with head coach Simone Inzaghi firmly believing the Saudi Arabia side are on the right track.

Inzaghi saw his Al Hilal side given a stern test by PFC Nasaf - having twice surrendered leads before Marcos Leonardo’s 79th minute strike secured a 3-2 win - with the Italian praising the performance of his charges.

#ACLElite | PFC Nasaf (UZB) 2-3 Al Hilal SFC (KSA)

“It was a good match, played at a high tempo,” said Inzhagi. “The team delivered an excellent performance. We should have finished it off earlier, because we created so many chances.

“They produced very little, but on the two occasions they did, they managed to score: the first was a stunning strike from 30 metres and on the second, we could have defended better.

“I received excellent responses from all the players I called upon. After two matches, we have six points, which was our objective, and we are happy.”

Ruzikul Berdiev was left bemused after his Nasaf side - for a second consecutive match - scored twice against a Saudi Arabian side yet finished empty-handed, having lost 4-2 to Al Ahli Saudi FC on Matchday One.

“Today, the level and rank spoke for themselves,” said head coach Berdiev. “We lost to a stronger team. Nevertheless, I would like to thank the guys for their hard work.

“We could have made some changes in some situations. If we had Alibek Davronov and Murodbek Rahmatov in our lineup, we would have played even better.”

Al Hilal have a home tie against Qatar’s Al Sadd SC next while Nasaf take on UAE’s Shabab Al Ahli, with both matches to be played on October 21.

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